Koutoubia Mosque

It is organized on a "T" plan. This tradition has existed since the construction of the Great Mosque of Kairouan in the ninth century, and is also found in Spain. It is in fact a hypostyle Arab plan, that is, with a large courtyard surrounded by a portico and a prayer room with columns. The naves are perpendicular to the qibla wall, that of the center being wider; and the span that runs along the qibli wall is also magnified, which forms a T, hence the name. The mihrab is treated as a very deep niche, and the minaret, 77 m high, is of square section, according to the tradition of the Muslim West.

Its 17 naves, supported by many white pillars, house one of the largest prayer rooms in the Muslim West (90 × 60 m) that can accommodate up to twenty thousand faithful. The building was restored in the spirit of the original monument in 1990, under the authority of the Moroccan Ministry of Culture.

The Koutoubia Mosque is a religious building built in the 12th century in Marrakech, Morocco. It is the largest mosque in the city. Its architecture and its ascetic decor reflect the art of the Almohads.

A first mosque was built in 1148 by Sultan Almohade Abdelmoumen after conquering Marrakech. He will rebuild a second version of similar size around 1158. This is the current version, the first having been demolished. Yacoub Al-Mansour will finalize the construction of the minaret around 1195

The Almohad dynasty patronized a rather austere architecture, reflecting a certain asceticism. The Koutoubia mosque is no exception: its sobriety is noticeable by its simplicity. The arches used can be overstepped or polylobed, but remain bare.