The museum is situated in the opulent lodge built by Moulay Ismail in the XVIIth century as his Rabat residence. The garden is the first of its masterpieces. The exuberance of the vegetation softens the strict geometry of its paths. Flower beds, fountains and ramparts make it the very finest of all andalusian gardens.
At the far end is a room reproducing an ancient Moroccan interior with a vast bay opening onto this glorious spectacle. Cushions in brocade, silk and gold cover the divans all around the room. A little further on, in a cool marble room, stand rows of very old illuminated Korans, jewellery, pottery and musical instruments.
The exceptional carpet collection deserves particular attention. The city style Rabat carpet can have as many as 150,000 stitches per square metre! The craftsmen - or rather the artists - have taken up traditional motifs and developed them inventively. Using a less elaborate technique, the rural carpets, called berbers, demonstrate a powerful sense of composition, colour and ornamentation which is an art of its own with a unique appeal.