Publication Date
7th - 8th century AH / 13th - 14th century AD
Type
Other
Language
Undetermined
Digital
Yes
Manuscript
No
Library
Museum With No Frontiers
Record ID
monument;ISL;ma;Mon01;5;ar
Library Location
The Roda is located on the left bank of the Bouregreg Valley, 2 km from the center of Rabat, Rabat, Morocco.
Date
7th - 8th century AH / 13th - 14th century AD
Notes
The Chellah cemetery is located on the ancient site of Sala Colonia, a prosperous Roman city that was reached directly across the river, before it was evacuated in the AH 2nd century / AD 8th century, turning into ruins in the AH 4th century / AD 10th century. The Marinid Sultans made the site a royal garden, as most of the Arab-Islamic buildings date back to the period of their rule, and only ruins remain after they were destroyed as a result of an earthquake in 1168 AH / 1755 AD. The wall of the cemetery took the shape of an oblique pentagon, with a side length of approximately 300 meters. It is accessed through a richly decorated door, fortified by two defensive towers, of an unusual shape, with a semi-ribbed outline at the base, and widened by an exit decorated with muqarnas, in order to fit in with the square-shaped plan at the top, which is surmounted by small pyramidal merlons. The portal opens with a narrow, broken and crossed arch, the arches of which are composed of interwoven decorative bands defined by unadorned castanets. The engraved floral decoration is stamped with two shell-shaped ornaments. A wide frieze of latticed decoration is surmounted by an inscription band. The gate also adopts a simple, twisted design, which proves that its defensive role was of little importance, despite the presence of guard halls and a guard corridor running over the walls. The following remains of the cemetery remain: - A mosque whose door was covered with a beautiful tile/tile mosaic, and it has a small, sparsely decorated minaret. - The funerary chamber (Khalwa) of Abu Al-Hasan, Sultan Al-Akhal (“reigned in the period 731 - 751 Hijri / 1331 - 1351 AD), decorated on the outside with a niche decorated with muqarnas. Not far from it, there is another marble gift given to his wife, Shams al-Duha, a European who converted to Islam. It includes a courtyard and a central cistern, decorated with tiles, and surrounded by rooms preceded by corridors raised by marble columns The corner contains a chapel whose mihrab is surrounded by a semi-circular corridor. A funerary stele called “Lalla Chellah” after the name of the pious woman who sponsored the site. Excavations also revealed an Islamic neighborhood, with its courtyards, houses, and public places, which shows that the site was a true funerary city, and when necessary, a military city rather than a simple cemetery.
Sample Text
Kamal Lakhdar “Rawda Chellah” in Discover Islamic Art. Museum Without Borders, 2026. 2026. https://islamicart.museumwnf.org/database_item.php?id=monument;ISL;ma;Mon01;5;ar
