Chellah Website

Introduction

The Chellah was the center of a large city in ancient times. Now it is a cultural point for tourists and people who live in Morocco.

Location

The South-eastern part of Rabat, next to the American embassy. The turn is at Bab Zaer which is on Blvd Moussa ibn Nassair. The Chellah is visible from there, so you will immediately know which turn it is.

Fee

10dh for everyone above 12 years old and 3dh for those younger.

Hours

09:00-18:00 daily.

Facts

-Chellah was once the center of a Roman city called Sala Colonia, which fell during the 900s.
-Today you can see the Decumanus Maximus, the head road, that went from the East of Rabat to the West, and passed directly through the Chellah.
-The main entrance at the Chellah is the triple-arched gate known as the Arch of Triumph.
-In the 13th century the Chellah was rebuilt on the Roman grounds.

Views

As soon as you enter through the main gate you will have a path to follow, which leads you down to the ruins and the main part of the garden. Along the path, a little more than 100 meters or so, you reach a viewpoint where you can see a mosque, which lays outside the walls of Chellah. The river runs very close to that mosque. Inside the walls there is another mosque built by Abu Yusuf. The actual walls that we see today were built during the 1300’s by Abu Al-Hassan.

There are still ruins left from the interior of a mosque built by Abu Yusuf. Close by there are many leaders and royal family members buried, you can see: Abu yaqub Yusuf (1286) and his wife Umm al-Izz, for whom he let build a mosque where she could be buried. Abu Yaqub (1307) and Abu Thabit (1308) are two of those. The graveyard was completed by the sultan Abu Said (1310-1331) and his son Abu al-Hassan (1331-1351). There are an estimated 30 similar graves (not all of which are visible though), and many were found through archaeological expeditions. Abu al-Hassan has a grave that you can still visit. Many of these buildings fell during an earthquake in 1755. You can still see a mosque that used to be connected to the Zawia which was a shelter and school that also worked as a mosque. It is now a shelter for storks as well because they usually build their nests on top of the minaret.

There are also two famous ponds. One is still used for a ceremony for pregnant women. It is filled with eels. Another is next to a ruin with ancient text written across it. There is also a marble piece from a building that has ancient Roman writing on it. It is next to the remains of the interior of Abu Yusufs mosque. There is a large number of feral cats in the area which little kids enjoy. One man there feeds 37 of them. There are small white buildings that are almost round that are next to the pond filled with eels.

Products

There is a small shop near the entrance of the Chellah where they sell postcards etc., and a small stand where a man sells water and other beverages near the pond. He also has 37 cats.