conquest Taghaza was abandoned and Taoudenni, situated to the southeast and thus nearer to Timbuktu, took its place as the region's key salt producer. In 1828 the French explorer René Caillié stopped at Taghaza on his journey across the Sahara from Timbuktu. He was travelling with a large caravan that included 1,400 camels transporting slaves, gold, ivory, gum and ostrich feathers. At that date the ruins of houses constructed of salt bricks were still clearly visible. Ruins At Taghaza there are ruins of two different settlements, one on either side of the ancient salt lake (or sabkha). They are separated by a distance of 3 km. The larger more westerly settlement extended over an area of approximately 400 m by 200 m. All the houses, except the mosque, were aligned in a northwest to southeast direction, perpendicular to the prevailing wind. The houses in the more easterly settlement were aligned in the same manner and occupied an area of 200 m by 180 m. The reason for the dual settlements is not known but could be connected with Taghaza's service both as a salt mine and as a stopping point on an important trans-Saharan trade route. Climate Taghaza has a hyper-arid hot desert climate (Köppen BWh). It is one of the driest places on earth and one of the hottest during summer, only being behind Chenachène. The average high temperature in July is , which is 0.8°C higher than Furnace Creek, Death Valley, California, 0.3°C higher than Taoudenni and only 0.1°C cooler than Chenachène. See also Judar Pasha Saadi Dynasty Taoudenni Chenachène Notes References . Google books: Volume 1, Volume 2. . . . . Internet Archive: Volume 1, Volume 2, Volume 3. The original text of Pory's 1600 English translation together with an introduction and notes by the editor. . First published in 1981 by Cambridge University Press, . . Page 329 has a map showing the sabkha and the two settlements. Page 486 has plans of the settlements. Further reading . Taoudénit Region History of the Sahara History of salt Former populated places in Mali