Mahkama du Pacha

The Mahkama was built in 1941-1942 to house the pasha's court and official receptions, in the Habous quarter - a district designed under the protectorate in the 1920s as a planned new medina, with arcaded streets and traditional forms laid out on a modern plan. The building has around sixty-four rooms and halls arranged round courtyards, and its point is craft: every surface is carved cedar ceiling, chiselled plaster, zellige mosaic and wrought iron, executed by several hundred Moroccan artisans in the traditional techniques at a moment when those trades were under pressure, so it functions as a demonstration of what the crafts could still do at full scale. It is a working administrative building - a prefecture - which is why opening to visitors is irregular and depends on whether official business allows it. Ask at the door rather than assuming.

History

In January 1930 the pasha of Casablanca, At-Tayyib Al-Moqri, decided to build a courthouse in the Habous quarter, and the French architect Auguste Cadet designed it. Because modern materials such as steel and cement were scarce when it was built, in 1941-1942, it was raised by traditional methods, brick by brick, with zellige, stucco, carved cedar and green-tiled roofs (Wikipedia, Mahkamat al-Pasha).

What you'll find

• Sixty-four halls - courtyards and rooms built for a court and official receptions.
• Full traditional craft - carved cedar, chiselled plaster, zellige and ironwork throughout.
• A 1950s building - modern in date, entirely traditional in technique.
• The Habous quarter - a planned new medina of the 1920s around it.

When to go

October to April. An hour, if it is open.

Before you go

It is a working administrative building and opening is irregular - it may simply be shut. There is no ticket system; ask at the door. Photography inside is sometimes restricted. The Habous quarter around it is the consolation if it is closed.

Nearby

The Habous quarter's arcades and bookshops surround it; the royal palace is close.

Key facts