The Pagnon Gardens near Meknes, Morocco, c 1920s Postcard (1)

The high waterfall of the 'lost paradise of Meknes', c 1920s.
There's a recommended website in French, with photos of the gardens and memories from those who can recall their splendour in the 1920s.
dafina.net/forums/read.php?52,289710
Not much is available in English, however, so here some brief background details.
During WW1, at the time when the French colonists occupied most of Morocco, a Frenchman from Corrèze, Emile Pagnon, designed and laid out a fine garden complex near Meknes. The site lay near the River n'Ja, just off the main Fes/Rabat road. He took 12 years to complete his project, which involved major landscaping. Waterfalls and watercourses, terraces and stairways were created, with luxurious parterres enclosed within decorative stonework. Many of the design features suggest a Portuguese influence, particularly in the use of shells and pebbles. There is also more than a hint of Gaudi's work in the Parc Guël in Barcelona. The complex included a cafe-restaurant, a mini-golf course and a small zoo.
After Pagnon's death, the gardens went into a rapid decline, and much of the site has now gone back to nature. No doubt gardens of such interest and magnificence would have been restored by now had they been in Europe or America. The landscaping, and traces of the original brickwork remain. Hopefully at some future date they will be revived for the benefit of the Moroccan people and the delight of the many tourists who visit Imperial Meknes.

Taken on: May 18, 2010

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Sets appears in: • The Lost Garden of Meknes

Groups appears in: • Morocco • Maroc - Morocco [tag "Morocco"] more » • Kingdom of Morocco • Splendid Morocco • Flickr Morocco • !Marruecos¡ • Couchsurfing Morocco • Monuments et villes du Maroc (Moroccan cities) • Beautiful Morocco • Spain, Gibraltar and Morocco. • LE MAROC • Memories from Morocco • Digital Morocco • Marruecos - Visto en Fotos • jardins du maroc « less

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