The ‘evil eye’ is a force widely believed in North Africa to cause harm, particularly to the sick and vulnerable. The idea is a pre-Islamic belief, also held throughout much of the Mediterranean. There are many ways of guarding against evil influence. All kinds of artefacts, from textiles, pottery and leatherwork, to weapons and even buildings, are made of materials, or decorated with motifs, that are thought to provide protection.

In North Africa, one of the commonest ways of warding off the evil eye is by using the number five (khamsa). Patterns using five elements, like hands or fish, are used on textiles or pottery. Representations of another eye can also be used to ‘reflect back’ the ‘look’ of the evil one. The backs of the cloaks (akhnif) worn by men and boys of the Aït Ouaouzguite tribal group in Morocco are decorated with bright red ‘eyes’ for this purpose.

Images of fish are also traditionally used in Tunisia to protect against evil. Pottery and textiles are often decorated with fish and weavers hang their looms with the tails of fish. Buildings have fish bones or tails embedded in them as they are built, and cars have brightly-coloured plastic or cloth fish attached to them to provide protection at work or when travelling.