Discovering...
Brass vs tin, candle vs electric, size vs airline limits — this guide covers everything to check before handing over a dirham.
Yasmine El Amrani· Marrakech & Atlas Editor
Marrakech-born travel writer who has spent the last decade walking the medina’s souks and the High Atlas trails above Imlil. She covers the Red City, Berber villages and day trips into the mountains. Marrakech · 12+ years covering Morocco
Published 3 April 2025 Last updated 16 May 2026
Moroccan lanterns are one of the most evocative things you can bring home — hung above a dining table or set on a terrace, a good brass piece casts that star-patterned light that instantly recalls riad courtyards and medina streets. The problem is that the souk is full of convincing fakes: painted-tin shells dressed up as solid brass, electric fittings that won’t work in your home country, and lanterns priced at ten times their worth because a cruise ship disgorged two thousand visitors this morning.
This guide cuts through that. It covers the four main metal types and how to tell them apart on the spot, a size-and-price matrix to calibrate what you should pay, the best areas to shop in Marrakech and Fes, and the practical question of getting a large lantern home — either in your luggage or via freight. The wiring section answers the most common question of all: can you actually use a Moroccan lamp in a UK or US house?
The metal determines longevity, weight, price and authenticity. Learn to distinguish them before you start negotiating.
From ~250 MAD (small) to 2,500+ MAD (large)
The benchmark for quality. Solid brass feels dense; tap it and it rings dully. Cheap "brass" versions are steel with a brass-coloured coat — a magnet will stick to those.
From ~300 MAD (small) to 3,000+ MAD (large)
Warmer-toned than brass and slightly more expensive. Common in pendant lanterns and large floor lamps. Easier to spot — the reddish hue is distinctive.
From ~150 MAD (small wall sconce) to 1,800 MAD (floor lamp)
A great option for statement floor lamps or ceiling pendants. The geometric cutwork casts dramatic shadows. Heavier than brass, less delicate to pack.
From ~40–120 MAD
This is what fills the tourist end of the souk. Thin, light, and often spray-painted to look like brass. Fine as a gift or accent piece; not worth more than 80 MAD.
Quick field test for brass vs tin
Carry a small fridge magnet in your pocket. Press it against the lamp body: genuine brass and copper are non-magnetic; steel and tin are not. A stuck magnet means you are looking at a painted-metal shell, regardless of the golden finish. Follow up by tapping with a fingernail — brass rings dully; tin sounds hollow.
Size affects not just price but logistics — here is the full picture at a glance. All prices are indicative market rates for genuine brass; expect to negotiate 20–30% off the first asking price.
| Type | Size | Indicative price (MAD) | Getting it home | Tip |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tea-light / small candle holder | 8–15 cm | 40–150 MAD | Carry-on — packs easily | Best souvenir for tight budgets; buy in sets of three. |
| Medium table or hanging lantern | 20–40 cm | 150–600 MAD | Check-in — wrap in clothes, centre of bag | Most popular size. If electric, get the vendor to pack it with lamp cord included. |
| Large floor or ceiling pendant | 50–90 cm | 600–2,500+ MAD | Freight or specialist shipping recommended | Most shops will arrange cardboard box or wooden crate packing. Factor ~500–800 MAD for a small crate. |
| Chandelier / multi-arm ceiling fixture | 60–200 cm | 1,500–8,000+ MAD | Ship only — too large for airline | Many specialist workshops in Marrakech's Semmarine and Mouassine quarters will ship to Europe and North America. |
Exchange rate reference: 1 USD ≈ 10 MAD / 1 GBP ≈ 12.5 MAD (indicative, verify before travel).
Lanterns being crafted in a Marrakech workshop — watching the process helps you gauge quality before you buy.
Knowing which lane to walk down saves hours of aimless wandering. These are the four areas worth your time.
Marrakech
The densest concentration of lantern workshops in Morocco. Start at the northern end of Semmarine and work south. The deeper you go into the derbs (side alleys), the better the prices and craft quality relative to the main drag.
Marrakech
Higher-end boutique workshops here stock larger statement pieces — chandeliers, floor lamps, bespoke pieces. Expect fixed prices and less negotiation, but the quality is consistently better and the designs more refined.
Fes
Fes is Morocco's historic metalworking capital. Ain Nokbi, just outside the medina walls, has wholesale workshops where you can watch artisans cutting and soldering. Prices run 10–20% cheaper than Marrakech for comparable quality.
Fes
Within Fes el-Bali, Souk Attarine has a cluster of lantern and lamp stalls alongside the perfume merchants. Good for medium-sized pieces. Smaller selection than Marrakech but less tourist pressure.
In the open souk lanes of Marrakech, expect the opening price to be 50–100% above what the vendor will accept. Polite, unhurried counter-offers — start at roughly 40% of the asking price and meet somewhere in the middle — are the norm. Do not take it personally and do not make an offer you are not prepared to honour. Fixed-price boutiques in Mouassine charge more but are genuinely no-hassle; the quality uplift often justifies the premium.
Morocco runs on 220–240V, so European lamps work straight away. For the US, Canada, and Japan (110–120V), a small adjustment is needed — but it is simpler than most people expect.
If the lamp comes with a Moroccan two-pin plug (Type C), a simple €1 adapter fits a European socket. For UK use, replace the Moroccan plug with a BS 1363 fused plug — a five-minute job. Ceiling pendants need an earth connection if the body is metal; a qualified electrician should check this.
Moroccan-wired lamps on 110V either need a step-down transformer (plug-in type, ~$25–$40 online) or a rewire using US-rated lamp cord and an E26 Edison screw socket. A hardware store pendant cord kit ($8–$15) is the easiest DIY solution — it threads straight into the lamp body. Always check the wattage rating of any bulb you use.
Some of the better boutique workshops in Mouassine, Marrakech, will supply lanterns with IEC-compatible socket fittings and ask which country you are shipping to. This is especially common for large orders and chandeliers. Ask specifically — it is not always offered upfront.
Yes — most lanterns sold in Moroccan souks are already available in electric versions, with a simple socket fitting inside. The question is whether the existing wiring (if any) meets your home country's standards. Morocco uses 220–240V power, which is compatible with European sockets. For the US and Canada (110–120V), you'll need a step-down transformer or, more practically, have a local electrician replace the socket fitting with a compatible US-standard lamp holder. The lantern body itself is just metal — what changes is only the internal electrics.
The rewiring itself is straightforward: a local electrician or DIY enthusiast removes the existing socket fitting and replaces it with a UK bayonet cap (BC) or US Edison screw (E26) fitting and a length of the correct two-core or three-core flex. In the UK, ensure the flex is rated for the wattage of bulb you plan to use and that any ceiling pendant has a proper earth connection if the lantern is metal. In the US, many buyers simply buy a pendant cord kit from a hardware store — these slip straight in. For very ornate pieces, Moroccan vendors in the Mouassine quarter of Marrakech often have English-speaking staff who can advise and sometimes sell pre-wired versions on request.
Colour and tone are the simplest distinguishing features: brass is a yellow-gold alloy of copper and zinc; copper is a deeper, redder metal. Both develop a patina over time — brass goes from bright gold to a warmer, slightly muted tone; copper develops an orange-brown or greenish verdigris. In terms of price, copper lanterns tend to run slightly more expensive than equivalent brass pieces because of higher material cost. Either will outlast a tin or painted-steel version by decades. The workmanship (pierced cutwork, hand-chasing, engraving) matters more than the choice of metal in most cases.
Prices range from about 40 MAD (roughly $4 / £3) for a small tin tea-light holder to 8,000 MAD or more ($800+) for a large custom chandelier in solid brass. A mid-size pendant lantern in genuine brass with cutwork detailing typically starts around 250–400 MAD before negotiation — expect to pay 180–300 MAD after a patient haggle. Large floor lamps in brass or copper run 800–2,500 MAD. These are indicative market prices from the Semmarine and Mouassine areas; fixed-price boutiques charge more but skip the negotiation.
For variety and competitive prices, the Semmarine souk in Marrakech is hard to beat — dozens of workshops side by side, most with adjoining production areas. For quality and craftsmanship without the hard sell, the boutique workshops in the Mouassine quarter of Marrakech and the Ain Nokbi district of Fes are better. If you are visiting Fes and want to see lanterns actually being made, walking through Ain Nokbi early in the morning — when the chisels and shears are already going — is one of the more memorable craft experiences in Morocco.
Lanterns under 40 cm can travel in a checked bag if packed with plenty of cushioning. Place the lantern at the centre of the bag, surround it with rolled clothing, and pad the glass inserts (if any) individually with socks or bubble wrap you can buy cheaply in the medina. For anything 50 cm and above, ask the vendor to build a simple wooden crate — most lantern shops in Marrakech do this for around 100–200 MAD and it is worth every dirham. Very large chandeliers should go with a freight forwarder; many Marrakech workshops ship internationally and can provide a customs invoice and HS code for ceramic or metalwork goods. Budget 2–4 weeks and shipping costs of $80–$200 for a medium crate to Europe or North America.
Three quick checks: first, hold a small magnet to the body — brass and copper are not magnetic, so if the magnet sticks it is steel or tin. Second, tap the metal with a fingernail — brass rings with a dull, resonant tone while tin sounds tinny and hollow. Third, check the weight; genuine brass of any reasonable size feels noticeably heavy for its dimensions. Finally, look at the cut edges of any pierced decoration: on brass the metal edge will be smooth and have a slight sheen; on painted tin you may see rough edges and the underlying silver-grey metal beneath any paint layer.
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