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 in 1117 or, more likely, 1125 as the ablution annexe of the Ben Youssef mosque, which was buried under later construction and only identified in 1947, 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.

History

The qubba stands about 40 metres south of the Ben Youssef Mosque, and its inscription says that the Almoravid ruler Ali ibn Yusuf built it, on a Wednesday, the 30th of Rabi I, in a year that is missing - most plausibly 1 August 1117 or, more likely, 6 May 1125. It was probably the ablutions pavilion of the mosque, then the main mosque of the city and since entirely rebuilt. French scholars first recorded it in 1947, Boris Maslow published notes on it in 1948, and Henri Terrasse and Jacques Meunié led excavations and studies in the following years, digging out the more than half of it that lay buried under seven to eight metres of debris and leaving it essentially as they found it (Wikipedia, Almoravid Qubba).

What to look for

• 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 1947 - identified under later construction rather than continuously known.

When to go

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

Things to know

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.

Key facts