Workers at Chouara Tannery

The honeycomb of Chouara tannery seen from the terrace of a leather shop selling bags and jackets. Workers walk the narrow rims between the vats and drape wet hides over the walls to dry. Traditionally each colour comes from a plant: saffron for yellow, poppy for red, indigo for blue, henna for orange, mint for green. Leather has been worked on this site since the 11th century, and the method is unchanged: lime and pigeon droppings to strip and soften, then the dye pits.