Zana Dam & Karez Outflow System (Pishin Valley Headwaters)
Zana Band · Pishin Zana Dam · Karez-e-Zana Lora River
Ghaznavid to Durrani to British·Pishin Pashtun–Baloch valley tribal hydraulic engineers·🇵🇰 Balochistan Province, Pishin District, Zana pass headwaters of Lora River, Pishin Valley, Pakistan
About
About Zana Dam & Karez Outflow System (Pishin Valley Headwaters)
Headwaters rockfill dam + karez outflow hybrid (1,650 m) at Zana pass head of Pishin Valley, Balochistan, Pakistan—eastern analogue of Persian qanat but with dam-fed infiltration gallery. 2 km long with 45-110 shafts 12-24 m deep, gradient 1:1,000. Dam stores flash flood (July monsoon tongue + March westerly) then infiltration percolates to karez heads, doubling karez baseflow at dry season (C. J. Fox 1943 'Pishin karez' report). Built pre-Durrani ( Trad.
), rebuilt 1890 British Pishin cantonment. Karez-e-Zana irrigates 420 ha orchards (apricot, Karezg). Unlike pure qanat, dam–karez hybrid captures episodic desert storm. Threatened by Pishin tubewell drilling + Zana concrete dam replacement 2018 which buried original bund.
Why it mattersDam–karez hybrid (not pure qanat) bridging Arabian dam and Persian qanat schools; pre-British 900 CE claim.
Open questions
Mysteries & theories
Mysteries
- 01900 CE dating Ghaznavid vs oral
Theories
- 01Hybrid vs conventional karez functional gain
Theories are interpretations, not findings. The seal above tells you how much scholarly weight the place carries.
History
How it came to be
- Built
- c.900 CE (trad. Ghaznavid) with British 1890 rebuild; 2018 concrete overbuild
- Period
- Ghaznavid to Durrani to British
- Culture
- Pishin Pashtun–Baloch valley tribal hydraulic engineers
- Builders
- Zana tribal Karez masters + 1890 British Irrigation Dept
- Purpose
- Torrential dam capture + slow infiltration to karez gallery sustaining Pishin orchard oasis beyond desert storm season
- Abandoned
- Partially overbuilt 2018
- Rediscovered
- 1890 Fox survey; 1943 Pishin karez report; 2018 overbuild
- Excavation
- Unexcavated
900
Ghaznavid? bund at Zana pass torrent head
1890
British Pishin cantonment rebuild dam + 3 karez
1943
Fox 'Pishin karez' dam–karez hybrid model published
2018
Concrete replacement buries 40 m of original bund
On the ground
Structures & features
30.8800° N · 67.1200° E · 1650 m · 2 mapped features
Zana Rockfill Dam (88 m)
dam88-m clay-core rockfill dam at Zana torrent head with 140-m reservoir
30.8820° N · 67.1180° EZana Karez Gallery KZ-2 (4.2 km)
karez4.2-km 110-shaft gallery 24 m max deep tapping dam infiltration
30.8780° N · 67.1220° E
Gallery