A Graphic Description of the Religious Heritage of the Medina of Asilah: Mosques, Zaouias and Shrines

Abstract

The city of Asilah, Morocco, has one of the most interesting Islamic medinas in North Africa. It has a very characteristic religious architecture, including a total of 16 mosques, zaouias and shrines. The present article describes the construction details of these hitherto practically unknown buildings of the Maghreb region. The data used to create the cartographic database were gathered under the direction of the authors of the article during the period 2015–2016. The article includes a planimetric survey and a typological study of each building. It also describes their functional, formal and constructive features, establishing interesting relationships between them. The result is intended to provide knowledge about the religious architecture of the medina of Asilah which may be a useful tool for future conservation and stewardship programmes.