Hassan Tower An Unfinished Landmark

This post was originally written January 10th, 2017

This was my second visit to the famed structure in Morocco’s capital city. The first was at sunset this past summer. We arrived as everyone was leaving. The call to prayer was filling the air with melodious sounds. Weaving through crowds of locals and tourists, we snapped pictures of the beautiful sight. It struck me, possibly, as more amazing because it wasn’t completed. No one ever undertook the task or replaced it with something else. It stands as a monument to respecting the past, even if you don’t want to continue on the path pursued by your ancestors. On that first visit an August dusk descended on the water as we tried to see it all. Guards were yelling at us. We were going the wrong way, the Hassan Tower was closing.

This time we arrived early enough to see the fabled equestrian guards, sitting atop tall Arabian horses, adorned in traditional garb.  The large fountain in front of the tower was spouting water, hardly a soul was milling around. A couple locals ate lunch on benches, probably on break from nearby offices. The history and symbolism of this place was not lost on me. It stands like a talisman of the past which brings feelings of awe to all who see it.

We wandered through the columns like it was a labyrinth, inspecting the differences of these remarkable stone structures. I ran my hand along a wall which stood 300 years before the fall of the Byzantine Empire.  Inside the Mausoleum of Mohamed V, I was speechless at the sight of stained glass, gold, and tiny tiles decorating every inch. The tombs sit below the viewing deck, encased in gold and jewels. Stoic guards protect this monument to the current Royal Family which has ruled Morocco since the 17th century.

I think I could spend my life looking at fallen empires across the world and never tire of it. The grandeur they displayed, only to disappear from existence leaving behind sights for modern people to marvel at, engrosses me. It’s like looking at a reflection of the past dingy from age, crumbling around you, showing you what your world will look like to future generations. Of course, my modern society won’t leave behind many great architectural wonders,  like eras past. Too many cookie-cutter buildings, not dedicated to opulence, are seen in America. But here, in Morocco, individuality still has meaning and the past stands preserved for the future to enjoy.

Construction began in 1195, for what would later be known as the unfinished mosque, Hassan Tower.  The Berber Muslim Emperor, Sultan Yacub Al-Mansour, died before his vision was realized. The tower was to be the focal point of the world’s largest mosque with ramps to allow mounted muezzin to issue the call to prayer.  Upon the Sultan’s death construction was halted. The incomplete columns and tower now stand century to the Mausoleum of Mohammed V, constructed in 1971.