Bab el-Khemis (Marrakesh)

The gate is located in the northern/northeastern corner of the city walls and dates back to around 1126 CE when the Almoravid emir Ali ibn Yusuf built the first walls of the city.^[1][2] It was originally known as Bab Fes ("Gate of Fes"), but this name was apparently lost during the Marinid era.^[1] The gate underwent a significant renovation in 1803–04 on the orders of Sultan Moulay Slimane, noted by a marble inscription found inside.^[1][3]

The gate's current name (el-Khemis) refers to the souk or open-air market which historically took place here every Thursday (al-Khamis in Arabic).^[3] Nowadays, the market continues almost all week right outside the gate,^[4] while a permanent flea market, Souk al-Khemis, has been constructed a few hundred meters to the north.^[5][6] Also just outside the gate is a qubba (domed mausoleum) housing the tomb of a local marabout or Muslim saint.^[4]

The gate's outer entrance is flanked on either side by square bastions. The gate's passage originally consisted of a bent entrance which effected a single 90-degree turn; one entered the gate from the north and then exited westwards into the city.^[1][3] According to legend, the door leaves of the gate were brought from Spain by a victorious Yusuf ibn Tashfin.^[4][1] During the Almohad period, the gatehouse was expanded such that its passage effected three more right-angle turns before exiting southwards. This gave it a similar form and layout to several other major Almohad gates such as Bab er-Rouah.^[3] The outline of the gate's original exit, now walled-up, can still be seen in its interior western wall.^[3]

At some point in the 20th century, the inner wall of the passage was opened up to allow a straight passage directly through the gate in order to facilitate the heavy traffic in the area, resulting in the current form of the gate.^[1]

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  The outer (northern) facade of Bab el-Khemis
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  The inner (southern) facade of Bab el-Khemis
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  The marabout's tomb or qubba just outside the gate