Photos of Bab Debbagh Tanneries
About Bab Debbagh Tanneries
The Bab Debbagh Tanneries are an amazing working leather quarter along Rue Bab Debbagh at the northeast edge of the Marrakech medina. Leather has been tanned here since the medina was founded, and the work is still done by hand. Raw hides soak in round pits sunk into the ground, then get scraped, stretched and laid out to dry in the open before they move on to the dyers. The whole area is a unique maze of low pink walls and pits filled with milky white lime and brown tanning liquor, with hides hung everywhere there is space. Leather shops around the pits have rooftop terraces to show off the views over the entire area. From any of the terraces you can shoot straight down into the grid of pits, pick out workers standing waist deep in them, or pair the whole tannery against the ochre rooftops of the medina. A long lens is the perfect addition to your kit here. It will let you focus on individual workers or the patterns of wet hides on the ground. The pits sit open to the sky with no shade, so mornings are the ideal time to be here. That is when work is in full swing and the low sun puts a shadow into each pit. There is no entry fee to explore this area, but a small tip to whoever shows you up to a terrace is the norm. If you've have extra time after capturing the tanneries, Bab Debbagh (a gate from the 1100s with a bent passage inside) is a few steps away and worth photographing while you are here. (Marrakech, Marrakech-Safi, Morocco)
Photo Tips and Community Notes
Be the first to add one
