ICONIOS INTERNATIONAL COUNCIL ON MONUMENTS AND SITES CONSEIL INTERNATIONAL DES MO'.;UMENTS ET DES SITES CONSEJO INTERNACIONAL DE MONUMENTOS Y SITIOS ME)I(llYHAPOllHbJA COBET no BonpOCAM nAMJlTHHKOB H llOCTonPHME4ATEJ1bHbJX MECT

LISTE DU PATRIMOINE MONDIAL WORLD HERITAGE LIST N° -----331

A) IDENTIFICATION A) IDENTIFICATION

Bien propose: La r1edina de r.1arrakech Nomina tion: Tha .l.1edina of Marrakesh

Li eu : Province de Marrakech Loca tion: Marrakesh

Eta t partie: Maroc State oarty: Morocco

Da:be: 31 Aoilt 1984 Date: August 31, 1984

B) RECOMMANDATION DE L'ICOMOS B) ICOMOS RECOMMENDATION

Que ce bien culturel soit inscrit sur la That the cultural property be included Liste du Patrim:::>ine Mondial au titre des on the World Heritage List on the basis criteres I, II, IV et V. of criteria I, II, IV and V.

C) JUSTIFICATION C) JUSTIFICATION

Fondee en 1071-1072 par Youssef ben Tach­ Marrakesh was founded in 1071-1072 by fin sur Ie site du carrpement dont Abou Yoossef ben Tachfin on the site of the Bekr lui avai t laisse la garde, Marrakech canp which Abou Bekr had left him in cesse d'etre des cette date Ie sejaur oc­ charge of. Fran that point forward, Marra casionnel des Alm::>ravides pour devenir la kesh was no longer an occasional stopping veritable capitale de ces namades conque­ place for the Alnoravides. It becane the rants qui surent etendre leur empire du true capital of these conquering narads Sahara a l'Ebre et de l'Atlantique a la who succeeded in stretching their empire Kabylie. from the Sahara to the Ebro and from the Atlantic to Kabylia. La medina dont 11 enceinte fut. construite en 1126-1127 par ordre d'Ali ben Youssef, The original layrut of the rred:ina dates raronte dans sa conception primitive a la back. to the Alnoravide period from which periode alm:>ravide, dont elle conserve there still remain varirus rromurental d I ailleurs plusieurs vestiges nonurnentaw< vestiges (ruins of the so-called Abou (ruines de la Kasba dite d I Abou Bekr, de Belq:" Kasbah, of the Yrussef ben Tachfin la nosquee de. Youssef ben Tachf in et du nosque and those of the Ali ben Youssef palais d I Ali ben Youssef, . non loin de la palace, not far from the Krutoubia, the Koutoubia, bassin et "koubba" de la nos­ pool and the "koubba" of the Ali ben Yrus quee de Ali ben Youssef, decouverts en sef nosque which were discovered in 1955 1955, porte Bab Aylan, etc.). La planta­ and the Bah Aylan gate, etc.). The walls tion de la palmeraie, qui recouvre encore of the rred:ina were built in 1126-1127 a l'heure actuelle 13.000 hectares envi­ following the order given by Ali ben Yous ron de terrains a l'est de la ville est sef. The planting of the palm groves

lCOMOS - Hotel Saint-Aignan. 75 Rue du Temple. 75003 Paris - Tel. 277.35.76 Cable address I Adressc: te!egraphique lCOMOS PARIS - 2 -

egalement attribuee aux A1moravides. which at present still covers a surface area of roughly 13,000 hectares to the east of Lorsque cette dynastie succanbe, en 1147, the city, has also been credited to the aux attaques des AJ.mohades conduits par Alrroravides. Abd el Mou'men, l'oeuvre de purification entreprise ne menagera pas les m:::>n'llIteIlts, When in 1147 this dynasty bcJI,.ai to the qui furent pour la plupart detruits par attacks of the A1.rcohades which were led by les vairqueurs, mais la fonction de ca­ Abel e1 Mcu'man, the task of purification pitale de Marrakech ne fut pas remise which was carried out did not spare the en cause. Sous les souverains almohades m:JIUlII'eIlts which, for the nost part, were (1147-1269), Marrakech connut une pros- destroyed by the victors. Nevertheless Marra­ perite nouvelle et inegalee. kesh remained the capital. Under the Alrro­ hade rulers (1147-1269), Marrakesh experi­ Des 1147-1158, Abd el Mou'men fit ele­ enced new and unprecedented prosperity. ver, sur les ruines des fondations alrro­ ravides, la nosquee de la Koutoubia, Between 1147-1158, Abel e1 Mal':rren had the d.ont l' incarparable minaret de 77 metres, Koutrubia nosque built upon the ruins of nonl.llrent essentiel de l' architecture Iml­ the .Alroc>ravide foundations. Its incanpara- sulrnane, est 1 'un des grands reperes du ble 77 rreter high minaret, a key Il'OI'lUl1'eIlt paysage urbain et Ie syml:x::>le merne de la of Mus1lin architecture, is one of the major Cite. Ses successeurs Abou Yacoub Youssef features of the cityscape and is the actllal et surtout Yacoub e1 Mansour furent les synbo1 of the city. 'Ihe ruler I s successors, veritables renovateurs de la capitale, Abou Yacoub Youssef and especially Yacoub creant de nouveaux quartiers et elargis­ el Mansour, were the ones who truly renova­ sant 1 'enceinte urbaine, fortifiant la ted the capital. They l::uilt new quarters, Kasba (1185-1190), veritable excroissan­ e.xtenrled the city wall, fortified the Kas- ce de la ville en direction du sud avec bah (1185-1190) which was a prolongation son enceinte de rernparts et ses portes of the city to the south with its own ram­ (Bab Agnaou, Bab Robb), sa nosquee, ses parts and gates (Bab Agnaou, Bab Robb), its palais, son marche, son hopital, sa pla­ nosaue, its palace, its market, its hospital, ce d' annes et ses jardins, assurant leur i tsparade-ground and its gardens. These emprise sur l' environnement par des leader? strengthened their control over their plantations (ainsi la Menara a 1 'ouest) doo1ains by planting crops (Menara to the west) et par des ouvrages d'art dont 1es plus and by civil engineering achieverrents the celebres sont Ie pont du Tensift et 1e best known of which are the Tensift bridge reseau des kettara de la palmeraie. and the kettara network in the palm groves.

Le declin de Marrakech, amerce lors de The decline of Marrakesh, which began during la conquete de la ville par les Merini­ the conquest of the city by the !£rinides des en 1269, ne fut jarnais irremooiable, in 1269, never went beyond the point of no catme en terroignent des constructions return, as is illustrated by a rn.unber of non­ importantes (nosquee et minaret Ben negligible constructions (Ben Salili nosque Salih, peu apres 1321). La renaissance and minaret, not long after 1321). 'Ihe re­ de la Capitale sous les souverains Saa­ birth of the capital under the reign of the diens (1510-1659) donna lieu a une nou­ Saadian rulers (1510-1659) led to a new velle floraison artistique, attestee blossaning of the arts, a fact which is bome par les ruines du palais e1 Badi et les out by the ruins of the e1 Badi palace and tcmbeaux saadiens, dont une Imlrai1le the saailian tanbs, whose precirus architec­ isole du reste de 1a Kasba les precieu­ tllre is isolated from the rest of the Kasbah ses architectures : 1es constructions by a wall. Sare of the e1e:rrents rrakin~ up raffinees et sanptueuses integraient des these refined and Sl.lITq?tuous constructions elEments d' origine lointaine, conroe les carre from afar, such as the marble colurm.s colonnes en marbre de Carrare que Mon­ from Carrara which Montaigne cbserved being taigne vit tai11er en Toscane "pour 1e cut in Tuscany "for the king of MoroccO. in ll roi du Maroc en Berberie". De la perio­ Berberia • Also dating back to the Saadian de saadienne date egalement la restau­ period are the restoration of the Ben Youssef ration de la Madrasa Ben Youssef et 1a Madrasa and the building of several fountains - 3 - construction de plusieurs fontaines a decorated with gypsum work and woodwork decor de gypseries et de bois ouvra­ (Malassine, Chrob ou Chruf and Bah Doukkala ges (Fontaines Mouassine, Chrob ou Fountains) • Chouf, Bab Doukkala) • Under the reign of the Alaruite dynasty Sous la dynastie alaoui te, Marrakech, Marrakesh, the t:errporary capital, was graced capitale episodique s'est enrichie de with new rrosques, madrasas, palaces and residence oouvelles rrosquees, rnadrasas, palais which Y.Bre harnoniously integrated into the et residences harrnonieusement inseres harogenrus unit of the old town which was dans Ie rronde intact de la vieille surrOllI1ded by ten kilorreters of clay and ville, ceinte de ses dix kilometres lime beaten cob ramparts. Beyond the de remparts en pise d'argile et de walls were the great fraditional areas chaux, entouree des grands espaces of greenery : the palm groves, the Menara and, verts traditionnels de la palmeraie, to the sarth, the Agdal gardens which were de la Menara et, au sud, des jardins redesigned by Moulay Abd er Ra.hnan (1822- de I' Agdal, reamenages par Moulay Abd 1859) • .aRahrnan (1822-1859). After having revie\'.ed the file presented L' ICQM)S, apres avoir etudie Ie dos­ by the Kingdon of Morocco, ICCM)S walcorres sier presente par Ie Royaume du the opportunity to examine a proposal which Maroc, se felicite d'exarniner une pro­ makes such a rich addition to the World position d'inscription aussi enrichis­ Heritage List. 'Ihe inclusion of such a sante pour la liste du Patrirroine Mon­ proposal is fully justified on the basis of dial. criteria I, II, IV and V. Une telle inscription est pleinement justifiee au titre des criteres I, II, Critericn I. Marrakesh possesses an impressive IV et V. number of architectural and artistic master­ pieces (rronunental ramparts and gates, Krutailiia, Critere I. Marrakech abrite un nanbre Saad j an tombs) each of which, alone, wculd impressionnant de chefs-d'oeuvre de justify inclusion on the List. I' architecture et de I' art (remparts et portes monumentales, Koutoubia, Criterion II. The capital of the Alrroravides tanbeaux saadiens) dont chacun pour­ and the Alnohades played a decisive role in rai t justifier, a soi seul, une pro­ the developrrent of rredieval urban plarming. position d'inscription. Fez, the capital of the Merinides, which was included on the World Heritage List in 1981, Critere II. La capitaIe des Alrrora­ is an adaptation of the older urban rrodel of vides et des Alrrohades a joue un role Marrakesh. decisif dans Ie developpement de I' urbanisme medieval. La capitale des Criterion IV. Marrakesh - which gave its name Merinides, Fes, inscrite en 1981 sur to the Moroccan Errpire - is the textbook la liste du Patrircoine Mondial, est exarrple of a large Islamic capital in the une adaptation du rrodele urbain ante­ Western World. rieur de Marrakech. Criterion V. With its maze of narrow streets, Critere IV. Marrakech - qui a donne son its houses, its sooks (markets), fonduks, its nom a l'empire marocain - est l'exemple traditional crafts and trade activities, its acheve d'une grande capitale islarnique rredina of 700 hectares, this ancient habitat, du rronde occidental. which has becane vulnerable due to pop..tlation growth, constitutes an eminent example of a Critere V. Dans les 700 hectares de la vibrant historic city. Medina, un habitat ancien, devenu vul­ nerable du fait de l'@volution demogra­ In view of the exceptional value of the proper­ phique, represente, avec son lacis de ty presented, of the critical situation of ruelles, ses maisons, ses souks, ses recent years, but also of the growing awareness fondouks, ses activites artisanales et denonstrated by the developtent plans drawn comrnerciales traditionnelles, un up in 1981 and the fonration of a ¢eguard - 4 - exemple eminent de ville historique association in 1985, ICQM)S wculd like vivante. to rrake the follCMing ccmren.ts and reccrn­ rre.ndaj::.i.ons : En raison de la valeur exceptionnelle du bien presente, de la situation cri­ 1) As for the ranparts which have an tique des dernieres annees, mais egale­ abviws intrinsic value, all of the ment de la prise de conscience dont te­ passages cut in the ranparts recently noignent les plans d' amenagernent elabo­ for traffic purposes shruld be elllninated res en 1981 et la constitution en 1985, and no construction shruld take place in d 'une association de sauvegarde, their irmediate proximity (the Bab Dalkka­ l'ICOMOS souhaite formuler les obser­ la bus station detracts fran the beauty vations et reccmnandations suivantes of the old town).

1) En ce qui concerne les remparts, 2) As for the medina strictly speaking dont la valeur intrinseque est evi­ where deterioration of the habitat is dente, il serait souhaitable de sup­ already well under way (gradual disappea­ primer les percernents recemnent ope­ rance of gardens which are replaced by res pour faciliter la circulation et constructions, the building of over­ de proscrire toute construction a hanging structures in the streets, leurs abords (la gare routiere de cutting of windows, replac:enent of tradi­ Bab Doukkala constitue une atteinte tional style gates with netal curtains, au paysage de la vieille ville). etc. ) ; protection neasures of a nore permanent nature nust be adopted and 2) En ce qui concerne la medina propre­ brought together in a specifications. ment dite, ou la deterioration de 1 'habitat est largement amorcee (dis­ 3) As for the surramdings of Marrakesh parition progressive des jardins au bearing in mind the positive indications profit des espaces batis, construc­ contained in the develcprent plans, the tion d' encorbellements dans les rues, undivided attention of the relevant autho­ percerent de fenetres, substitution rities should be focused upon the need to de rideaux metalliques a des portes protect the vegetation in the palm groves, traditionnelles, etc.), il serait the Menara and in the Bab Djedid and Agdal necessaire d'adopter des mesures de gardens. Any poorly thought cut changes in protection noins ponctuelles et de les these zones (opening of roads, l:uilding of inscrire dans un cahier des charges. detached houses or residences, or infra­ structllre facility works, etc.) wculd, 3) En ce qui concerne les abords de Marra­ over the short tenn, irreversibly rrodify kech, et ccmpte tenu des indications the appearance of Marrakesh, thereby depri­ positives du schema directeur, toute ving the city of its unique historical and l'attention des autorites campetentes ecological context. devrait se concentrer sur la necessi­ te de proteger les plantations dans la palmeraie, la Menara, les jardins de Bab Djedid et les jardins de 1 'Agdal. Toute nodification inconsideree de ces zones (percernent de routes, construc­ tion de pavilIons au de residences, travaux d' infrastructures, etc.) nodi­ fierai t a court tenne de fac;on irre­ versible la physionanie de Marrakech en privant la ville d' un contexte his­ torique et ecologique unique.

Paris, lCOMOS,Juillet / July 1985. ,.., ~""""""'I""\_ ~ ... _ ... rl""'\'"'""! ~ -..-- __ __ ~..:-~ ~-:. -.---.-,:..~

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