Chellah

Chellah, (العربية. شالة) or Sala Colonia is a necropolis and complex of ancient Roman Mauretania Tingitana and medieval ruins at the outskirts of Rabat, Morocco. First spot of Salé, this latter was completed towards the north of the river. It is the most ancient human settlement on the mouth of the Bou Regreg River.

History

The Phoenicians and the Carthaginians, who founded several colonies in Morocco, probably inhabited the banks of the Bou Regreg. Chellah is the site of the ruins of the Roman town known as Sala Colonia, referred to as Sala by Ptolemy. Excavations show an important port city with ruined Roman architectural elements including a decumanus maximus or principal Roman way, a forum and a triumphal arch.

One of the two main Roman roads in Morocco reached the Atlantic through Iulia Constantia Zilil (Asilah), Lixus (Larache) and Sala Colonia. Another may have been built toward south, from Sala Colonia to modern Casablanca, then called Anfa. The Romans had two main naval ouposts on the Atlantic: Sala near modern Rabat and Mogador in north of Agadir. Roman expeditions sailed from there to find the Canary islands.

The site was abandoned in 1154 in favour of nearby Salé. The Almohad dynasty used the ghost town as a necropolis. In the mid-14th century, a Merinid sultan, Abu l-Hasan, built monuments and the main gate, dated to 1339. These later Merinid additions included a mosque, a zawiya, and royal tombs, including that of Abu l-Hasan.

Many structures in Chellah/Sala Colonia were damaged by the 1755 Lisbon earthquake. The site has been converted to a garden and tourist venue.

Festival of Jazz

Since 2005, the ruins of Chella host an international "Festival of Jazz" each year, called Jazz au Chellah.

See also

  • Mauretania Tingitana
  • Volubilis
  • Roman roads in Morocco
  • Roman expeditions to Sub-Saharan Africa

References

Шаблон:Reflist

External links

Шаблон:Commons category

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Majda Zekari
1 December 2012
A really Nice place to visit, a great landscape but just go with the right shoes! No heels ladies for this one! :D
Corina Alonso
25 March 2019
Interesting historic place. A true mixture of ancient societies
Areej Sabo
31 July 2015
Beautiful ????
Al Myers
9 September 2022
Lovely to visit.
Ekaterina Arutunyan
16 March 2014
Отличное место, интересная архитектура, прекрасные сады, множество аистов, даже магические рыбы угри. Можно гулять, любоваться, наслаждаться ароматоми ..... Рекомендую :)
NiNa
13 September 2013
Magnifique espace. Pour un festival, venez avant l'heure les places sont limités, et placez vous des cotes pour ne pas gêner les gens si vous comptez pas rester jusqu'à la fin.
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0.4km from Avenue Mouss Ibn Noussair, Rabat, Morocco Get directions
Thu 9:00 AM–9:00 PM
Fri 10:00 AM–6:00 PM
Sat 9:00 AM–10:00 PM
Sun 11:00 AM–8:00 PM
Mon 9:00 AM–6:00 PM
Tue 8:00 AM–7:00 PM

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