Arts and Crafts of Morocco

The arts and crafts of Morocco express a centuries-long intermingling of influences from Africa, Islam, and from the alliance of the Moors and the Spaniards. Yet despite their versatility and diversity, Moroccan crafts are relatively little known outside the country. The author's account, based on his own first-hand research, examines all the media one-by-one: textiles, jewelry; leather, wood and metalwork; and pottery and ceramics. These objects derive either from a rural lifestyle, with symbols and patterns that express the powerful animistic beliefs of the Berber country artisans, or from the cities, in which Islamic tenets provide the vigorous context. All of them are thus endowed with a spiritually charged meaning to add both their utility and to their beauty. This book contains guidance for collectors and analyzes the belief systems, festivals and ceremonies to which the arts relate.