Mudbrick Houses, Shibam, Yemen, 2005

The city of Shibam, Yemen, rises from the Rub al Khali, or Empty Quarter, a sea of sand that occupies one-fifth of the Arabian Peninsula. The distinctive mud-brick skyscrapers that house Shibam's 5,000 residents have earned the city its nickname: "Manhattan of the Desert."

(Text adapted from and photo shot on assignment for, but not published in, "Empty Quarter: Exploring Arabia's Legendary Sea of Sand," February 2005, National Geographic magazine)

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