Hassan Tower
Hassan Tower is all that remains of Morocco’s greatest monument to the Almohad dynasty. Its erection in honor of the victories won in Spain was begun in 1195 by Yacoub el-Mansour. The huge mosque was conceived as the largest in the world, but construction stopped on the day of El Mansour’s death in 1199. Its 50-meter minaret, which has survived to this day, unusually placed in the center of the prayer hall, was supposed to rise to a height of 80 meters. Six ramps lead to its top, designed so that the sultan could drive to the top. Each of the four faces has a different pattern. The restored 355 columns at the base of the minaret once supported a giant roof destroyed by the Lisbon earthquake of 1755.
