Corps

The hammam, and what comes after it

Moroccan body care is a sequence rather than a product. Savon noir — olive-based, soft, almost black — is left on the skin in the steam; a kessa glove takes off what it has loosened; rhassoul clay, mined in the Moulouya valley, draws out the rest; an oil closes it. Every step is old, and none of it is expensive.

That is why this category is arranged by ingredient rather than by range. A good savon noir and a bad one look identical in the jar; what separates them is the olive oil in it and how long it was cured, and neither of those things is visible from the outside.