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THE
SPLENDID HANDICRAFTS OF MOROCCO
by
Habeeb Salloum
 In
this rushed 20th century there are not many of us
who know that in Morocco there still exists a
medieval world of craftsmen who are creating, with
their hands, masterpieces of art. Incorporating a
synthesis of the Libyco-Berber, Mediterranean,
Middle Eastern, African and Andalusian artistic
traditions, these artisans have a long and honored
history.
Whole families,
century after century, handing down the trades from
father to sons, have kept Motional fee based on
number of nights. Prices and dates for each of the
tours are subject to change based on total number
of participants. Photo (above right)
Rabat,
For more
information about attending the ATA's Eco-Tourism
Conference and/or joining our Morocco Tour, please
contact Helen C. Broadus Toll-Free at
1-877-TO-VENUE [(301) 856-9188] or send me
an e-mail at vipinc@erols.com.
About the author:
Helen C. Broadus is the President of Venue
International Professionals, Inc. (VIP) &endash; an
African-American owned full service travel and
tourism company based in the Washington
Metropolitan Area. VIP specializes in providing
escorted and customized travel and tourism packages
for individuals and groups interested in visiting
the African continent. She is also the Executive
Secretary of the Africa Travel Association (ATA)
and has conducted numerous travel and tourism
programs to twenty countries in Africa over the
past ten years.
Photos on this
page courtesy Casablanca Travel and Tours of
Alexandria,Virginia.rocco‚s artistic
traditions alive. The families know-how, always
open to contributions from the outside world, are
constantly improved without deviating from
tradition. New ideas are assimilated, brewed,
melted, then re-created to become genuine Moroccan
art.
 These
craftsmen who, in our time, compete with modern
mechanical technology, are able to survive and, in
fact, prosper. Unbelievably, these Moroccan skilled
workmen, unlike their brethren in other parts of
the world, have fought against the machines of the
modern age and have not lost the battle. With
skills inherited from their fathers, they produce,
today, some of the finest handmade products in the
world.
If one wishes to
be transported to a world of ancient oriental
splendor, Fez el-Bali or the old section of Fez is
the place to visit. Within its walls no automobile
is allowed to enter and, as it was in the medieval
ages, all work is carried on by man or donkey. The
craftsmen, like their forefathers in the days when
Moorish Spain and Morocco were one, still turn out
superb handmade articles which dazzle the
onlooker.
In the same way as
they have been for hundreds of years, these
artisans are grouped in numerous streets
specializing in different crafts. Fascinating to
any visitor, the souks not only in Fez but also in
the other cities of Morocco, appear to come
straight out of The Arabian Nights.
I will never
forget the first time I walked down into the heart
of the medieval part of Fez and saw artisans
working amid shops displaying their colorfully
embossed articles of leather.
Green, red,
violet, white and yellow, marvelously treated by
that city*s celebrated tanners and dyers, leather
was being gilded and transformed into dozens of
products. Book covers, wallets and purses in all
shapes and forms, desk sets, belts, hassocks, photo
frames and countless other articles were being
decorated with sumptuous motifs comprising
geometric designs, arabesques and stylized flowers
or stars.
The artistry of
these Moroccan craftsmen was dazzling and
breathtaking. However, this should not have come as
a surprise since the ancestors of these leather
artisans have been world-renowned hundreds of
years. In the Middle Ages Moroccan leather was so
famous that the best leather of that time and
Moroccan were synonymous terms.
Next to leather
products, the craftsmen of Fez and Marrakesh are
world famous for their brass and copper utensils.
In the shops and homes, gleaming brass and
copperware entice the tourist and Moroccan alike.
Trays in all sizes, ashtrays, braziers, incense
burners, door knockers, kettles, sugar boxes,
teapots and other articles decorated with
interlacing arabesque designs and intricate floral
motifs are produced with hands inheriting the
skills of centuries.
Candelabra and
lanterns with green, red and yellow glass inserts
are in demand by the many visitors Morocco hosts
annually. Numerous restaurants and nightclubs make
use of them to create for their clients a relaxed
aura. The colored lights project to the customers
an haunting and romantic atmosphere.
In Morocco, a room
lit with colored lanterns is always complemented
with attractive handmade carpets. The oldest of
that country*s handicrafts, they come in basically
two types: rural and urban. However, these are
divided into a wide range of many
styles.
Rural carpets,
known as Berber carpets, are the oldest type and
the most common. Some have very thick woolen piles
while others have short goat or camel hair piles.
In almost all cases, they reflect the colors of the
landscapes where they are made. Hence, they come
mostly in beige, brown and tan with a few in black,
red and white. Some have designs recalling
prehistoric inscriptions while others have
geometric compositions made up of lozenges, arrows
and saw-tooth lines.
Urban carpets are
a newer type of rug. They were only introduced from
the East into Morocco in the 18th century. Rabat
and Sale became the production centers of these
rich carpets. Traditionally, the urban carpets have
a harmony of seven colors and a multitude of
designs. Three bands of unequal width frame a
rectangular field with a star-shaped motif in the
center. Bands of different colors in geometric or
floral designs encompass these and, at each end,
there is a kind of mihrab arch. Fine carpet experts
indicate that these colorful rugs bring to mind
garden paths around a pool surrounded by flowers
and pet birds.
In the homes of
the wealthy in Morocco the handmade rugs are
usually associated with inlaid furniture and other
wooden knickknacks usually made from they wood (a
type of oak). Essaouira, famous for its marquetry,
is where many of these charming pieces of
furniture, desks, all kinds of tables, chests and
jewelry boxes are made.
The city's skilled
artisans polish the hard they to a satin finish,
then inlay it with cedar, lemon wood, ebony,
mother-of-pearl and silver in floral and geometric
patterns. By using thin veneers of the same wood in
a checkered design, or with chevrons, stars and
other forms alternating with mother-of-pearl, ebony
and silver they bring out the subtleties of the
they wood. The saying that the wood craftsmen of
the city combine and harmonize their inlaying to
sing a song of beauty has much merit.
In Fez, the
craftsmen are well known for their skill in
decorating all types of structures with cedar wood,
which is abundant in the nearby forests. Ceilings,
doors and windows are made attractive with zouak, a
type of decor dominated by geometric figures. The
city*s artisans, as well as those in neighboring
Meknes, also specialize in masharabiehs (screens
made of small pieces of cedar wood turned on a
lathe and then assembled in clever designs).
Delicate and appealing these screens make the
windows of the traditional homes
attractive.
Alongside the
inlaid articles are the ceramics which beautify,
besides the homes, fountains, palaces, mosques and
public buildings. The tile-makers whose ancestors
made Andalusia an earthly paradise still practice
their trade in Fez and Meknes. Throughout Morocco,
tiled green roofs harmonizing with the surrounding
greenery and breathtaking tiled blue, turquoise,
white and yellow patios, rooms and hallways are all
the handiwork of these master craftsmen.
For the
preparation of their food the Moroccans, in the
main, employ glazed red or brown pottery. However,
enameled ornamental pottery made in Fez, Meknes,
Sale and Safi are produced with the finesse of
Italian or Spanish wares. Amphoras, dishes, jars,
pots and vases are decorated mainly with cobalt
blue on an enamel background. Cross-stitch designs,
interlaced curves, polygonal stars and geometric or
floral designs are then applied in black to these
colorful utensils. In addition, in Safi, ceramic
artisans produce in darker colors the metallic
sheen found in Malaga pottery which itself was
initiated by the Arabs.
In all aspects of
the handiwork industries, nothing is created
hastily. The taste for the superb, along with the
passage of time has created perfection. For export,
the production of handicrafts is strictly regulated
by the Moroccan government which allows only the
topnotch products to be exported outside the
country. In the country itself, the cooperative
shops Coopartim sell handmade goods of guaranteed
quality at reasonable prices. Hence, a visitor need
not worry about bargaining if he/she is not
inclined.
Nevertheless,
whether sold in these regulated stores, in the
traditional shops, or laid out on the sidewalks or
on the bare ground in a country souk, the visitor
will find everywhere an extraordinary collection of
handicrafts, brilliant in colors and magnetic in
appeal.
These handmade
products are one of the most fundamental
characteristics of Moroccan life. Varied in range
from works of art to simple utilitarian articles,
they are a living tradition suited for everyday use
even in our modern times. Vivid and alive they are
a living testimony to the rich cultural heritage of
Morocco.
Habeeb Salloum
58 Langbourne Place
Don Mills (Toronto), Ontario, Canada M3B 1A9
Tel: (416) 445-4558, Fax: (416) 510-2143
E-mail:
mailto:habeeb.salloum@sympatico.ca
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