The gate is located in the northern/northeastern corner of the city walls and dates back to around 1126 CE when the AlmoravidemirAli ibn Yusuf built the first walls of the city.[1][2] It was originally known as Bab Fes ("Gate of Fes"), but this name was apparently lost during the Marinid era.[1] The gate underwent a significant renovation in 1803–04 on the orders of Sultan Moulay Slimane, noted by a marble inscription found inside.[1][3]
The gate's current name (el-Khemis) refers to the souk or open-air market which historically took place here every Thursday (al-Khamis in Arabic).[3] Nowadays, the market continues almost all week right outside the gate,[4] while a permanent flea market, Souk al-Khemis, has been constructed a few hundred meters to the north.[5][6] Also just outside the gate is a qubba (domed mausoleum) housing the tomb of a local marabout or Muslimsaint.[4]
Architecture
The gate's outer entrance is flanked on either side by square bastions. The gate's passage originally consisted of a bent entrance which effected a single 90-degree turn; one entered the gate from the north and then exited westwards into the city.[1][3] According to legend, the door leaves of the gate were brought from Spain by a victorious Yusuf ibn Tashfin.[4][1] During the Almohad period, the gatehouse was expanded such that its passage effected three more right-angle turns before exiting southwards. This gave it a similar form and layout to several other major Almohad gates such as Bab er-Rouah.[3] The outline of the gate's original exit, now walled-up, can still be seen in its interior western wall.[3]
At some point in the 20th century, the inner wall of the passage was opened up to allow a straight passage directly through the gate in order to facilitate the heavy traffic in the area, resulting in the current form of the gate.[1]
^Deverdun, Gaston (1959). Marrakech: Des origines à 1912. Rabat: Éditions Techniques Nord-Africaines.
^ abcdeWilbaux, Quentin (2001). La médina de Marrakech: Formation des espaces urbains d'une ancienne capitale du Maroc. Paris: L'Harmattan. ISBN2747523888.
^ abcParker, Richard (1981). A practical guide to Islamic Monuments in Morocco. Charlottesville, VA: The Baraka Press.
