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«Walili II: From the Awrabas to the Marinids» is an ambitious research project led by a team of Moroccan and British scientists since 2018, focusing on part of the ancient site of Volubilis. Directed by Asmae El Kacimi, lecturer and professor of Islamic archaeology at the National Institute of Archaeology and Heritage (INSAP), and Corisande Fenwick, lecturer at University College London (UK), the mission deepened its excavations in October and November 2025.
The newly unearthed artifacts will enrich the project by shedding light on the history of this major Mauretanian-Roman site during the Islamic period, from the early Islamization of the 7th century up to the 14th century. The aim is to understand the city’s evolution, its urban and cultural transformations, and its influence on the development of principalities and civilizations extending into the Marinid period (1244–1465).
This work follows an earlier project, Walili I, directed by professors Hassan Limane (INSAP) and Elizabeth Fentress, on «Volubilis after Rome», which concluded with the publication of a monograph of the same title. In this context, Prof. El Kacimi tells Yabiladi that Walili II now focuses on the period following the Mauretanian-Roman era, examining the medieval phase marked by the transition from the Roman Empire to the Islamic era.
The emergence of Islamization and early Muslim urban centers
This scientific and archaeological effort represents «the continuity of the previous project, conducted from 2004 to 2006», with excavations particularly centered on the Amazigh tribe of the Awraba. «Textual sources note that it received Moulay Idriss I in Volubilis. The evolution of this Muslim social organization later developed up to the Marinids, the last medieval period», explains Prof. El Kacimi.
Walili II is structured around several phases, the most recent being the excavation of two large sectors located outside the Roman enclosure. «The first is in the western quarter, named as such by antiquity archaeologists. There we find levels of medieval dwellings installed after the fall of the Roman Empire», she notes. The second is «the extra-muros area, which saw the evolution of the ancient necropolis and on which the so-called Arab quarter was built».
According to El Kacimi, this sector is crucial because it fills significant gaps in previous research. «Towards the end of the 20th century, excavations were conducted by the French, but they remain poorly documented. We know little about what was uncovered there. In the middle of the quarter, a large collection of ancient inscriptions was found, but due to the lack of sources, we have no information on earlier discoveries», she says.
Coin treasures and early Islamic state structures
What is known is that these areas revealed «a large part of monetary treasures from the Idrissid and pre-Idrissid periods, currently housed at the Bank Al-Maghrib Museum». For the researcher, this sector represents one of the site’s central quarters. «We undertook excavations there to better understand its components, its context, and to recover ancient levels, including 200 coins», she explains.
These «transition coins» date to the pivotal period between antiquity and Islam. They include «emissions from Tangier and a large collection from the Idrissid era». Such numismatic evidence offers rare insight into the region’s political and social organization, as minted currency is a key marker of emerging dynasties or state-like entities.
«This is indeed one of the objectives of the project: to propose avenues for understanding this local urban center. The Awraba tribe existed before the arrival of Moulay Idriss. This area may also have housed an Umayyad or Abbasid garrison. On site, we also recovered a large number of Umayyad, Fatimid, and Abbasid coins», says Prof. El Kacimi.
She adds: «Alongside the potters’ quarter, we even discovered a workshop producing coin-mold flans, used to cast metal pieces that were later struck into coins». These discoveries confirm the existence of political and economic relations between the Awrabas and major Mediterranean, Arab, and Muslim powers.
Documenting Morocco’s first Idrissid dynasty
Through these excavations, the team aims to «understand the birth of the Islamic city that emerged from Volubilis and became the first capital of Idriss I, and to learn more about the first dynasty of the Chourafa in Morocco». This means scientifically exploring how this Amazigh settlement laid the foundations for Morocco’s first Muslim city.
«Thanks to work in the Arab quarter, we have recovered elements that shed light on urban organization, such as workshops dedicated to metallurgy, ceramics, and other crafts that indicate significant activity», she notes.
In the western quarter, archaeologists also uncovered an oil press dating to the end of the Roman period, medieval houses from the 8th to 10th centuries, and a ceramic production center. «These discoveries help us reconstruct the early centuries of Islamization in Volubilis and the transition that occurred at that time», adds Prof. El Kacimi.
The research also aims to better understand the Jewish and Christian communities who adopted Islam during this period, an area still under-documented in Moroccan historiography.
The team has now entered the post-excavation phase, studying the materials recovered, including ceramics, metalwork, collections, and even the DNA of animal remains. These comparative analyses will help identify local versus imported elements and establish a clearer chronological framework.
