A mosque built in the XIIth century, the Koutoubia is distinguished by its exceptional minaret.
Over time,
the Koutoubia Mosque has become emblematic of Marrakech. Its construction was
decided in 1158 by the sultan Almohades Abdel Moumen soon after his conquest of
Marrakech. It was completed in 1199 with the building of his famous minaret
ordered by the little son of Sultan Yacoub el Mansour. Koutoubia, literally the
"Mosque of the booksellers' in Arabic, is named after the many merchants
of books and manuscripts that set up their stalls in the immediate vicinity of
the building from 12 ° -13 ° century.