Publication Date
13th century AH / 19th century AD
Type
Other
Language
Undetermined
Digital
Yes
Manuscript
No
Library
Museum With No Frontiers
Record ID
monument;ISL;ma;Mon01;22;ar
Library Location
Fez, old medina, Morocco
Date
13th century AH / 19th century AD
Notes
Sultan Hassan I ordered the construction of this palace, and made it a guest house for distinguished guests and visitors. From 1912 to 1916 AD, the palace hosted the public residence services of the French protectorate, before these agencies were transferred to Rabat, the new capital, and was subsequently transformed into a museum of civil arts, and before the current Batha Museum became an ethnographic museum and a center for cultural revitalization. The palace is a real royal building, huge in terms of the area it occupies, the height of its walls, and the beauty of its gardens (Riyadh). The wide main entrance, extended by a two-winding foyer, leads the visitor towards a wide square, divided between two large buildings and a vast garden. The latter, in its Andalusian style, occupies 58% of the total area of the palace, and its spaciousness indicates that it - the palace - was performing an entertainment function, and playing the role of a residence for summer vacations. The rectangular garden is surrounded, from the east and from the west, by a high-level courtyard. The axial corridor (east-west) and the transverse corridor (north-south) were also decorated with small ceramic pieces, arranged diagonally, and the garden was divided, through them - the two corridors - into four parts of equal dimensions, planted with trees and flowers, and its center was decorated with a fountain that gave it a beautiful balance. Two porches extending along the northern and southern sides of the garden allow one to enjoy contemplating the vases. The corridors' walkways are supported by 28 small columns made of painted wood. The ceilings were richly decorated with geometric and floral elements, drawn on wood, and the walkways were decorated with copper lamp holders, resembling the worlds of the East in their various shapes. The eastern and western courtyards of the palace were arranged in a rectangular shape, and their floors were covered with pieces of marble, separated by strips of tile. Each courtyard was decorated with a cistern linked by polygonal basins. In the east, the courtyard was surrounded by a corridor leading halls of varying dimensions, which were used as warehouses. The western courtyard was surrounded on its three sides by a corridor, passing through which leads to entering halls of large dimensions, which form real salons, decorated with tiles, and covered with heavily carved wooden ceilings.
Sample Text
Mohamed Mezzine “Batha Palace” in Discover Islamic Art. Museum Without Borders, 2026. 2026. https://islamicart.museumwnf.org/database_item.php?id=monument;ISL;ma;Mon01;22;ar
