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Moorish architecture

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Interior of the Mezquita, Cordoba
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Moorish architecture is the western term used to describe the articulated Islamic architecture of North Africa and Al-Andalus.

Characteristic elements

Characteristic elements include muqarnas, horseshoe arches, voussoirs, domes, crenellated arches, lancet arches, ogee arches, courtyards, and decorative tile work.

Examples

Among the surviving examples are the Mezquita in Cordoba (784-987, in four phases); the Alhambra (mainly 1338-1390[1]) and Generalife (1302–9 and 1313-24) in Granada and the Giralda in Seville in 1184[2]; Paderne Castle in the Algarve, Portugal; the mosque of Tin Mal in Morocco; the Great Mosque of Algiers and the Great Mosque of Tlemcen in Algeria; and the Mosque of Uqba in Kairouan, Tunisia.

Other notable examples include the ruined palace city of Medina Azahara (936-1010), the church (former mosque) San Cristo de la Luz in Toledo, the Aljafería in Zaragoza and baths at for example Ronda and Alhama de Granada.

The term is sometimes used to include the products of the Islamic civilisation of Southern Italy.[3] The Palazzo dei Normanni in Sicily was begun in the 9th century by the Emir of Palermo.

There is archeological evidence of an eighth century mosque in Narbonne, France.[4]

Moorish architecture by countries

Spain


Major monuments

Caliphate of Córdoba (929-1031):

Period of Taifas (11th-13th century):

Nasrid Emirate of Granada (1212-1492):

  • the Alhambra (mainly 1338-1390) and the Generalife (1302-24 in two phases), a country palace initially linked to the Alhambra by a covered walkway across the ravine that now divides them.
  • Granada Hospital (Maristan) (1365-7)
  • Masjid of the madrasa of Yusuf I (1349) in the so-called Palacio de la Madraza
  • New Funduq of Granada (14th century)
  • Qaysariyya of Granada (15th century)

Portugal

Morocco

See also

Notes

  1. ^ Curl p.502
  2. ^ Pevsner - The penguin dictionary of architecture
  3. ^ The Industrial Geography of Italy, Russell King, Taylor & Francis, 1985, page 81,
  4. ^ Islam Outside the Arab World, David Westerlund, Ingvar Svanberg, Palgrave Macmillan, 1999, page 342

References

  • Curl, James Stevens. A Dictionary of Architecture and Landscape Architecture (Second ed.). Oxford University Press. p. 880 pages. ISBN 0-19-860678-8. {{cite book}}: |format= requires |url= (help); Cite has empty unknown parameters: |origmonth=, |month=, |chapterurl=, and |coauthors= (help); Unknown parameter |origdate= ignored (|orig-date= suggested) (help)
  • Barrucand, Marianne. Moorish Architecture in Andalusia. Taschen. p. 240 pages. ISBN 3-8228-2116-0. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameters: |origmonth=, |month=, and |chapterurl= (help); Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help); Unknown parameter |origdate= ignored (|orig-date= suggested) (help)
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