Marinid architecture

Of the Marinid royal palaces in Fes el-Jdid little has survived, with the current Royal Palace of Fez dating mainly from the later Alawi period. Likewise, the former Marinid Royal Gardens to the north have disappeared and the complex around the Marinid Tombs on the hills overlooking Fes el-Bali are largely ruined.^[8] Excavations in Aghmat, in southern Morocco, have uncovered the remains of a smaller Marinid palace or mansion which has profound resemblances, in terms of its layout, to surviving Nasrid-era palaces in Granada and al-Andalus, demonstrating yet again the shared architectural traditions between the two kingdoms.^[9] Further clues about domestic architecture of the period are provided by a few Marinid-era private houses that have been preserved in Fez. They are centered around inner courtyards surrounded by two-story galleries and feature architectural forms and decoration that are highly reminiscent of those found in Marinid madrasas, showing a certain consistency in the decorative techniques across building types.^{[1]: 313–314 [10]} Some Marinid monumental gates, such as the gate of the Chellah necropolis near Rabat and the Bab el-Mrissa in Salé, are still standing today and demonstrate resemblances with earlier Almohad models.^[1]

According to the Rawd al-Qirtas, the founder of the Marinid dynasty, Abu Muhammad Abd al-Haqq I (d. 1217), was buried at a site called Tāfirtāst or Tāfarṭast, a site near Meknes (close to where he fell in battle).^[11][12] Starting with Abu Yusuf Ya'qub (d. 1286), the Marinid sultans began to be buried at a new necropolis in Chellah (the site of the former Roman city called Sala Colonia). Abu Yusuf Ya'qub built a mosque alongside his tomb and that of his wife. Both were qubbas: small square chambers covered by either a dome or a pyramidal roof. They stood in a small garden enclosure or rawda (Arabic: الروضة) at the back of the mosque. The necropolis was surrounded by a set of walls and an ornate monumental gate completed by Abu al-Hasan in 1339. Abu al-Hasan himself was then buried in a small mausoleum which was embellished with exceptional stone-carved low-relief decoration. The mausoleum, along with a madrasa accompanying the funerary complex, was likely completed by his son and successor, Abu Inan.^{[11][2]: 202–206} However, Abu Inan himself is believed to have been buried in Fez instead, in a qubba attached to the Great Mosque of Fes el-Jdid. After him, most sultans were buried at the site known as the "Marinid Tombs" to the north of Fes el-Bali. This necropolis seems to have once again consisted of an enclosed garden cemetery inside which stood several qubbas. Though mostly ruined today, Leo Africanus described them in the 16th century as being lavishly decorated. Important Marinid graves in these necropolises were typically surmounted by a maqabriyya, a marble tombstone shaped like a triangular prism, laid horizontally and carved with funerary inscriptions.^[11]