The sumptuous, mythical Sijilmassa and Rissani now.

Rissani, a small oasis town in Morocco, lies near the northwest edge of the Sahara, the last major city of about 40km west of Erg Chebbi. Rissani itself is very interesting, the ancient capital of a sumptuous and mythical Sijilmassa. From 8 to 14 century it was a separate kingdom, known as Sijilmassa, prosperous of the caravan routes. With its important caravan centre and religious, the city acquired the eighth century unprecedented prosperity during the four centuries following. Splendor by trans-Saharan trade shone over much of West Africa.

Founded around 757 AD by the Berber Zénètes a large nomadic tribes in the reign of Pepin the Short, king of the Franks, Sijilmassa, the oldest cities in the south, founded as the capital of a movement both religious and political: the Kharijites, the third branch of Islam in this land, after Sunnism and Shiism.

The kharijism is divided in turn into various communities and trends. Rather austere, this movement was born of the break between Shiites and Sunnis. They were both against the principle which means that the Shiite leaders of Islam are only in the Prophet's family, and against the Sunnis, which they considered decadent and corrupt. They refused superfluous luxury, their leaders were chosen for their virtues, submitting to a life ascétisée.

Paradoxically, Sijilmassa quickly become an important crossing point for Saharan caravans. It rubbed the trade of gold, ivory, salt, handicrafts and also, although unfortunately even slaves. In parallel, the Ziz wadi flowing through there, watered Ziz Valley and bring agricultural to wealth.

With trade came opulent opening on other countries, economic and therefore political, which made the city open to all desires or controversy. The various sultans of the provinces of the Kingdom of Morocco tried to kill either his power or to conquer. Sijilmassa flourished until the twelfth century and was an obvious decline until its destruction in 1818 by the Almoravids. 

Of the medieval city are now only a few ruins, at the entrance to Rissani on the left side.

In the center is Ksar Abouaam, in English "The father of the year" which is just Moulay Ali Cherif who taught religion every third year there. There is now a museum and Moulay Ali Cherif maousoleum.

But in Rissani is also very nice interesting kasbah,  just in the center.

From the Kasbah I continued up to the very interesting genuine market - souk, which is to left and interesting in that it is not tourist souk, but for locals living there. 3 times a week (Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday) is the market with also donkeys, sheep, goat, cow also I had seen there too. There meets wandering traders, nomads, Berbers and Arabic desert dwellers who come to sell all kinds of clothing, wares, plants, spices and vegetables, and animals. There sells also wild plants the people gather and use as medicine.

There is also a tourist route, besides about 5 thousand date palms, passing through and around hundreds of smaller Kasbah, it take about an hour to drive.

About 4 km on the north east of Rissani is situated Ksar el Fida: the most important and at same time the most ancient of the Alaouite ksars in the Tafilalet however. But there I was not yet, it is waiting for me ☺

Its worth mentioning that the genesis of the ksar dates back to the reign of king Moulay Ismail to house his son king Moulay Abdellah, but the ksar was reduced to rubbles and ruined except for the high outside walls and the towers which were built of muddy earth. The ksar was rebuilt under the reign of Moulay Abd al Rahman, but this time at about eight hundred metters at south east of the first site. Ever since the ksar had preponderant roles in directing the policy of region and at times its served as residential palace of the Khalifa or Caid of the Tafilalet and this up to 1965. Henceforth the ksar was a Makhzanean domain and is still an architectural patrimony.