Zitouna Mosque (Al-Zaytuna)

About this place

The oldest and best-known mosque in Tunis, standing at the centre of the medina with the souks radiating out from its walls. It was founded at the end of the seventh or the start of the eighth century, but its present form dates mostly from a ninth-century rebuilding, with many ancient columns brought from Carthage, followed by additions and restorations over the centuries. The mosque was never only a place of prayer. It grew into a university, the University of Ez-Zitouna, Tunisia's leading seat of learning from around the thirteenth century. The jurists Ibn Arafa and al-Maziri taught here, and the poet Aboul-Qacem Echebbi studied here. Muslims pray here at prayer times like in any mosque. Non-Muslims are usually allowed into the courtyard for a short window in the morning, outside prayer times and not on Fridays, per visitor guides; from the courtyard you can see into the colonnaded prayer hall. Dress modestly, with shoulders and knees covered; women are advised to bring a headscarf. Rooftop cafés and shops nearby offer a view down onto the courtyard and the minaret.