Cisterns
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Cisterns are receptacles built with dry stone for catching and storing rainwater. They were built below ground in order to facilitate the collection of water and to keep it cool during the summer. Their walls and bottom were coated with lime to ensure watertightness. Cisterns were usually covered by a small domed-shaped construction or sometimes simply by flagstone, from which the bucket for drawing the water was often hung. A small wooden door prevented animals and dust from getting in.
They were often located next to a “mas”, a stone hut, or a porch, so that their roofs could be used to collect the rainwater, which was later stored. Nevertheless, cisterns could also be built independently, next to a terrace or a slope, where a small basin was constructed to collect the rainwater.