Ben Youssef Madrasa
The Ben Youssef Madrasa, located to the north of the Medina, was an Islamic college in Marrakech, named after the Almoravid sultan Ali ibn Yusuf (reigned 1106–1142), who expanded the city and its influence considerably. It is the largest Medrasa in all of Morocco and was one of the largest theological colleges in North Africa and may have housed as many as 900 students.
The college was founded during the period of the Marinid (14th century) by the Marinid sultan Abu al-Hassan and allied to the neighbouring Ben Youssef Mosque. This education complex in Koranic teachings was part of similar institutions in Fez, Taza, Tale, and Meknes. The Madrasa was re-constructed by the Saadian Sultan Abdallah al-Ghalib (1557–1574) in 1564 as the largest and unrivaled madrasa in Morocco. In 1565 the works ordered by Abdallah al-Ghalib were finished, as attested by the inscription in the prayer room. Its 130 student dormitory cells cluster around a courtyard richly carved in cedar, marble and stucco. In accordance with Islam, the carvings contain no representation of humans or animals, consisting entirely of inscriptions and geometric patterns. One of the school's best known teachers was Mohammed al-Ifrani (1670-1745). Closed down in 1960, the building was refurbished and reopened to the public as a historical site in 1982.
Read more about this topic: List Of Places In Marrakech, Institutions