Abu Loza's Bath ()Abu Loza's Bath
''Saudi Tourism Multimedia Library''. Retrieved January 13, 2018. is a historic

Turkish bath A hammam ( ar, حمّام, translit=ḥammām, tr, hamam) or Turkish bath is a type of steam bath or a place of public bathing associated with the Islamic world. It is a prominent feature in the culture of the Muslim world and was inherited ...

Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in Western Asia. It covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and has a land area of about , making it the fifth-largest country in Asia, the second-largest in the A ...

. The bath utilizes

sulfur Sulfur (or sulphur in British English) is a chemical element with the symbol S and atomic number 16. It is abundant, multivalent and nonmetallic. Under normal conditions, sulfur atoms form cyclic octatomic molecules with a chemical formula ...

mineral water Mineral water is water from a mineral spring that contains various minerals, such as salts and sulfur compounds. Mineral water may usually be still or sparkling (carbonated/effervescent) according to the presence or absence of added gases. Tra ...

spring.الدرورة، علي. تاريخ الاحتلال البرتغالي للقطيف 1572-1521م. أبوظبي: المجمع الثقافي، (2001)المسلم، محمد سعيد (2002). واحة على ضفاف الخليج، القطيف. الدمام،المملكة العربية السعودية.أبو لوزة: حمّام حفره الكنعانيون وبناه العثمانيون.. وأهملته الآثار
''Qatif Oasis''. Retrieved January 13, 2018. It is located in the village of the Qatif Governorate.

History

Although the exact origin of the establishment is unknown, it is considered that it dates back to the 3rd century AH (10-11th century CE). Major renovation was conducted during the

Ottoman era The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...

and the Nejd era. The hamam takes the name from the water spring Ain Abu Loza, where people utilized the water to cure skin diseases and knuckle pains. The water spring was dug by the

Canaanites {{Cat main, Canaan See also: * :Ancient Israel and Judah Ancient Levant Hebrew Bible nations Ancient Lebanon 0050 Ancient Syria Wikipedia categories named after regions 0050 Phoenicia Amarna Age civilizations ...

. Majority of the customers who used the bath were pearl hunters and the people living in the

Qatif Castle Qal'at al-Qatif () or Qatif Castle was a historic castle in the city of Qatif, Saudi Arabia. Initial construction of the castle dates back to the third century by the Sassanids. It was then refurbished by the Ottomans and utilized as a defensive ...

, who were mostly traders. Today, although the hamam is under the supervision of the Ministry of Antiquity, it faces the danger of deterioration and depletion of water, which has been a concern for the first time in the history of the bath.

References

11th-century establishments in Asia Archaeological sites in Saudi Arabia Ottoman baths Tourist attractions in Saudi Arabia Public baths in the Arab world {{Saudi Arabia-stub