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City gate in Marrakesh, Morocco From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Bab Aghmat (Arabic: باب أغمات, lit. 'gate of Aghmat') is the main southeastern gate of the medina (historic walled city) of Marrakesh, Morocco.
Bab Aghmat | |
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باب أغمات | |
General information | |
Type | city gate |
Architectural style | Almoravid, Moorish, Moroccan |
Location | Marrakesh, Morocco |
Coordinates | 31°37′25.2″N 7°58′29.4″W |
Completed | circa 1126 |
The gate originally dates back to around 1126 when the Almoravid ruler Ali ibn Yusuf built the first walls of the city, but it has been modified since this time.[1] It was named after Aghmat, the early capital of the Almoravids before Marrakesh, which lay in this direction (i.e. to the south/southeast). The gate may have also been called Bab Yintan, though this is uncertain and this name may have referred to another nearby gate which has since disappeared.[1][2]
Like other Almoravid gates of the city, it has been significantly modified since its initial construction. Originally, it most likely consisted of a bent passage which effected a full 180-degree turn, forming a symmetrical structure around the axis of the wall: one entered from the west through a bastion on the outer side of the city wall, passing through a roofed vestibule, then exited westwards from the bastion on the inner side of the wall, passing through an open-air court.[1][3] In a much later period a walled courtyard with a very different construction style was added on the outer end of the gate, forcing traffic to effect one more 180-degree turn (though in recent times the northern wall of this courtyard has been knocked down to allow a more direct passage).[1] A staircase in the northeastern corner of the gatehouse leads to the roof.[1]
A major cemetery, the Bab Aghmat Cemetery, occupies a wide area just outside the gate and is also flanked to the west by the Jewish cemetery of the city's Mellah.[4] Also near the gate and the cemetery is the Mausoleum of Sidi Yusuf ibn Ali, one of the Seven Saints of Marrakesh.[2][3]
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