Almoravid Koubba

Marrakech was founded by the Almoravids in the eleventh century and almost nothing they built survives - the Almohads who took the city in 1147 demolished their predecessors' work systematically. The koubba is the exception: a small domed pavilion built around 1117 as the ablution annexe of the Ben Youssef mosque, which was buried under later construction and only identified in 1948, then excavated down to its original ground level several metres below the modern street. What matters about it is the vocabulary: inside the dome are the pointed and multi-lobed arches, the interlacing star pattern, the pine cone and palm motifs and the merlons that recur in Moroccan and Andalusian architecture for the next seven hundred years, appearing here in what is effectively their first surviving Moroccan statement. It is small - one room and a cistern - and its interest is entirely in that.

What you actually see

• The only Almoravid survivor - the sole building of that dynasty left in the city.
• A first statement - arch, star and merlon forms that shaped everything after.
• Excavated below street level - dug down several metres to its original ground.
• Found in 1948 - identified under later construction rather than continuously known.

When to go

October to April. An hour. Combine with the Ben Youssef madrasa alongside.

Honest expectations

It is one small room and the visit is short - the interest is architectural rather than spectacular. It is below street level and access involves steps. Entry is usually bundled with the madrasa. Explanation on site is minimal.

Nearby

The Ben Youssef madrasa and museum are adjacent; the souks are south.