Marinid Tombs

[5] Another author attributes the construction of the al-Qula palace to after 1287,[4] around the same time that the Marinids created the Mosara Garden to the north of Fes el-Jdid.

[5] A royal necropolis eventually developed on this site, where some other tombs may have already existed as early as the 11th and 12th centuries (perhaps connected to the nearby Bab Guissa Cemetery).

[5] According to the Rawd al-Qirtas, the founder of the Marinid dynasty, Abu Muhammad Abd al-Haqq I (d. 1217), was buried at Tafirtast, a site near Meknes and close to where he had fallen in battle.

[7] Sultan Abu Inan, however, was interred in the Grand Mosque of Fes el-Jdid upon his death in 1358 and after this his successors, starting with Ibrahim ibn Ali, were buried in the necropolis on the al-Qula hill next to the Marinid palace there.

[7] Unfortunately, very few remnants of the Marinid palace complex here have survived, in part due to continuous quarrying over the centuries and to more recent constructions.

Leo Africanus mentioned that the tombs were heavily decorated and featured lavish and colourful marble epitaphs.

Today the site is well-known as a lookout with panoramic views over the old city of Fez, popular at sunset, and often mentioned in guidebooks and tourist literature.

[12] In addition to the views, it is also a notable place to hear the call to prayer (adhan) broadcasting simultaneously from all the mosques in the old city.