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Chellah

Coordinates:34°00′24″N06°49′13″W/ 34.00667°N 6.82028°W/34.00667; -6.82028
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(Redirected fromSala Colonia)
Chellah / Shalla
Sla / Calla (Shalla)
Roman and Marinid remains inside the Chellah complex
Chellah is located in Morocco
Chellah
Shown within Morocco
Alternative nameSala Colonia (name of Roman colony)
LocationRabat,Rabat-Salé-Kénitra,Morocco
Coordinates34°00′24″N06°49′13″W/ 34.00667°N 6.82028°W/34.00667; -6.82028
TypeNecropolis
History
Abandonedearly 15th century

TheChellahorShalla(Berber languages:SlaorCalla;Arabic:شالة),[1]is a medieval fortified Muslimnecropolisand ancient archeological site inRabat,Morocco,located on the south (left) side of theBou Regregestuary. The earliest evidence of the site's occupation suggests that thePhoeniciansestablished atrading emporiumhere in the first millennium BC.[2][3]This was later the site ofSala Colonia,an ancientRoman colonyin theprovinceofMauretania Tingitana,[4]before it was abandoned inLate Antiquity.[5]In the late 13th century the site began to be used as a dynasticnecropolisfor theMarinid dynasty.By the mid-14th century Marinid sultans had enclosed a part of the site with a new set of walls and built a religious complex inside it to accompany their mausoleums.[6]In the 15th century the necropolis began to decline and it suffered damage over the centuries due to earthquakes and looting. Archeological excavations in the 20th century unearthed the remains of the ancient Roman town. Today the site is a tourist attraction and since 2012 it forms part of aUNESCO World Heritage Site.[7]

History

[edit]
A coin from Sala with the name of the town in Punic

Phoenician Sala

[edit]

The Phoenicians founded several trading colonies along the Atlantic coast of what is now Morocco, but the existence of aPhoeniciansettlement on the site of Chellah has been debated by archeologists.[2]Jean Boube, who led some of the modern excavations at the site, discovered neo-Punicartifacts dating as far back as the 3rd century BC, which suggests there must have been a small trading post here around that time.[2]Later excavations by Boube also found fragments of Phoenician or Punic bowls dating to the 7th and early 6th centuries BC,[3][8]but it is possible that such early items were imported by trade rather than being evidence of occupation.[2]The settlement along the banks of theBou Regregwas known asShalat(Punic:𐤔𐤏‬𐤋𐤕,šʿlt;compare Hebrewסלע,rock), which appears to derive from the Punic word for "rock".[9][10][3][2]

Roman Sala Colonia

[edit]
Roman funerarysteleinscribed in Latin, Sala Colonia
Roman mosaicin Sala Colonia

By the first century BC the local inhabitants were still writing in the neo-Punic language but the region came under the influence ofRome.[11]At this time the area was occupied by the ancientBerberMauretanian Kingdom.Under its last two rulers,Juba IIandPtolemy,the Mauretanian kingdom became aclient stateof Rome. Some relics from the time of these two kings have been discovered at Chellah. After the death of Ptolemy in 40 AD the region was annexed by Rome and became the province ofMauretania Tingitana.[12]

On this site the Romans built their own city, Sala Colonia. The Roman town was referred to as "Sala" byPtolemy,a 2nd-century writer.[13]Excavations have revealed that older Mauretanian structures existed on the site before Roman structures were built over them.[12]For the Roman period, they show a substantial port city with ruined Roman architectural elements including adecumanus maximusor principal roadway, aforumand atriumphal arch.[14]The area around the forum, excavated and visible today, was subjected to many transformations over time and the exact chronology of these is still debated.[12]Inscriptions found on site show that the city had the status of amunicipiumaround the mid-2nd century AD.[12]: 170 

One of the two mainRoman roadsin Mauretania Tingitana reached theAtlanticthroughIulia Constantia Zilil(Asilah),Lixus(Larache) and Sala Colonia. Another may have been built towards the south, from Sala to modernCasablanca,then calledAnfa.The Romans had two main naval outposts on the Atlantic coast of the province: Sala Colonia, and Lixus. The port of Sala (now disappeared) was used by commercial Roman ships as a way station on their southwestward passages toAnfaand theInsula Purpuraria(Mogador island).[15]

Sala remained linked to theRoman Empireeven after the withdrawal in the 4th century of the occupying Roman legions toTingis(Tangier) andSeptem(Ceuta) in northern Mauretania Tingitana. A Roman military unit remained there until the end of the 5th century.[16][verification needed]Some of the major monuments of the town were abandoned around this time. The site of the largecapitoliumtemple, for example, was turned into a cemetery and a dumping ground during the 4th century.[17]Archaeological objects ofVisigothicandByzantineorigin found in the area attest to the persistence of commercial or political contacts between Sala and Roman Europe, up to the establishment of a Byzantine presence in North Africa during the 7th century.[16]Fragments of pottery withChristianmotifs and graffiti have also been found among objects dating from the 4th to 6th centuries.[17]

Early Muslim period

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Sala began to be abandoned in the 5th century and was mostly in ruins when the Muslim Arabs arrived in the 7th century.[5]The Byzantine governor of the area,Count JulianofCeuta,surrendered toUqba ibn Nafiin 683.[18]

The area was only occupied again in the 10th century, when historical sources mention the existence of aribatin the area.[19][5]Around 1030, a new town called Salā (present-daySalé) was founded on the opposite side of the river (the north side) by theBanu 'Asharafamily.[20][21]After the end of theUmayyad CaliphateinAl-Andalusin the early 11th century, theAlmoravidsassumed control of the region and built a new ribat at the mouth of the river.[22][23]This ribat was in turn destroyed and then rebuilt by their successors, theAlmohads,in the mid-12th century, becoming what is now known as theKasbah of the Udayas.[24][22]The Almohad caliphAbu Yusuf Ya'qub al-Mansur(r. 1184–1199) also began construction of a vast new royal city with new walls on the site next to ancient Sala, corresponding to what is now the historic center ofRabat,but it was never finished.[22]The town of Salā on the right bank (northern side) of the river continued to develop and during the followingMarinid dynastyperiod (13th to 15th centuries) it grew more important than the settlements of the left bank.[19]

Marinid period

[edit]
The Marinid religious complex of Chellah (13th–14th centuries)

During the Marinid period the site of ancient Sala was re-appropriated and turned into a royal necropolis for the ruling dynasty, now known as Chellah (Arabic:شالة,romanized:Shāllah). Because of its ruined condition today, the exact chronology of its development is not well known.[6]The first Marinid constructions and the first royal burial were in 1284–85, when sultanAbu Yusuf Ya'qubchose the site to bury his wife, Umm al-'Izz. He built a smallmosque(still extant) next to her tomb. The tomb itself was aqubba,a small mausoleum chamber covered by adomeor pyramidal roof. The sultan himself was buried next to her after his death inAlgecirasin 1286.[6][5][25]His son and successor,Abu Ya'qub Yusuf,was buried at the site after his death in 1307, and his successor,Abu Thabit 'Amir,was buried near Abu Ya'qub Yusuf in 1308.[5]

Remains of the Mausoleum ofAbu al-Hasan(circa 1351)

The most important Marinid constructions appear to have occurred during the reigns ofAbu Sa'id Uthman II(r. 1310–1331) and his son,Abu al-Hasan(r. 1331–1348; also known as the Black Sultan). Abu Sa'id enclosed the area with a set of walls and began construction of the main gate.[6]According to some sources he was buried in this necropolis too after his death in 1331, thoughIbn Khaldunwrote that he was buried inFez.[5]Construction of the main gate was finished by Abu al-Hasan, as evidenced by an inscription on it which dates its completion to July 1339 (Dhu al-Qadah739AH) and refers to the complex as a "ribat".[5][6]During Abu al-Hasan's lifetime one of his wives, Shams al-Ḍuḥa (the mother ofAbu Inan), was buried here in 1349. One of his sons, Abu Malik, may have also been buried in the necropolis in 1339.[5]After his death in exile in 1351, Abu al-Hasan's body was buried in a mausoleum here as well, near his wife.[a]This mausoleum may have been finished by his son and successor, Abu Inan (r. 1348–1358). Abu Inan may have also been responsible for building or completing themadrasa(Islamic college) and the prominentminaretthat adjoin the mosque and mausoleums. He set up a charitable endowment (waqf) to fund the operations of the religious complex.[6][25]Remains at the site today also show that the necropolis was accompanied by a residential quarter to the north, complete with a water supply system.[6]A preservedhammam(bathhouse) from this period also stands near the far eastern corner of the walled enclosure.[6][27]

Abu al-Hasan was the last sultan to be buried here. Abu Inan is believed to have been buried at theGreat Mosque of Fes el-Jdidand other Marinid sultans after him were mostly buried at theMarinid Tombsin Fez or other sites.[6][28]Other Marinid family members, such as Abu Inan's sister and other princes, were still occasionally buried at Chellah. Between 1360 and 1363Ibn al-Khatib,thevizierof theNasridsultanMuhammad V,visited the site during his master's exile from Granada and mentioned it in his writings. He described the luxurious decoration of the tombs and noted that a large fragment of akiswah(the cloth that covers theKa'bainMecca) was draped over the tomb of Abu al-Hasan.[5]

Post-Marinid period and modern era

[edit]

After the Marinid period the necropolis declined. It was pillaged for the first time by Ahmad al-Liḥyani, a pretender to the Marinid throne based in Meknes between 1417 and 1437. Although he and other pretenders were eventually suppressed byAbu Zakariya Yahya,theregentandde factoWattasidruler between 1420 and 1448, the Wattasids chose not to try and restore the necropolis.[25][5]Many of the remaining structures in Chellah were damaged by the1755 Lisbon earthquakeand fell into ruins.[6]The'Alawisultans stationed soldiers here afterwards to prevent further looting, but in the late 18th century an Arab tribe, the Ṣabbaḥ, took possession of the enclosure until in 1790 sultanMoulay Yazidcharged the governor of Salé, Abu Ya'za al-Qasṭali, with removing them. During this episode the necropolis was again looted.[5]

Qubbamausoleums of local saints, dating from later periods, near the Marinid complex

Despite this decline, the site acquired local religious importance over time. At some point,Sufisbegan to inhabit the site and the madrasa was reused as azawiya(Sufi religious and educational center).[6][25]The zawiya also became the object of a local pilgrimage, with locals believing that a visit here could be a substitute for theHajjpilgrimage to Mecca for those who couldn't afford that long journey. As part of their visit, pilgrims performed acircumambulation(tawaf) of the madrasa'smihrab.[25][6]Popular legends also grew around the tombs. The tomb of Shams al-Ḍuḥa came to be popularly known as the tomb of a girl named Lalla Chella, to which the site's name was popularly attributed.[25]Some local beliefs, especially among women, associated beneficialmarabouticpowers to some of the animals, like theeelsandturtles,that lived in the pools here.[25]For example, it was believed that feeding the eels could aid fertility and childbirth.[29]Legends about buried treasures also led to illegal excavations at times and pushed authorities in the 20th century to move some of the most important objects in the necropolis to museums in Rabat.[25]

The remains of the ancient Roman city were first identified in the late 19th century by French geographer Charles Tissot.[30]The first investigation and study of the Islamic-era remains were carried out byHenri BassetandÉvariste Lévi-Provençalin 1922.[25]The first excavations of the Roman city were carried out in 1929–30 under the supervision of Jules Borély, head of theService des Beaux-Arts,an agency of theFrench Protectorate in Moroccoat that time. This initial work cleared away vegetation from the ruined mosque and unearthed a large portion of the "monumental" Roman quarter visible today.[30]Excavations did not take place again until 1958, after Moroccan independence, when the head of theService des Antiquités du Maroc,Maurice Euzennat, appointed Jean Boube to begin a new campaign of excavations. Excavations continued on and off until 1996, unearthing the rest of the structures now visible.[30]

Today, the site of Chellah has been converted to a garden and tourist attraction. It is part of the metropolitan area of Rabat. The site, as part of historic Rabat, was listed byUNESCOas aWorld Heritage Sitein 2012.[7]It's also notable for hosting a large colony ofstorks,who nest in the trees as well as on the minaret of the ruined zawiya.[31][32][29]

On 3 November 2023, a team of Moroccan archaeologists and researchers discovered the first port district of the Roman era in Morocco, dating from the first to the second century AD, along with the first life-sized headless statue of a female goddess found in Morocco since 1960.[33][34][35]

The Roman remains

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Plan of the Roman site: 1) Forum, 2)Capitoliumtemple, 3) Triumphal arch, 4)Curiaor basilica with nymphaeum 5) Temple with fivecellae,6) Baths
Ruins of theforumat the eastern end of the site today (with Marinid walls standing behind)

The excavated portion of the Roman city covers about 1.2hectaresand corresponds to the "monumental" district around the forum, where the most important public buildings stood.[12]The city was built on a sloped site and consequently its buildings were constructed upon a series of artificial terraces, with at least three terraces visible today.[12][5]Streets were laid out in a regular grid and the two most important streets were thedecumanus maximusand thecardo maximus.[5]

At the eastern end of the excavated area is the forum. It is flanked on its north side by a structure standing on higher ground which has been identified as a "temple"with fivecellae.On the south side of the plaza, on a lower level, is a long building with nine rooms, possiblytabernae(shops), that open onto another street.[12]The dating of the temple and the adjoining forum has been debated. Jean Boube dated the temple to the mid-first century BC, which would make it a Mauretanian structure (before the region was annexed as a Roman province). Statues of the Mauretanian client kings Juba II and Ptolemy have been found here, leading Boube to suggest the temple was originally dedicated to them. Other archeologists have argued that it belongs instead to the Roman period (after annexation). More recent studies have again suggested a pre-Roman dating, based on the construction techniques present.[12]: 160–161 

Ruins of thecapitoliumtemple
Ruins oftabernaethat were built under the temple's south side

On the west side of the forum is another wide paved space which may have been an additional forum (forum adiectum) or a part of thedecumanus maximus.[12]Boube dated it to the reigns ofTrajan(r. 98–117) andHadrian(r. 117–138). The largest structure here, on the northwest side, is thecapitoliumorcapitolinetemple.[12]The temple is built on two levels and has a rectangular floor plan, measuring about 48 metres by 26 metres, with rounded corners on its west side.[12]: 165 On the lower level were nine vaultedtabernaechambers which opened onto the paved area next to the temple and formed a part of the temple's substructure. The upper level was the temple proper, consisting of singlecellaand apronaos(vestibule chamber), elevated on apodiumand surrounded on three sides by aporticoof 32 columns. The parts of the temple that were built above thetabernaehave collapsed. Roman inscriptions found on site confirm that the temple was built in the time of Hadrian and possibly inaugurated around 120 AD. Its construction was funded by a private citizen, a military official named C. Hosidius Severus, who gifted it to the people of the city.[12]: 165–166 

Ruins of thenymphaeumin the southern part of the site
Remains of the foundations of thetriumphal arch

The other major building in this western area is located directly opposite thecapitolium,to the south and near the perimeter wall of the Marinid religious complex. This building is poorly-preserved and has been tentatively identified as either acuria(theCuria Ulpia) or as abasilica.Its construction is likely contemporary with that of the nearbycapitolium.It has a rectangular floor plan measuring about 32 by 19 metres. At its center is a large octagonal opening, with niches set along its interior walls, that corresponds to an undergroundnymphaeumthat once extended further up to the ground level of the building.[12]: 169–170 

Between thecapitoliumand thecuria/basilica are the remains of a triumphal arch. Only the base of the arch remains and therefore not much is known for certain about it. It may date from the time of Hadrian, like the surrounding buildings, but another hypothesis has dated it to around the time ofAntoninus Pius(r. 138–161).[12]: 172–173 Various other structures are scattered around the site, including two more structures identified as temples to the east of thecapitolium.Remains of aRoman bathare found in the eastern part of the site, between the Marinid madrasa and the Islamic-era bathhouse.[12]

The Marinid necropolis

[edit]
The pool at Chellah, originally an ablutions facility for the mosque

The area enclosed by the Marinid walls is roughlypentagonalin shape and is smaller than the former Roman city.[5]Most of the Marinid structures inside are contained within a religious complex in the southeastern part of the enclosure, called thekhalwa(Arabic:خلوة). Outside this complex there is also a hammam in the far eastern corner of the enclosure and a residential complex located just inside the main gate.[25][36]Thekhalwaconsists principally of a mosque, a madrasa, a cemetery with multiple mausoleums, and several courtyards. Its layout is irregular and complicated due to the addition of various elements over different periods.[37]On its southwest side is a pool whose water comes from thespringof'Ayn al-Janna(Arabic:عين ألجنّا,lit. 'spring/source of paradise').[38]The pool was originally thelatrinesandablutionsfacility of the 13th-century mosque, but at some point it became submerged due to water seeping in from underground and it is now inhabited by eels.[25][39]

Walls and main gate

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The main gate of Chellah, completed in 1339 byAbu al-Hasan

The rampart walls surrounding the site are built inrammed earth(or pisé). They are pierced by three gates and interspersed with defensive towers.[5][6]The towers typically have a square base and contain three levels inside.[5]The most monumental gate is in the northwestern part of the enclosure and is built in brick and cut stone with carved ornamentation. It is one of the most exceptional gates built by the Marinids, demonstrating influences from earlier monumental gates built by the Almohads (e.g.Bab er-RouahandBab Oudaya).[5][6]The gate's façade is decorated with twopolylobed archmotifs around the pointedhorseshoe-shapedarchway. Thespandrelsof the arch are filled with a foliatearabesquemotif featuring a carvedshellat their centers. The whole composition is framed by a rectangular frieze (analfiz) containing aKuficArabic inscription that details the construction of the gate. The gate is flanked by two towers that have prismatic or semi-octagonal bases but are crowned with square turrets. The transition from the semi-octagonal body of the tower to the square turret above is accomplished with the use ofmuqarnasin the corners.[6]Inside, the gate has abent passagethat turns 90 degrees. The inner façade of the gate, facing towards the religious complex, is decorated with a simpler version of the motifs seen on the outside of the gate.[38]

Thekhalwa(religious and funerary complex)

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Plan of the Marinid religious complex: 1) entrance courtyard, 2) mosque, 3) minaret of the mosque, 4) well or basin, 5) Tomb of Abu Sa'id, 6) Tomb of Shams al-Ḍuḥa, 7) Tomb of Abu al-Hasan, 8) gate to madrasa, 9) madrasa, 10) prayer hall of madrasa, 11) minaret of madrasa
The mosque of theMarinidcomplex (built circa 1284)

The mosque, located in the center of the southwestern half of the complex, is ahypostylehall. It is divided into three naves by two rows of horseshoe arches. Two more rows of arches, perpendicular to the others, delimit a central aisle running towards themihrabon the southeastern wall. At the mosque's southwest corner is a small, partly-ruined minaret with a square base and polylobed-arch windows.[6][38]Outside the mosque, near the minaret, is a small water basin orwellthat was used for ablutions fed by a local spring.[37][36]Behind theqiblawall of the mosque, on its southeast side, is arawda(Arabic:الروضة) or garden cemetery. It consists of a long enclosure with at least four ruined mausoleums and a number of other graves scattered across the open space.[38]According to Basset and Lévi-Provençal, the three mausoleums adjoined to the back wall of the mosque include the tomb of Sultan Abu Sa'id (d. 1331) and the tomb of Shams al-Ḍuḥa (d. 1349).[36]Each tomb is aqubbaor square chamber that was probably once covered by a dome or a pyramidal tiled roof, similar to other mausoleums in Morocco. These tombs are largely ruined and contain only small fragments of their former decoration.[38]

The interior back wall of Abu al-Hasan's mausoleum
The exterior wall of Abu al-Hasan's mausoleum

The ruinedqubbafurther south, set against the perimeter wall of the complex, belongs to Sultan Abu al-Hasan (d. 1351). This is the most richly-decorated tomb in the complex and is better-preserved than the other tombs. Its remaining walls are covered in elaboratelow-reliefdecoration carved in stone.[6][38]The back wall inside the mausoleum has a central double-arched niche framed by anepigraphicfrieze containing verses 30 and 31 ofSurah XVIfrom theQur'an.This in turn is surrounded bygeometric decorationand more epigraphic decoration.Zellij(mosaictilework) decorated the lower portions of the wall.[38]Three windows are pierced above this. The exterior side of this wall, facing out from the complex, is carved with two rectangular friezes, one filled with an ornate Kufic inscription and the other with aNaskhi(cursive) inscription. The Kufic inscription includes verse 185 ofSurah III,while the Naskhi inscription is a dedication to Abu al-Hasan.[38]These two friezes enclose a central rectangular zone filled withsebkadecoration above threeblindpolylobed arches with smallcolonettes.The negative spaces inside thesebkapattern are each carved with another motif including a shell orpalmette,while the blind arches below are filled with arabesques (for the side arches) and with a repeatingcalligramin "knotted" Kufic (for the central arch). Above this runs another smallblind arcadeand amuqarnascorniceabove it.[6][38]

The courtyard of the ruined madrasa/zawiya (mid-14th century)

Most of the northeastern half of the complex is occupied by a building which scholars believe was most likely a madrasa,[6]though two surviving inscriptions refer to it as a "zawiya".[38]Similar to other madrasas of the era, it consists of an elongated rectangular courtyard with a rectangular pool at its center. At each end of the basin are two small circular basins with fountains that provided water for the pool.[6]The courtyard was once surrounded by a peristyle portico supported by marble columns, no longer standing. Behind the portico, on the two long sides of the courtyard, are a number of small rooms which served as sleeping quarters for students. Two staircases provided access to an upper floor above this, probably with a similar layout. The courtyard was paved and decorated with intricatezellij(mosaic tilework), parts of which survive.[6][38]At the southeast end of the courtyard a doorway leads to a rectangular hall that served as a prayer room. Amihrabwas set in the back wall here. Unusually, the mihrab is surrounded by a narrow passage that runs around and behind it. This passage may have been used by pilgrims who circumambulated it.[6]At the northeastern corner of the madrasa is a preserved minaret, about 15 metres tall and prominently visible from most of the site. Its main shaft has a traditional square base and its four facades are each decorated with asebkacomposition above two blind polylobed arches (each enclosing small windows). The negative spaces within these motifs are filled withzellijtile decoration.[6][38]

Thezellij-decorated gateway to the madrasa

In addition to Abu al-Hasan's mausoleum, one of the most exceptional examples of decoration in the complex is the gateway that leads towards the madrasa from the forecourt on the north side of the mosque. The gate, a horseshoe arch, is framed by a rectangular frieze oralfizfilled with geometric star patterns inzellijtiling. The spandrels of the archway are filled with arabesque motifs and a polylobed arch motif, similar to the monumental main gate of the complex, but instead of carved stone they are executed in highly colourfulzellijtiling. The decoration of this gateway also has similarities to the gate of theSidi Boumediene ComplexinTlemcen(present-dayAlgeria), suggesting that the same team of artisans may have been involved in both designs.[6]

Hammam

[edit]
The Marinid hammam (14th century)

The hammam (Islamic bathhouse) of Chellah has a roughly rectangular floor plan measuring 28.5 by 10.4 metres.[27]Henri Terrasseestimated that its construction was contemporary with the other major Marinid structures in Chellah and that it took place between 1339 and 1358. It was restored in the 20th century.[27]It shares general similarities with other historic hammams in this part of the Islamic world.[27][40]It consists of a changing room near the entrance (equivalent to the Romanapodyterium), followed by a cold room (equivalent to thefrigidarium), a warm room (equivalent to thetepidarium), and a hot room (equivalent to thecaldarium). Another chamber behind the hot room contained the furnace that heated the baths and its water via the traditionalhypocaustsystem. A small chamber near the changing room probably contained the latrines.[27]The hammam was entered from a gate at its west corner. The changing room consisted of a central square space flanked by two small rectangular galleries divided from it by a row of arches supported by columns. This room was probably the most decorated space in the building, though no decoration has been preserved today. The central square space was probably covered by an ornate wooden vault ceiling while the galleries were covered bygroin vaults.The cold room and hot room are both roofed by groin vaults, while the warm room between them is larger and is roofed by twocloister vaults.[27]

Shrines of Sufi mystics

[edit]

Several shrines dedicated to Sufi mystics are present in the necropolis as well, towards the southern part of the area. These shrines were built at a later date, and appear to be grouped together.[41]One of such buildings is a shrine containing the tomb of Sidi Yahya ibn Yunus, a mystic believed to have lived in the 7th century.[42]

Archeological artifacts

[edit]

TheMuseum of History and Civilizationsin Rabat houses some Roman-era artifacts from Sala Colonia.[43][44]The museum also holds several Marinid-period pieces from the necropolis. One of these is the tombstone of Abu Ya'qub Yusuf, a rectangular marble slab which was aspoliafrom Roman-eraHispania Baetica,as seen in the Roman inscription on the back side which mentions a Roman governor of that province named Aulus Caecina Tacitus from the second half of the 3rd century AD. The stone was initially reused for an Umayyad fountain inCordoba,probably in the late 10th or early 11th century, before it was apparently moved to North Africa and eventually reused by the Marinids, who carved the other side of it with the sultan's funerary inscription.[5][25]The same museum also holds the tombstones of Abu al-Hasan and his wife Shams al-Ḍuḥa. These tombstones weremaqabriyyas: marble tombstones shaped approximately like atriangular prismand laid horizontally over the grave. Both are richly carved with elaborate Arabic inscriptions that record their names, titles, and the details of their burials.[5][25]A number of Marinid-period marble capitals are also housed at the museum.[25]

Music venue

[edit]

Since 2005, the ruins of Chellah host an international "Festival of Jazz" each year, calledJazz au Chellah.[45][46]Additionally, it is currently home to a venue of the annualMawazinemusic festival in Rabat, which showcases popular contemporary music from around the world.[47][48]

See also

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Notes

[edit]
  1. ^He was initially buried in what is now theSaadian TombsinMarrakesh,before his body was moved to Chellah.[5][26]

References

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Citations

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  1. ^Sheila Blair; Jonathan M. Bloom (1995).The Art and Architecture of Islam 1250–1800.Yale University Press. p. 123.ISBN978-0300064650.
  2. ^abcdeJanet L. Abu-Lughod (2014).Rabat: Urban Apartheid in Morocco.Princeton University Press. pp. 35, 37–38 (note 2).ISBN978-1400853038.
  3. ^abcMartín, Alfredo Mederos (2019)."North Africa: from the Atlantic to Algeria".In Doak, Brian R.; López-Ruiz, Carolina (eds.).The Oxford Handbook of the Phoenician and Punic Mediterranean.Oxford University Press. p. 630.ISBN978-0190499341.
  4. ^Kenneth L. Brown (1976).People of Salé: Tradition and Change in a Moroccan City, 1830–1930.Manchester University Press. p. 1.ISBN978-0719006234.
  5. ^abcdefghijklmnopqrstSalmon, Xavier (2021).Fès mérinide: Une capitale pour les arts, 1276–1465.Lienart. pp. 268–271.ISBN978-2359063356.
  6. ^abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxBloom, Jonathan M. (2020).Architecture of the Islamic West: North Africa and the Iberian Peninsula, 700–1800.Yale University Press. pp. 202–206.ISBN978-0300218701.
  7. ^abCentre, UNESCO World Heritage."Rabat, Modern Capital and Historic City: a Shared Heritage".UNESCO World Heritage Centre.Retrieved2022-04-18.
  8. ^Glenn Markoe (2000).Phoenicians.University of California Press. p. 188.ISBN978-0520226142.
  9. ^Head & al. (1911),p. 889.
  10. ^Ghaki (2015),p. 67.
  11. ^Anna Gallina Zevi; Rita Turchetti (2004).Méditerranée occidentale antique: les échanges. Atti del seminario (Marsiglia, 14–15 maggio 2004). Ediz. francese, italiana e spagnola.Rubbettino Editore. p. 224.ISBN978-8849811162.
  12. ^abcdefghijklmnoMugnai, Niccolò (2016).Architectural Decoration and Urban History in Mauretania Tingitana (Morocco)(PhD thesis). School of Archaeology and Ancient History, University of Leicester. pp. 156–183.
  13. ^Hadda, Lamia; Jacobelli, Luciana (2008).Le parc archéologique de Chella(PDF)(in French). L'Isola dei Ragazzi. Archived fromthe original(PDF)on May 31, 2014.
  14. ^"Sites Antiques".www.minculture.gov.ma(in French). Rabat, Morocco: Ministry of Culture, Kingdom of Morocco. Archived fromthe originalon November 12, 2013.Retrieved12 June2014.
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  23. ^Janet L. Abu-Lughod (2014).Rabat: Urban Apartheid in Morocco.Princeton University Press. p. 35.ISBN978-1400853038.
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  25. ^abcdefghijklmnEttahiri, Ahmed S.; Tuil Leonetti, Bulle (2014). "Chella, de la nécropole mérinide au royaume des djinns". In Lintz, Yannick; Déléry, Claire; Tuil Leonetti, Bulle (eds.).Maroc médiéval: Un empire de l'Afrique à l'Espagne(in French). Paris: Louvre éditions. pp. 502–514.ISBN978-2350314907.
  26. ^Salmon, Xavier (2016).Marrakech: Splendeurs saadiennes: 1550–1650.Paris: LienArt. p. 184.ISBN978-2359061826.
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  28. ^Salmon, Xavier (2021).Fès mérinide: Une capitale pour les arts, 1276–1465.Lienart. pp. 264–271.ISBN978-2359063356.
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  30. ^abcMugnai, Niccolo (2016)."Architectural decoration at Sala (Chellah) and in Mauretania Tingitana: Punic-Hellenistic legacies, Roman official art, and local motifs".In Mugnai, Niccolo; Nikolaus, Julia; Ray, Nick (eds.).De Africa Romaque: Merging cultures across North Africa (Proceedings of the International Conference held at the University of Leicester, 26–27 October 2013).Society for Libyan Studies. pp. 215–230.ISBN978-1900971362.
  31. ^Allmeling, Anne (22 January 2015)."Where Storks Holiday".Morocco World News.Retrieved2022-04-18.
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  34. ^Simpara, Mahamadou."Major Archaeological Discoveries Unearthed in Morocco's Historic Chellah Site".Morocco World News.p. 1.
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  39. ^Le bassin aux anguilles(Information plaque). Posted next to the pool at Chellah. Consulted in December 2014.
  40. ^Fournier, Caroline (2018-08-24),"Chapitre V. Différents modèles de ḥammām-s en al-Andalus",Les bains d'al-Andalus: viiie–xve siècle,Histoire, Rennes: Presses universitaires de Rennes, pp. 153–182,ISBN978-2753555457,retrieved2022-04-21
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  45. ^"Jazz au Chellah (accueil)".Jazz au Chellah(in French). Archived fromthe originalon July 27, 2010.
  46. ^"Festival Jazz au Chellah: 25 éditions de ponts musicaux entre l'Europe et le Maroc | EEAS Website".European External Action Service.Retrieved2022-09-26.
  47. ^"Festival Mawazine 2022 in Rabat, Morocco | Everfest".Everfest.com.Retrieved2022-09-26.
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Bibliography

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