Jebel Yagour

Highest pointElevation2,700 m (8,900 ft)Coordinates31°19′N 07°39′W / 31.317°N 7.650°W / 31.317; -7.650GeographyLocationelhaouz MoroccoParent rangeHigh AtlasClimbingFirst ascentUnknownEasiest routeFrom Marrakech

Jebel Yagour (French: Plateau du Yagour) is a mountain in the High Atlas range of Morocco, located to the south of Marrakesh. It is a between 2300 and 2700 m high plateau surrounded by massive escarpments.^[1]

The mountain is noted for its rock art and for its panoramic views of the Atlas range.^[2] There are over thousand engraved images on the rocks dating back to 500 - 1000 BC.^[1]

Archaeological site of Mount Yagour

The archaeological site of the Yagour Plateau extends over an area of 4,000 hectares, in the province of Al-Hawz, and includes a large number of archaeological inscriptions of more than 2,000 inscriptions, the most famous of which is the archaeological inscription known as the "sun panel". Experts point out that these inscriptions date back to about 1500 BC, and document the migrations of pastoral tribes towards mountainous areas due to climatic fluctuations, and due to the availability of this region on minerals that were used during the Bronze Age. Among the symbols documented in this area are drawings of people during the practice of hunting, as well as drawings of various wild animals such as the elephant and rhinos, as well as drawings of some tools such as daggers, swords and spears, and some inscriptions in Amazigh letters Tifinagh. Prehistoric cemeteries are also presumed to exist in the area. This site was registered as a national heritage of Morocco in order to protect it from vandalism and to qualify it to become a tourist attraction in the region In 2012,^[3] a group of Moroccan Salafists destroyed an inscription from the archaeological site of the Yagour plateau, known as "the panel of the sun", believing that it was the incarnation of the sun god.^[4][5][6]

Pastoral system

The Yagoul Plateau is subject to the Agdal pastoral system, where shepherds are forbidden to exploit the area at the beginning of spring, until the community decides to do so after pasture flourishes in the pastures, so all neighboring tribes flock to the area to benefit from their share of grazing, and horses and other animals are left free in the area throughout the Agdal grazing period.^[7]

Population

The Yagur Plateau is surrounded by a group of villages, all of which are Amazigh. The official language of the region is Berber language or Tamazight.^[8]

References

External links

• Djebel Yagour, Setti-Fatma
• Hiking in Toubkal massif, Morocco