Bab Mansour

Moulay Ismail moved the capital to Meknes and spent fifty years building an imperial city there on a scale intended to rival anything in Europe; Bab Mansour, completed under his successor in 1732, is its ceremonial entrance and is generally described as the largest gate in North Africa. The composition is a huge horseshoe arch flanked by two projecting bastions carried on marble columns, with the whole surface above worked in zellige mosaic and carved stone in interlacing patterns, and a Kufic inscription band running across it. The marble columns were taken from the Roman ruins at Volubilis, thirty kilometres away, which was standard practice and is visible in the mismatch of the shafts. The architect was reportedly a Christian convert, El-Mansour, whose name it carries. It faces El Hedim square, which was cleared for the purpose and is still the city's gathering ground.

What you actually see

• The largest gate in North Africa - completed in 1732 as the imperial city's entrance.
• Roman columns reused - marble shafts brought from Volubilis, visibly mismatched.
• Full-surface zellige - mosaic and carved stone in interlacing patterns above the arch.
• El Hedim square - cleared as its forecourt and still the city's gathering place.

When to go

October to April; late afternoon light on the tilework. Half an hour.

Honest expectations

The gate is normally not passable - the working entrance is beside it, and the interior opens only for occasional exhibitions. The square in front is busy with hawkers and performers. Guides expect payment. Restoration scaffolding appears periodically.

Nearby

El Hedim square is in front; the imperial city and Moulay Ismail's mausoleum are through.