Tangier American Legation circa 1910 Over 100 years ago, in 1910, an organization called the American Embassy Association published an illustrated book entitled American Embassies, Legations, and Consulates Mean Better Foreign Business. You can leaf through the book here, courtesy Cornell University Library. The above photo – which we have in our collection of … Read more Better Legations Mean Better Image Abroad
1961… Fifty years ago, a modernist architectural edifice in "New Tangier" replaces the Gift of the Sultan. [T]he Tangier Legation was an exception. Before 1821, and for a long while after, the United States owned no property abroad… [In the 1950s and 60s] Projects such as Tangier… designed by young "stars" such as Hugh Stubbins, … Read more The Modernist Tangier American Consulate General
L to R: Tony Spears, Mhamed Ismaili, Tommy Johnson Earlier this year I joked that the Legation fire plan consisted of praying to St. Florian, patron saint of fire fighters. In the ensuing year, we have made a little progress towards our goal of surviving a fire, and saving the contents of this historic building. … Read more Museum-Quality Extinguishers: Fire Prevention Week
The Kasbah Museum (Moroccan Ministry of Culture) partnered with Italian NGO COSPE to host a two-day seminar on Tangier's architectural and cultural heritage. A worthy effort, one that this city sorely needs, with developers greedily eyeing every square meter of available land. A parade of presenters, including a Moroccan director at the Paris Institut du … Read more Tangier – Worthy Of UNESCO Status?
Well, we did it. The "we" is many: the three artists – American, Moroccan, French (see photo below) – who donated their works depicting our historic building to the Legation for its permanent collection. The many people – expats, Moroccans, art galleries, hotels, restaurants, and artists – who donated raffle (known as "tombola" here) prizes … Read more Paint the Legation: Tangier Comes Through
Peindre la Légation It all started with this observation: the art collection at the Legation Museum barely had any images of the Legation building itself. The Tangier American Legation, given to the United States by Morocco's Sultan Moulay Slimane in 1821. America's oldest diplomatic building. It deserves to be the subject of Moroccan, American, and … Read more Paint the Legation
Recently I had to explain how it was that, despite Morocco's generally sunny, beneficent climate, we had to worry about such things as heavy rains, humidity, and mold here in Tangier. Location, location, location – we're on the Strait of Gibraltar, and there's a lot of water in several directions. So it's no surprise that … Read more Restoration, Renovation, Preservation: Keeping the Legation Whole
This post has no purpose other than showing pretty pictures. The first, thanks to a visit to the Legation garden by Europa Nostra. Europa Nostra is a Netherlands – based group dedicated to the preservation of historic buildings. As you can see in the background, we have plenty of restoration work to do at our … Read more Cherry Blossoms and Clivia, Washington and Tangier
Have I become accustomed to living in historic landmarks? En route to a week in Washington for meetings, I have decided to set up shop at DACOR Bacon House, one of Foggy Bottom's few remaining historic homes, now the home of DACOR, which organizes a lively calendar of activities for foreign affairs professionals. I've stayed … Read more Open for Business, In Tangier and Washington
You know that Tangier is extremely humid, even when it's not raining. You also know that the historic American Legation building is stone, cement, plaster, and concrete, materials in use in our 18th through 20th century buildings. And that these walls are soaking wet (so says our new moisture meter). So who's worried about fire … Read more In Case of Fire, Pray to St. Florian
