Postcards representing different views
of the mosque of sabres in Kairouan
Tunisia, Kairouan. Late 19th – early 20th century
Purchased online in 2023
MEG Archives
According to the collective memory of Kairouan, the mausoleum of the healer magus and blacksmith Sidi Amor Abbada was completed in 1872. This zaouïa with seven domes was a gift from the regent Ahmed Bey. A vast number of oversized objects and pieces of furniture surrounded the mystic’s tomb. Reflecting an obsession with gigantic proportions, these objects became the entirely engraved medium for an endless esoteric discourse. Sidi Amor Abbada’s intention must have been to leave to posterity an excessive testimony to his faith and his relationship with the world.
F. Morin/MEG
