Koutoubia

Marrakech is called the ‘daughter of the desert‘ and it is located close to the Atlas mountain range which you can see everyday as the backdrop of the city. Marrakech itself is entirely flat which makes walking easy but navigation a bit more complicated if you don’t won’t to rely entirely on digital devices. Luckily there is one thing that stands out and serves like a lighthouse for visitors, visible from nearly everywhere in the city: the minaret of the Koutoubia mosque. It is 69 meters high and was built in the style of the Almoravid empire in the second half of the 11th century. Therefore you might recognize similarities to the minarets of Andalusia here.

When you walk around the minaret you’ll see that all sides of the tower look different: that is because inside there is a ramp for the muezzin to ride up for calling the believers to prayer. Today no one needs to ride up five times a day anymore as there are loudspeaker systems, but this earlier need has an impact on the facade: due to the ramp inside the windows are always at different positions. The name Koutoubia refers to the booksellers which had their souk around the mosque in the 16th century. It was destroyed when the Almohads ended the Almoravid dynasty but rebuilt soon. The mosque is a really large one giving space to 25,000 believers; non-muslims are unfortunately not allowed to visit it.

Koutoubia
Marrakech
Morocco