Ceramic squares in the dwellings of the city of Algiers during the Ottoman era

Document Type : Original Article

Author

Doctor of Archeology, University of Algiers _2_(Algeria)

Abstract

The buildings that were erected in the Ottoman era are replete with ceramic squares, so almost no building, whether religious , civil, or public facilities, is free of this type of wall cladding, and despite the large number of these squares, they are not from the local industry and no source indicated that Knowing that the region has known centers for the manufacture of ceramics since ancient times, and the first appearance of ceramic squares in Tunisia was in the facade of the niche of the Kairouan Mosque, brought from Baghdad and then the craftsmen began to control this industry since the ninth century AD in Kairouan, Raqqada and Mahdia, as other centers appeared such as the castle Bani Hammad in the eleventh century AD, then Bejaia in the twelfth century AD, and in the Marinid and Hafsid periods, the art of ceramic industry reached its climax. So what are the reasons that led to the absence of this industry in the Ottoman era, and to bring its products from abroad?

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