Water cisterns in south-eastern Iberia
Cisterns for storing water have been in use since time immemorial. They were of particular importance in areas with scarce water resources. This is the case in the south-east of the Iberian Peninsula, and in particular in the Region of Murcia. The Casón de Hacienda Riquelme has one situated outside the garden and close to it.
Water cisterns were necessary to make the most of the flow from springs and wells, as well as that resulting from heavy downpours. The water supply for homes – both in built-up areas and isolated rural dwellings – for livestock, and even for vegetable gardens, very often depended on them.
They required additional components. Various types of watercourses (inlets, water outlets or irrigation channels) were used for collecting water. Sedimentation pits were used to separate out solid matter. To access the water, there were water troughs, basins and drinking troughs.
There were cisterns of many different types and constructions, depending on their location, the purposes for which they had been built, and the possibilities for water collection. They were often covered to minimised evaporation and help keeping the water in better condition. There were flat roofs and barrel-vaulted enclosures, as at Hacienda Riquelme.
They were most commonly built of masonry using mortar, both for the walls and the vaults, although more recent constructions also incorporated brick. Waterproofing, both internally and externally, was achieved using a coating made from very fine sand or clay, which, like a patina, covered the various surfaces.
There were both communal and privately owned cisterns. Numerous by-laws regulated the proper use of the communal cisterns, giving priority to the daily drinking water needs of people and animals, followed by the irrigation of vegetable gardens and crops. These regulations also governed the maintenance and repair of the communal cisterns and associated infrastructure, which were the responsibility of the local councils.
A very important aspect was maintaining the water to a certain standard of quality. To prevent contamination, livestock were forbidden from passing through or grazing near the cistern inlets. To prevent the proliferation of insect larvae, a small fish—known specifically as the ‘cistern fish’—was often introduced, as it feeds on these larvae. As far back as Roman times, the classical Latin author Palladius stated that it was highly advisable to introduce and rear eels and river fish in these cisterns so that, through their swimming, the stagnant water would regain the movement of a current.
The cistern at Hacienda Riquelme
Due to the semi-arid climate of the south-east of the Iberian Peninsula and the chronic scarcity of surface water resources in this region, the survival and profitability of large agricultural estates depended entirely on the ability to collect and store every drop of available water. Cisterns were used for this purpose.
The one at Hacienda Riquelme is known to have been built before 1862. That year saw the opening of the Murcia–Cartagena railway line, which ran through the estate’s grounds, where Riquelme station was also located – now known as the Sucina stop. Contemporary accounts and images show that the cistern – a distinctive white structure – and the adjoining dovecote became true visual landmarks for train drivers and passengers approaching the station.
This cistern served both to supply water to the residents and servants of the estate’s mansion, known as El Casón, and to water the farm’s animals and for minor irrigation. Its use declined dramatically in the 20th century due to the introduction of new, modern drinking water mains.
It is a half-barrel vaulted cistern, the main structural feature of which is that it is much longer than it is wide. This design was the most common in the rural areas of the Campo de Cartagena and the Campo de Murcia. The sturdy vault covering it is built of solid ceramic brick (traditional roof tile brick) set with lime mortar. This outer roof protrudes from the ground in the shape of a curved ridge and was whitewashed on the outside to reflect the sun’s rays, keeping the interior cool and reducing evaporation.
Unlike domestic courtyard cisterns, this is a rural or plain cistern, designed to store large volumes of water. Its reservoir is dug below ground level.
The water it collected did not come from underground wells, but from rainwater (runoff and downpours) channelled from the roofs and surrounding dirt tracks via drainage channels. Its location, on the edge of El Casón’s outer garden, was at a lower point than the roof of the main house and the carriage courtyards, ensuring that all rainwater drained naturally towards the inlet or settling basin. The purpose of this was to settle out the sand and impurities carried by the rainwater before it entered the main reservoir, thereby keeping the water as clean as possible.
The inner walls of the cistern were lined with a traditional waterproof mortar made from lime, sand, red clay and resins. This mixture prevented both seepage into the ground and the premature spoilage of the stored water.
The visible part of the cistern features a protected outer parapet and semicircular arches at its opening, originally designed to accommodate the pulley system used to manually draw water using buckets.
Following the construction of the Hacienda Riquelme Golf Resort complex, which opened in 2008, the cistern was incorporated into the development and preserved as a valuable part of the estate’s ethnographic and historical heritage. However, at present (2026), it lies in a state of neglect.
Spanish terms used
boqueras (inlets), agüeras (water outlets), acequias (irrigation channels), poceta (small pools), brocales (well curbs), piletas (basins), abrevaderos (drinking troughs), mampostería (masonry), mortero (mortar), argamasa (grout), jaharrado (layer of plaster or mortar applied to the visible face of a masonry wall), majada (sheepfold)
Bibliography
Un aprovisionamiento tradicional de agua en el sureste ibérico: los aljibes (A traditional method of water supply in south-eastern Iberia: cisterns). Margarita Box Amorós
History of Hacienda Riquelme
