The Tourbet el Bey is one of the most important monuments in Tunis. It is on the Rue Tourbet el Bey behind the Great Mosque and the Souk des Femmes.

 The most interesting route to this lovely building is through the lively market of Souk El Balat which sells a heady mixture of food stalls and apothecary cure-alls. 

You will also see the common red and green ‘barber pole’ decorative pillars here. At the end of the market, turn right into the Rue des Teinturiers and bear left into Rue Bach Hamba which later becomes Rude des Teinturiers again. 

After this tour of the city, you will see the octagonal minaret on the Mosque des Teinturiers, or Mosque Jdid which means New Mosque. 

This lavish building was built in the booming 18^th century. The 17^th century palace of Dar Othman is also in this area, easily identified by its black and white marble doorway. Entrance to this lovely building is free.  

The Tourbet el Bey is easy to find up Rue Sidi Kacem with its green domes. This mausoleum was built by Ali Pasha II between 1759-1782. It was closed under Bourguiba’s rule but has since been completely restored by the Association de Sauvegarde de al Medina and is open to the public every day, except Monday. 

The interior is a ramble of tiled chambers, each crammed with the beautiful marble tombs of the rulers of the Husaynid dynasty. The beautiful architecture, marble and tile work are incredibly detailed and beautiful to see. The finely worked stucco ceilings are intricately worked. The most richly decorated room is that which holds the tombs of the rulers, the Beys. They ruled Tunisia from the mid 1700s until independence in 1957. Notice some tombs have marble turbans on top. These demarcate the men’s tombs as is the Turkish custom. Each tomb also has a recess in it. The custom is for the family of the deceased to place grain in the recess. The birds fly in to eat the grain and symbolize the ascent of the spirit to heaven. This is a wonderful place to visit when in Tunis.