Dar Bach Hamba is an old palace in the

medina of Tunis The Medina of Tunis is the medina quarter of Tunis, the capital of Tunisia. It has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1979. The Medina contains some 700 monuments, including palaces, mosques, mausoleums, madrasas and fountains dating from ...

History

Dar Bach Hamba has witnessed many modifications in its architecture through the decades that made it one of the richest palaces in the medina. Yet, these modifications made it very difficult for historians to get precise information about the date of its foundation that is estimated to be in the 17th century. The palace was founded by the Rassa family (coming from

Tlemcen Tlemcen (; ar, تلمسان, translit=Tilimsān) is the second-largest city in northwestern Algeria after Oran, and capital of the Tlemcen Province. The city has developed leather, carpet, and textile industries, which it exports through the p ...

since the Hafsid dynasty). Later, during the 18th century, the Naccache family bought it. In 1789, Haj Ahmed Bach Hamba bought it in the reign of

Hammuda ibn Ali Abu Mohammed Hammuda ibn Ali Pasha (9 December 1759 – 15 September 1814) ( ar, أبو محمد حمودة ابن علي باشا) was the fifth leader of the Husainid dynasty and the ruler of Tunisia from 26 May 1782 until his death on 15 Sep ...

and gave it its name. The palace later became a property of French sisters who used it as a school during the French protectorate of Tunisia.

Architecture

From the 17th to the 18th century, the palace was a house for craftsmen. It has been considered to be a first class residence (like those belonging to the bourgeois and the nobles of the medina). The palace has its own ''turba'' at Sidi Tijani Street and another house (Dar Bakir) is annexed to it. It has a classical architectural plan as have most of the palaces in the medina in Tunis ( Dar Lasram,

Dar Ben Abdallah Dar Ben Abdallah ( ar, دار بن عبد الله) is an old palace in the medina of Tunis. Localization It is located in the south district of the Medina of Tunis, near Tourbet El Bey. History The palace was built during the 18th centu ...

, Dar Ben Hassine, etc.) with a patio surrounded by four richly decorated rooms on each side. Yet, unlike other palaces where the porticoes are built face to face, Dar Bach Hamba has a portico on the northern side and another one on the eastern one. One of the four rooms was converted into a

chapel A chapel is a Christian place of prayer and worship that is usually relatively small. The term has several meanings. Firstly, smaller spaces inside a church that have their own altar are often called chapels; the Lady chapel is a common ty ...

in 1932.

Activities

Until 2015, Dar Bach Hamba was the office of the Orestiadi Foundation and the venue for a permanent exhibition of costumes, stuccos and

terracotta Terracotta, terra cotta, or terra-cotta (; ; ), in its material sense as an earthenware substrate, is a clay-based unglazed or glazed ceramic where the fired body is porous. In applied art, craft, construction, and architecture, terracotta ...

s from all Mediterranean countries. The idea of this exposition was inspired from the model at the ''Museo delle Trame Mediterranee'', and its goal was to show the commonality in Mediterranean cultures and communities. Since July 2015, the palace hosts the L'Art Rue association that develops artistic projects promoting local heritage. Dar Bach Hamba is also the venue of many artistic workshops for children, for oncerts and artistic residences.

References

External links

* {{Coord missing, Tunisia Bach Hamba