The city has leather in its skin

The first capital of the Saadian dynasty (1554-1660), the first city in Morocco to have a printing press in 1865, Taroudant has kept from its past the art of working leather according to the oldest recipes. The president of the Charaf association of dar edbagh, Jilali Guouar, states that the tannery of Taroudant employs between 60 and 70 people, including the owners of the 40 leather goods shops. The current tannery, built 20 years ago, replaced the old one, which had become too dilapidated. It is managed by the town hall. At the Taroudant tannery, which is accessed via Bab Targhount, one of the seven gates that pierce the eight-kilometre-long rampart, "there is no machine, everything is done by the strength of the arms," says Aït Benjeloune Abdelsalem, 59, 40 of which were spent tanning skins. Currently holding a leather goods shop within the very enclosure of the tannery, the man expl…