The once-glorious stronghold has been left to crumble, but the best indication of Telouet’s former position as the centre of a trans-Saharan trading empire are the ornate 2nd-floor reception rooms. No less than 300 artisans worked on salons faceted with stucco, zellige (colourful geometric mosaic tiles) and painted cedar ceilings that make Marrakesh’s royal Bahia Palace seem like an amateur artisanal effort.
After independence, Pasha Glaoui was ousted from the Bahia Palace and died shortly thereafter of cancer in exile in Telouet. The site is now owned by the village council.