 Some old buildings, including the 13th-century mosque with its rectangular minaret still survive in the old city,

The libraries or 'document repositories' of Chinguetti contain hundreds of invaluable and well preserved medieval manuscripts, detailing commercial transactions, aspects of Koranic law and scientific observations.Ouadane is 128 km from Chinguetti and 180 km from Atar.Ouadane, or the city of the " two oueds" is an ancient settlement whose foundation dates back to 1140.