The Almoravid Qubba (), or Qubba Ba'adiyyin/Barudiyyin, is a small monument in

Marrakech Marrakesh or Marrakech ( or ; ar, مراكش, murrākuš, ; ber, ⵎⵕⵕⴰⴽⵛ, translit=mṛṛakc}) is the fourth largest city in the Kingdom of Morocco. It is one of the four Imperial cities of Morocco and is the capital of the Marrakes ...

Morocco Morocco (),, ) officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is the westernmost country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It overlooks the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to ...

. It was erected by the

Almoravid dynasty The Almoravid dynasty ( ar, المرابطون, translit=Al-Murābiṭūn, lit=those from the ribats) was an imperial Berber Muslim dynasty centered in the territory of present-day Morocco. It established an empire in the 11th century that s ...

in the early 12th century. It is notable for its extraordinary decoration and for being one of the only remnants of Almoravid architecture in Marrakech.

History

The Almoravid Qubba is situated next to the

Marrakech Museum The Museum of Marrakech is a historic palace and museum located in the old center of Marrakesh, Morocco. In addition to its notable architecture, the museum's collection showcases various historic art objects and contemporary art from Morocco. ...

and around 40 meters south of the Mosque of Ben Youssef. It is the only surviving example of

Almoravid architecture Almoravid architecture corresponds to a period from the 11th to 12th centuries when the Almoravids ruled over the western Maghreb (present-day Morocco and western Algeria) and al-Andalus (a large part of present-day Spain and southern Portugal). It ...

in Marrakesh. It was built in either 1117 or, more likely, in 1125, by the Almoravid

amir Emir (; ar, أمير ' ), sometimes transliterated amir, amier, or ameer, is a word of Arabic origin that can refer to a male monarch, aristocrat, holder of high-ranking military or political office, or other person possessing actual or cerem ...

Ali ibn Yusuf Ali ibn Yusuf (also known as "Ali Ben Youssef") () (born 1084 died 26 January 1143) was the 5th Almoravid emir. He reigned from 1106–1143. Biography Ali ibn Yusuf was born in 1084 in Ceuta. He was the son of Yusuf ibn T ...

. Most scholars today believe that it belonged to the nearby Ben Youssef Mosque, the main mosque of the city at the time, and that it was a pavilion used for ritual ablutions before

prayer Prayer is an invocation or act that seeks to activate a rapport with an object of worship through deliberate communication. In the narrow sense, the term refers to an act of supplication or intercession directed towards a deity or a deified a ...

. The mosque itself, also originally built by Ali ibn Yusuf, has since been completely rebuilt in more recent centuries. This type of structure for providing water near a mosque was also known as a ''mida'a'' (; "ablutions facility") and is found in later mosques in Marrakech. The existence of the Qubba was first documented by French scholars in 1947, with architectural historian Boris Maslow publishing notes about in 1948. In the following years, more thorough excavations and studies were carried out under the direction of

Henri Terrasse Henri Terrasse (Vrigny-aux-Bois, 8 August 1895 – Grenoble, 11 October 1971) was a French historian, archeologist, and orientalist who specialized in the art and history of the Islamic world and of Morocco in particular. Biography Terrasse wa ...

and Jacques Meunié. Due to the rising ground level and the construction of other structures around it, over half of the Qubba was buried under 7-8 meters of debris. The French scholars refrained from any significant reconstruction or restoration, leaving the structure essentially as found, and published their findings in the 1950s. In the decades since its excavation it has become a historic monument and tourist attraction.

Description

The domed pavilion

The dome (''qubba'') tops a rectangular building, measuring 7.35 by 5.45 meters, sheltering a water basin. The whole structure is 12 meters tall. Materials used include stone, brick, and

cedar wood Cedar is part of the English common name of many trees and other plants, particularly those of the genus ''Cedrus''. Some botanical authorities consider the Old-World ''Cedrus'' the only "true cedars". Many other species worldwide with similarl ...

. The interior is richly decorated with carved floral and vegetal patterns (pine cones, palms and acanthus leaves),

palmette The palmette is a motif in decorative art which, in its most characteristic expression, resembles the fan-shaped leaves of a palm tree. It has a far-reaching history, originating in ancient Egypt with a subsequent development through the art o ...

seashell A seashell or sea shell, also known simply as a shell, is a hard, protective outer layer usually created by an animal or organism that lives in the sea. The shell is part of the body of the animal. Empty seashells are often found washe ...

shapes, and

calligraphy Calligraphy (from el, link=y, καλλιγραφία) is a visual art related to writing. It is the design and execution of lettering with a pen, ink brush, or other writing instrument. Contemporary calligraphic practice can be defined as "t ...

. Its

cupola In architecture, a cupola () is a relatively small, most often dome-like, tall structure on top of a building. Often used to provide a lookout or to admit light and air, it usually crowns a larger roof or dome. The word derives, via Italian, from ...

has been compared to the domes of the

Great Mosque of Cordoba Great may refer to: Descriptions or measurements * Great, a relative measurement in physical space, see Size * Greatness, being divine, majestic, superior, majestic, or transcendent People * List of people known as "the Great" *Artel Great (born ...

and the Bab al-Mardum Mosque in Toledo (both older buildings from Spanish Ummayyad architecture). In the corners, between the wings of the cupola and the rectangular outer walls, are four miniature cupolas carved with some of the earliest ''

muqarnas Muqarnas ( ar, مقرنص; fa, مقرنس), also known in Iranian architecture as Ahoopāy ( fa, آهوپای) and in Iberian architecture as Mocárabe, is a form of ornamented vaulting in Islamic architecture. It is the archetypal form of I ...

'' decoration in Morocco. Since muqarnas decoration would have originated in

Abbasid architecture Abbasid architecture developed in the Abbasid Caliphate between 750 and 1227, primarily in its heartland of Mesopotamia (modern Iraq). The great changes of the Abbasid era can be characterized as at the same time political, geo-political and cultur ...

in the Middle East, at least one scholar has suggested that this combination of Cordoban Ummayyad and Abbasid motifs was a deliberate stylistic choice by the Almoravid ruler to invoke a shared legacy and heritage with these caliphates. Around the interior of the pavilion is an Arabic inscription, now badly damaged, which details the foundation of the structure and cites the name of Ali ibn Yusuf and the date of construction, although the year of the date is unfortunately unreadable (leading to scholarly debate about the exact date). File:Almoravid Koubba IMG 3268.jpg, Overall view of the pavilion. File:Kouba Al Baroudiyine - Marrakech (cropped).jpg, View of the exterior dome at the top of the pavilion. File:P9067622 (5629278202).jpg, Another view of the interior. File:Medersa Ben Youssef, Marrakech. (4849319150) (cropped and retouched).jpg, Details of the decoration inside the cupola. File:Arch Detail (5038309541).jpg, Decoration on the arches around the inner edge of the pavilion. File:Almoravid qubba basin.jpg, The water basin under the dome. The main basin is surrounded by a thin trench where spilled water could be drained.

Other structures around the pavilion

A series of private latrines, possibly built at a later period, have also been excavated all around the domed building. Next to the domed building was also a monumental fountain or water source in another rectangular structure measuring around 14.5 by 4.5 meters. The structure was open to the street via three arched openings, with each

bay A bay is a recessed, coastal body of water that directly connects to a larger main body of water, such as an ocean, a lake, or another bay. A large bay is usually called a Gulf (geography), gulf, sea, sound (geography), sound, or bight (geogra ...

occupied by a water basin and a water trough along its back wall. This fountain structure is reminiscent, in its basic form, of later wall fountains of Marrakech like those of the

Mouassine Mosque The Mouassine Mosque or al-Muwassin Mosque () is a major neighbourhood mosque (a Friday mosque) in Marrakech, Morocco, dating from the 16th century during the Saadian Dynasty. It shares its name with the Mouassine neighbourhood. History Ba ...

or of the Shrob ou Shouf Fountain. The water for this fountain and the ablutions kiosk was drawn via bronze pipes from a nearby

cistern A cistern (Middle English ', from Latin ', from ', "box", from Greek ', "basket") is a waterproof receptacle for holding liquids, usually water. Cisterns are often built to catch and store rainwater. Cisterns are distinguished from wells by t ...

covered by a

barrel vault A barrel vault, also known as a tunnel vault, wagon vault or wagonhead vault, is an architectural element formed by the extrusion of a single curve (or pair of curves, in the case of a pointed barrel vault) along a given distance. The curves are ...

, which can be found today behind these structures. The supply of water to this cistern probably relied in turn on the revolutionary hydraulics of ''khettaras'', a drainage system characteristic of historic Morocco. File:Almoravid qubba base and latrines.jpg, Base of the Almoravid pavilion, with remains of private latrines surrounding it. File:Almoravid qubba fountain.jpg, Remains of the triple-arched fountain structure next to the qubba. File:Almoravid qubba cistern.jpg, Inside the cistern behind the fountain.

Notes

References

External links

Extensive information (WNF) websiteAlmoravid Qubba in the Manar al-Athar digital photo archive
{{Marrakesh Buildings and structures completed in the 12th century Almoravid architecture Buildings and structures in Marrakesh