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Description
Location: Marrakech Morocco

Five times a day, one voice rises above the din of Djemaa El Fna as the muezzin calls the faithful to prayer from the Koutoubia Mosque. The mosque's minaret has been standing guard over the old city since the Almohads erected it in the 12th century. Today it's Marrakesh's most famous landmark. The tower is a monumental cheat sheet of Moorish ornament: scalloped keystone arches, jagged merlon crenelations and mathematically pleasing proportions.

Koutoubia Mosque

They say imitation is the greatest compliment, and the 12th-century 250ft-high minaret has quite the reputation as an architectural muse. It’s the prototype for the Giralda in Seville, Spain, and Le Tour Hassan in Rabat, the capital of Morocco. Unlike Middle Eastern mosques, which have domed minarets, the Koutoubia's square design is an Amazigh trademark.

There are no stairs inside the minaret, only a ramp that the muezzin would have once ridden up on horseback to give the call to prayer.

The Koutoubia Mosque minaret is topped by a spire of brass balls. Once made from gold, local legend tells that the balls were "gifted" to the mosque by the wife of Almohad sultan Yacoub Al Mansour, who melted down her jewelry as punishment after being spotted eating during Ramadan fasting hours.

Today, the balls are filled with special mineral salt from the High Atlas Mountains, which includes nitrate and magnesium that prevents the spire from oxidizing. The salt is changed once a year, during Ramadan, to maintain the golden glint. In front of the spire, the wooden stick points towards Mecca (all mosques in the Marrakesh medina have this feature) and is also used to bear flags on religious holidays.

Another Marrakshi legend tells that the pious Almohads had the original mosque felled halfway through building because it wasn’t properly aligned with Mecca. Exact dates of construction are murky.

Description
Location: Marrakech Morocco

Five times a day, one voice rises above the din of Djemaa El Fna as the muezzin calls the faithful to prayer from the Koutoubia Mosque. The mosque's minaret has been standing guard over the old city since the Almohads erected it in the 12th century. Today it's Marrakesh's most famous landmark. The tower is a monumental cheat sheet of Moorish ornament: scalloped keystone arches, jagged merlon crenelations and mathematically pleasing proportions.

Koutoubia Mosque

They say imitation is the greatest compliment, and the 12th-century 250ft-high minaret has quite the reputation as an architectural muse. It’s the prototype for the Giralda in Seville, Spain, and Le Tour Hassan in Rabat, the capital of Morocco. Unlike Middle Eastern mosques, which have domed minarets, the Koutoubia's square design is an Amazigh trademark.

There are no stairs inside the minaret, only a ramp that the muezzin would have once ridden up on horseback to give the call to prayer.

The Koutoubia Mosque minaret is topped by a spire of brass balls. Once made from gold, local legend tells that the balls were "gifted" to the mosque by the wife of Almohad sultan Yacoub Al Mansour, who melted down her jewelry as punishment after being spotted eating during Ramadan fasting hours.

Today, the balls are filled with special mineral salt from the High Atlas Mountains, which includes nitrate and magnesium that prevents the spire from oxidizing. The salt is changed once a year, during Ramadan, to maintain the golden glint. In front of the spire, the wooden stick points towards Mecca (all mosques in the Marrakesh medina have this feature) and is also used to bear flags on religious holidays.

Another Marrakshi legend tells that the pious Almohads had the original mosque felled halfway through building because it wasn’t properly aligned with Mecca. Exact dates of construction are murky.