Art & Crafts - Morocco - page 929

The most reliable resource in English on Moroccan carpets is (the aptly named) Moroccan Carpets,
by Brooke Pickering, W Russell Pickering and Ralph S Yohe. It's packed with photos to help
pinpoint the origins and style of any carpet that mysteriously followed you home.
Brass, Copper & Silver
Tea is a performance art in Morocco, requiring just the right props. As though tea poured
from over your head wasn't dramatic enough, gleaming brass teapots and copper tea trays
are hammered by hand to catch the light and engraved with calligraphy to convey baraka
on all who partake. Pierced brass lamps and recycled tin lanterns add instant atmosphere -
and if all else fails to impress, serve your guests a sliver of cake with an inlaid knife from
Morocco's dagger capital, Kelaâ M'Gouna.
Most 'silver' tea services are actually nickel silver, and should cost accordingly - about
Dh50 to Dh250 for the teapot, and usually more for the tray (depending on size and
design).
The Art of the Islamic Tile, by Gerard Degeorge and Yves Porter, celebrates the splendours of
ceramics across the Middle East, from Istanbul to Fez.
Jewellery
Not all that glitters is gold in Morocco, since Berbers traditionally believe gold to be a
source of evil. You may see some jewellers with magnifying glasses working a tricky bit
of gold filigree, but most gold you see in the souqs is imported from India and Bali. Ster-
ling will be marked with 925, and is often sold by weight rather than design. Morocco's
mining operations are more concerned with phosphates and fossils than with precious
gems, but you will see folkloric dowry jewellery and headdresses with semiprecious
stones, including coral, agate, cornelian and amber.
But Moroccan mâalem s don't need precious materials to create a thing of beauty. An-
cient ammonite and trilobite fossils from Rissani make fascinating prehistoric amulets,
and striking Berber fibales (brooches) in silver are Tiznit's speciality. Layered wood, nick-
el silver and brightly coloured enamel make groovy cocktail rings in Marrakesh, and
desert Tuareg talismans in leather and silver are fitting gifts for a man of the world.