Sidi Bou Said

Sidi Bou Said, the World's First Listed Site

Since the 17th century, the charm of this village, named after a Muslim saint who died in 1231 and whose tomb is still honored today, has seduced the Tunisian bourgeoisie and the Husseinite Bey family. It became the seat of a municipality in 1835. In 1915, a decree was issued to protect the village, imposing the blue and white so dear to Baron d'Erlanger, a French-British painter, musicologist, and great orientalist who built a 2,000m2 palace in a five-hectare garden, now the "Center and Museum of Arab and Mediterranean Music." This decree prohibits any anarchic construction on the promontory, making Sidi Bou Said the world's first listed site.