Mosaics in the Roman ruins of Volubilis, Morocco
Mosaics at the Roman ruins of Volubilis in Morocco
Perhaps one of the highlights of our visit to the ancient ruins of Volubilis in Morocco was to view the amazing mosaics in the floors of the various buildings. The colourful tiles used to make these floors some two millennia ago are still showing beautiful colour and detail. we have nothing like this in Australia except the old paintings and carvings of our Aboriginal people.
Mosaics at the Roman ruins of Volubilis in Morocco
Mosaics at the Roman ruins of Volubilis in Morocco
Mosaics at the Roman ruins of Volubilis in Morocco
Mausoleum of Mohammed V, Rabat, Morocco
Outside the Mausoleum of Mohammed V, Rabat, Morocco
This courtyard just outside the mausoleum of former King Mohammed V in Rabat, Morocco is another fine example of beautiful architecture found throughout many parts of the country. Pity about the air conditioning units along the wall behind the fountain. Knowing their climate, this is probably a concession to the vagaries of challenging temperatures.
Below I’ve included several close-up photos of details on the wall at the rear of the courtyard.
Outside the Mausoleum of Mohammed V, Rabat, Morocco
Outside the Mausoleum of Mohammed V, Rabat, Morocco
Royal Palace, Rabat, Morocco
Royal Palace, Rabat, Morocco
On our short visit to the capital of Morocco, we briefly stopped in front of the Royal Palace, shown in today’s photos. This palace is one of the more beautiful buildings in the wonderful city of Rabat. The guards at the gate shown in the photo above seemed not be too concerned about a small group of Australian and English tourists snapping away happily with their cameras. The probably knew our guide; he seemed to know everyone else.
The gate itself is just another magnificent example of the stunning mosaics of Morocco. Wherever we went we saw many examples of this fine art. It was hard not to take dozens of photos of each example; observing my wife in action, I think she did.
Royal Palace, Rabat, Morocco
Royal Palace, Rabat, Morocco
The Hassan II Mosque in Casablanca, Morocco
The Hassan II Mosque in Casablanca, Morocco
Wherever one looks inside the Hassan II Mosque in Casablanca, Morocco, there is beautiful artwork enhancing what is one of the most amazingly stunning buildings anywhere. Over recent posts I have featured some of this artwork and there are more to come in the next few days. Today’s photo shows some of the mosaics and woodwork panelling on the walls. My photos hardly do it justice.
The Hassan II Mosque in Casablanca, Morocco
The Hassan II Mosque in Casablanca, Morocco
On our first morning in Morocco we visited the Hassan II Mosque in Casablanca, one of the largest mosques in the world. We were looking forward to seeing the mosaics in Moroccan buildings, and we were not disappointed on this occasion – and it was only the very first morning of our two week tour.
Shown in the photo above is some of the detail of the floor mosaics. The designs were amazing, the artistry inspiring and the finish immaculate. I could have lingered for many hours just soaking in the brilliance of the artisans who created this magnificent building, but sadly, we were ushered along by our guide if we didn’t keep moving.
Despite the sacred nature of this building to the local Muslims there were few restrictions on us as visitors. Sure, we had to remove our shoes on entering which was something we expected. But as for taking photographs there was no hindrances to snapping away at whatever took our fancy.
I’ve already shared a few photos in recent posts here and have many more to show in the coming days.