SIJILMASSA
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A fabulous city near the city gates, this is undoubtedly a stopover for archaeology and history enthusiasts
The entrance to the ruins was 300 m from the city gates, but has been inaccessible for some years. The exact date of foundation of this fabulous city is unknown, but the 11th-century geographer El Bekri dates it to 140 A.H. (792 A.D.). From the 9th to the 11th century, Sijilmassa was the capital, religious center and economic hub of an independent kingdom, bounded to the north and south by the Atlas mountains and the desert, and to the east and west by the Drâa and Ziz rivers. An important caravanning center between Morocco, Mali, Sudan and Niger, Sijilmassa traded in precious commodities such as salt, dates, cloth, gold and other metals. With a population of 100,000 and 600 kasbahs, Sijilmassa is a direct rival to cities such as Fez and Marrakech. But the city aroused much envy, and was conquered by the Almoravids around 1055, who continued the commercial activity. We don't know why Sijilmassa disappeared, but we do know that it was sacked in 1362 by Arab nomads. When Leon the African visited in 1550, all that remained of the town were ruins and vestiges of a bygone splendor. Replaced by Rissani, it was definitively destroyed and razed to the ground in the 19th century. Once on the site, it's hard to imagine that this was the cradle of a civilization whose influence extended across the whole of North Africa. A stopover that is sure to enthrall archaeology and history buffs alike!
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