Mouassine Fountain

The Saadians built the Mouassine complex in the 1560s - mosque, madrasa, library, hammam and fountain together, a standard package for endowing a quarter - and the fountain is the part a non-Muslim visitor can still see properly, since the mosque itself is closed to them. It has four bays: three wide troughs for animals, because this was on the route into the souks and pack animals had to drink, and one narrower basin for people to fill jars from. Above them runs a canopy of carved cedar with an inscription and painted decoration, weathered but substantially there. The water was part of a charitable endowment and free at the point of use, which is what these fountains were for. It still functions as a street landmark rather than a monument: people pass it constantly, and it takes a moment to notice you are looking at something four hundred and fifty years old.

History

The Mouassine complex, with its mosque, library, ablutions hall, hammam, Qur'anic school and fountain, was built between 1562-63 and 1572-73 on the orders of the Saadian sultan Abdallah al-Ghalib, and its fountain is one of the largest in the medina, with those of the Bab Doukkala Mosque and the Shrob ou Shouf (Wikipedia, Mouassine Fountain).

What to look for

• Four bays - three animal troughs and one narrower basin for household water.
• A carved cedar canopy - inscribed and painted, weathered but largely intact.
• A Saadian endowment - part of a 1560s complex of mosque, madrasa and hammam.
• A working street - the fountain in constant use as a landmark rather than a monument.

When to go

October to April. Half an hour, in passing.

Good to know

It is a street fixture and easy to walk past - there is no entrance or interpretation. The adjacent mosque is closed to non-Muslims. The lane is narrow and busy with handcarts and mopeds. Photography of people around it needs asking.

Nearby

The Mouassine museum is a few steps away; the souks are north-east.

Key facts