Zīr

Zīrs operate on the same evaporative principle as ullal but are much larger, with a barrel body and a pointed bottom. At around EGP 70, zīrs are a more expensive option, but like ullal, they are used until broken, then replaced. Because of their pointed bottom, zīrs are placed in frames, sometime made of cement and other times built from scrap lumber. A small plastic cup is often attached for scooping and drinking the water within. The flavor of this water is much like that from an ula, though some zīr proprietors add rose water, cut fruit, or fresh mint to their sabīls to improve its taste and scent on the principle that in charity, one should give the best they have－what they themselves would like to receive.

Zīr Photograph Gallery

A small zīr sits in a metal stand outside the door of a residential building. The zīr is covered with a piece of plywood. A light orange tabby cat is sitting next to the plastic bowls below the zīr set on the tile rim of the doorstep.

A mural of two zīrs and an ula tree is partially faded from an old stone wall.

An old zīr is set into a wooden frame and cushioned by an old tire. The clay zīr is covered by a black plastic lid and a light blue plastic cup is set on top. Large slabs of broken concrete wedge the wooden frame together.

Six red clay zīrs with white decorative bands sit in a row in wire stands and have been converted into planters and are filled with small palm trees. A dark brown mashrabiya window is behind the zīrs and a light green chair sits to the left.

An old clay zīr painted light blue sits on a metal frame in the shade of palm trees whose trunks have been painted the same light blue. A bright orange shelf sits beside it.

The outside wall of a residential building has a mural of a zīr painted on a white background with colorful flowers. The arm of a woman can be seen pointing to the ground in front of the mural.

An old clay zīr is wrapped in burlap and set upside down in a metal frame, seated between the trunk of a tree and a brick wall.

A young man in a black and white striped shirt sits to the left of a bare tree on the edge of a cliff filled with rubble. A zīr wrapped in burlap is tied to the tree and covered with a piece of plywood. In the background, the tops of buildings can be seen in the fog.