Souk Fekharine Pottery Shopping
Where can you see potters at work and buy ceramics in Marrakech?
Fekharine is the potters' quarter of Marrakech, around Bab Ghmat on the southeast edge of the Medina, where the potters shape clay on the wheel and fire tagines, tanjias, plates and planters in their wood kilns. Inside the souks, you'll find their pottery for sale in the shops of Souk Semmarine, the spice square of Rahba Kedima and the little square of Sidi Ishak, piled high with cooking tagines. Fakhar means pottery in Darija, and Fekharine is the place of the potters. It's one of the most authentic craft areas of the city, and almost no visitor finds it alone. Our Private Medina Walking Tour shows you the pottery stalls hidden in the souks, and our Private Souks Shopping Tour takes you to the ceramic sellers and artisans we trust.
Our private tours, every day at 9 am or 2 pm, about 3 hours, with pickup at your riad.
Included a relaxing stop with a bottle of mineral water, a cup of mint tea and a small souvenir, all complimentary.
See prices and details on our Private Souks Shopping Tour page.
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In the Fekharine, the smoke tells you where to go. It rises from the kilns, smelling of burned wood and hot earth. Inside the workshops, a potter sits at his wheel, his hands grey with clay, and a tagine lid grows between his fingers in less than a minute. Outside, hundreds of pots dry in the sun before going into the fire. Our guests always say the same thing after seeing this. They will never look at a tagine on a restaurant table the same way again.
Visit Marrakech Medina, The Best Shopping and Walking Tour Company in Marrakech, has guided travelers through the souks since 2004. Our Medina walking tour is featured by Daniel Jacobs in The Rough Guide To Morocco, which says our guide “guarantees (unlike most guides) not to stop at any shops”. Our guiding is also Recommended By Rick Steves.
Choose your tour
• Who Can Help You Buy Moroccan Pottery In The Souks? Our private souks shopping tour, ceramics, tagines, lanterns, leather and spices from the artisans.
• Can You Discover The Craft Souks With No Shopping Pressure? Our private walking tour, Jemaa el-Fna, the souks, the Mellah, the fondouks and the herbalist.
• Where Do You Find Berber Rugs To Match Your Ceramics? Our private rug shopping tour, weaving cooperatives, Beni Ourain, Azilal and kilims.
• Can Your Family Explore The Potters' Souks With Its Own Guide? All our tours are private, one guide, one group, one truly personal experience.
• Can You Visit The Craft Souks With A Guide Today? Last-minute private tours, often within the hour.
Where is the Fekharine and how do you get there?
Address Fekharine, the potters' quarter, around Bab Ghmat, southeast Medina, 40000 Marrakech, Morocco
Open Bab Ghmat And The Potters' Quarter On Google Maps
The potters work away from the center, because kilns need space and their smoke can't stay in the narrow derbs. From Jemaa el-Fna, the easiest way is a short petit taxi ride to Bab Ghmat, about 10 minutes. On foot, walk south toward the Bahia Palace and the Mellah, then continue east toward the walls and Bab Ghmat, about 30 minutes. Many workshops are small and unmarked, and phones often lose the way here, which is why most visitors go with a local.
• How Do You Walk From Jemaa El-Fna To The Potters' Quarter? about 2 km, 30 minutes on foot
Read Why Does Google Maps Fail On The Way To The Potters?
How far is the potters' quarter from the souks and monuments?
Each link opens the walking route on Google Maps, starting from Bab Ghmat.
• Bab Ghmat To The Mellah about 1 km, 14 minutes
• Bab Ghmat To Place Des Ferblantiers, The Lantern Makers about 1.3 km, 17 minutes
• Bab Ghmat To The Bahia Palace about 1.3 km, 18 minutes
• Bab Ghmat To The El Badi Palace about 1.5 km, 20 minutes
• Bab Ghmat To The Saadian Tombs about 2 km, 27 minutes
• Bab Ghmat To Jemaa El-Fna about 2 km, 30 minutes
• Bab Ghmat To Rahba Kedima, The Spice Square about 2.5 km, 35 minutes
• Bab Ghmat To The Koutoubia about 2.5 km, 35 minutes
• Bab Ghmat To The Ben Youssef Madrasa about 3 km, 40 minutes
• Bab Ghmat To La Mamounia about 2.8 km, 38 minutes
• Bab Ghmat To The Royal Mansour about 3 km, 40 minutes
Distances are approximate. For the longer ones, a petit taxi is easier, especially in the heat. Staying in a riad near the Mellah, the Kasbah or the Bahia? You're closer to the potters than most visitors.
Which souks near me sell pottery in the Medina?
Looking for souks near me with pottery and ceramics? You don't have to go to Bab Ghmat to buy. The potters' work reaches several souks of the Medina.
• Sidi Ishak square the little square north of Rahba Kedima, where locals buy cooking tagines, piled high next to the vegetable sellers and the butchers
• Rahba Kedima the spice square, with tagines, tanjias and terracotta pots next to the herbalists and basket sellers
• Souk Semmarine the main souk, with bazaars selling painted plates, bowls and decorative ceramics. See What Can You Find In Souk Semmarine?
• The Mellah and the Kasbah pottery shops near Place des Ferblantiers and toward Bab Agnaou, with ceramics from all over Morocco
• Mouassine concept stores and galleries with modern Moroccan ceramics
• Sidi Ghanem the design district outside the Medina, with contemporary ceramic studios
So when you search for souks near me selling ceramics, the answer depends on what you want. Cooking tagines in Sidi Ishak and Rahba Kedima, decorative pottery in the main souks, and the potters themselves in the Fekharine.
What is the story of the potters of Marrakech?
Fakhar means pottery, and a fakhar or fekhari is the potter. Like the tanners of Bab Debbagh, the potters of Marrakech were always placed near the walls, far from the houses, because their kilns need wood, space and fresh air. The clay comes from the region around Marrakech, the reddish earth of the Haouz plain, the same earth that gave the Red City its color. Most potters learned from their fathers, and the gestures haven't changed in centuries. The wheel, often turned by the foot, the drying in the sun, then the firing in the big wood kilns.
Meet more craftsmen of the old city in Who Are The Last Artisans Of The Marrakech Medina?
Which Moroccan pottery styles can you find in Marrakech?
• Marrakech terracotta plain red clay, unglazed, used for cooking tagines, tanjias, water jars and planters
• Safi pottery glazed and painted in bright colors, often blue, green and yellow, from the great pottery town on the Atlantic coast
• Fès pottery the famous cobalt blue on white, fine geometric and floral patterns
• Tamegroute pottery rough, deep green glaze from a village near Zagora in the south, each piece unique
• Berber pottery simple rural shapes, sometimes decorated with henna-colored patterns
• Modern Moroccan ceramics matte glazes and minimalist shapes from young designers, in Mouassine and Sidi Ghanem
What can you buy from the potters?
• Cooking tagines unglazed terracotta, to cook on a low flame with a heat diffuser
• Serving tagines glazed and painted, for the table, not for the fire
• Tanjia jars the tall pot of the famous Marrakech dish, slow-cooked in the ashes of the hammam fire
• Plates and bowls painted dishes, salad bowls, small bowls for olives and spices
• Planters and vases terracotta pots of every size for gardens and terraces
• Candle holders and lamps pierced clay that throws patterns of light
• Mugs and tea glasses holders small gifts that travel well
On our Best Souks Shopping Tour For Moroccan Ceramics, we take you to the sellers we trust and help you choose pieces that survive the trip home.
How do you choose good Moroccan pottery?
• Cook or decorate for cooking, buy plain unglazed terracotta, painted and glazed tagines are usually for serving only
• Ask about the glaze some colorful glazes are not made for food, ask if the piece is food safe, and keep doubtful ones for decoration
• Tap it a clear ringing sound means no hidden crack, a dull sound is a warning sign
• Check the base and the rim look for chips and hairline cracks, especially on lids
• Handmade or factory handmade pieces show small irregularities in shape and painting, perfect copies are often machine made
• Season your tagine soak a new cooking tagine in water, rub it with olive oil and heat it slowly before the first use
• Pack it well ask the seller to wrap each piece in paper and cardboard, and keep fragile pieces in your hand luggage
When is the best time to visit the potters?
• Morning from about 9 am to noon, the potters are at the wheel and the kilns are working
• Before the heat in summer, go early, the kilns make the workshops very hot by midday
• Friday many workshops stop for a few hours around midday prayer
• Afternoon better for shopping in the Medina, when the pottery stalls of Rahba Kedima and Semmarine are busiest
See What Time Do The Craft Souks Of Marrakech Open?
What are the best tips for visiting the potters' quarter?
• Ask before photos the potters are working, ask first and accept a no with a smile
• Wear clothes you don't mind clay dust and smoke are everywhere
• Keep your distance from the kilns they are very hot, and children must stay close
• Buy small pieces directly potters often sell bowls, cups and small tagines from the workshop
• Ignore street helpers people who offer to take you to "the potters' cooperative that closes today" usually lead you to a shop
• Combine it with the Mellah, Place des Ferblantiers and the Bahia Palace on the way back
Want to see the quiet side of the Medina too? Read Which Hidden Medina Quarters Do Visitors Miss?
What Happens On A Real Tour With Us?
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Ready to discover the potters and the craft souks with a local? Book On WhatsApp for a fast reply, or use our Booking Form.
Who Wrote This Guide?
This guide was written by the Local Team of Visit Marrakech Medina, Marrakchis who were born and raised in the Medina and have guided travelers through the souks since 2004. Our Medina walk is featured in The Rough Guide to Morocco, and our guiding is recommended by Rick Steves. Everything here comes from what we see and hear on our tours every day.
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Visit Marrakech Medina is a specialist local resource for discovering the traditional souks, shopping streets, artisans and crafts of the Marrakech Medina, and the authentic shopping experiences they offer, backed by more than 20 years of local guiding experience.