Page 12 - English MPNCI Guide
P. 12
Guide to the National Public Museum of Islamic Calligraphy of Tlemcen
In 1900, the mosque was converted into a warehouse for fodder
and wine. In the same year, a fire broke out in the prayer hall for an
unknown reason, damaging part of the plaster carvings on its walls,
its wooden ceiling, and some of its marble columns. It was restored by
the French administration at that time, and then the French Minister
of Fine Arts ordered the mosque to be converted into a museum.
In 1902, the French Commission for Historical Monuments erected
an iron barrier surrounding the mosque. In the same year, the
mosque was converted into a museum of Islamic art in the city
of Tlemcen, with the lower part of it being dedicated to Islamic
artifacts, and its upper floor becoming the Museum of Geology.
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