Tamnougalt Kasbah

Tamnougalt is a ksar in the palm groves just south of Agdz, and its kasbah is generally described as the oldest in the Draa - sixteenth century in origin, seat of the caid who administered justice for the valley, with a court room where cases were heard and cells below it. It is packed earth, several storeys, with painted ceilings in the reception rooms, carved plaster, and a good deal of collapse; a family shows visitors round and the guiding is unpolished and better for it. Around the kasbah is the village, a dense ksar of covered lanes, and beside it the mellah, the Jewish quarter, which was substantial - the Draa valley had Jewish communities in most of its ksour until the mid-twentieth century, working as silversmiths and traders, and their houses are identifiable. The palmeraie around is worked and the Draa runs behind.

The main sights

• The valley's oldest kasbah - sixteenth-century, the caid's seat and courtroom.
• Painted ceilings and plaster - reception rooms surviving amid the collapse.
• A covered-lane ksar - the village around it, dense and roofed in stretches.
• The mellah - the Jewish quarter beside it, identifiable and empty.

When to go

October to April. An hour, walking in from the road.

Practical notes

Parts of the kasbah are unstable and unlit. Entry is charged and guiding is informal. There is no interpretation of the mellah. Summer heat in the Draa is extreme.

Nearby

Agdz and Jebel Kissane are north; Zagora is south down the valley.

Key facts