Madinat al-Zahra

The Radiant Capital of Islamic Spain

Antonio Vallejo Triano, Eduardo Manzano Moreno

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English

Princeton University Press
05 March 2025

Castles & fortifications; Religious buildings

Series: Institute for the Study of the Ancient World Exhibition Catalogs

A beautifully illustrated exploration of the famed palace-city that was once the heart of Islamic Spain

Madinat al-Zahra, a tenth-century palace-city on the western outskirts of Crdoba, Spain, and a UNESCO World Heritage Site, stands as a testament to the multicultural environment fostered by its founders. Built by Abd al-Rahman III (r. 929961), a member of the Umayyad dynasty and the first caliph of al-Andalus, the city symbolized the caliph's aspiration to rule over the Fatimid Caliphs of Ifriqiya in North Africa and the Abbasid Caliphs in Baghdad and was the site of vast cultural and artistic creation.

The companion volume to an exhibition at New York University's Institute for the Study of the Ancient World, this book showcases the complex visual vocabulary of Madinat al-Zahra, which derived from diverse cultural traditions and was translated into new and unique architectural and material cultures. Thematic essays examine the history of the Islamic Caliphate in Muslim Iberia (al-Andalus), the cultural and artistic traditions of the time, and the resulting multicultural society, while shorter, object-focused chapters explore the variety of works found at the ancient site-from jewelry and ceramics to medical texts and epigraphic materials.

Contributors include Nour Ammari, Maribel Fierro Bello, Gerrit Bos, Roberta Casagrande-Kim, Patrice Cressier, Miquel Forcada, Teresa Garulo, Fabian Ks, Ana Labarta, Eduardo Manzano Moreno, Antonia Martnez Nez, Jorge Elices Ocn, Mariam Rosser-Owen, Irene Montilla Torres, Antonio Vallejo Triano, and Merc Viladrich.

Distributed for the Institute for the Study of the Ancient World at New York University

Exhibition Schedule Institute for the Study of the Ancient World, New York University October 30, 2024March 2, 2025

Edited by: Antonio Vallejo Triano, Eduardo Manzano Moreno
Imprint: Princeton University Press
Country of Publication: United States
Dimensions: Height: 279mm, Width: 229mm,
ISBN: 9780691267883
ISBN 10: 069126788X
Series: Institute for the Study of the Ancient World Exhibition Catalogs
Pages: 272
Publication Date: 05 March 2025
Audience: General/trade , ELT Advanced
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Forthcoming

Eduardo Manzano Moreno is research professor at the Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Cientficas in Madrid. Antonio Vallejo Triano is curator of cultural heritage for the Junta de Andaluca and has served as the director of the archaeological site of Madinat al-Zahra since 1985.