Hassan Tower

An unfinished minaret from an unfinished mosque. The Almohad sultan Yacoub al-Mansour began construction in 1195, planning the largest mosque in the world. He died in 1199; the work stopped; the tower reached only half its intended height. What remains is still impressive: 44 meters of decorated stonework rising above a forest of broken columns — the 348 pillars that would have supported the prayer hall. The 1755 Lisbon earthquake finished what abandonment began, toppling much of the structure. The Mausoleum of Mohammed V faces the tower across the esplanade. Built in the 1960s for the king who led Morocco to independence, the mausoleum offers what the mosque never did: a completed interior of white marble, green zellige, and carved wood. Best time: Late afternoon (light on the stonework) Allow: 1 hour (including mausoleum) Combine with: Chellah and Oudaias Kasbah