Style in Islamic Art (750-1250 AD)
Abbasid Style The Abbasid style emerged in Iraq between 750 and 850, when the Abbasid dynasty was at the height of its power. The Abbasid caliphs constructed huge and lavishly decorated palaces at...
View ArticleThe Mosque of Cordoba: La Mezquita
The Great Mosque of Córdoba (commonly referred to as La Mezquita) is one of the jewels of Islamic civilisation. It is to Córdoba what the Alhambra Palace is to Granada and the Giralda tower...
View ArticleScience in Al-Andalus
Written by Paul Lunde Illustrated by Michael Grimsdale The Medieval Christians of Spain had a legend that Roderick, the last king of the Visigoths, was responsible for unleashing the Arab invasion of...
View Article8th Century Woven Tapestry
This fragment of tapestry-woven cloth demonstrates the dependence of early Islamic art on traditions that predate the advent of Islam in the Middle East. Here, the influence comes from Sasanian art in...
View ArticleIllustrations of Islamic Architecture
The Alhambra Granada, Spain Built chiefly in the 13th and 14th centuries The Alhambra (from the Arabic, Al Hamra, meaning The Red) is an ancient mosque, palace and fortress complex built by the...
View ArticleCoins of Abd al-Malik
These two dinar coins sum up one of the greatest political and religious upheavals ever – the permanent transformation of the Middle East in the years following the death of the Prophet Muhammad....
View ArticleAl-Andalus: The Orient in the West
In 711 the Arabs (in the Iberian Peninsula, "Arab" and "Muslim" are synonyms) arrived in the western-most territory of Mediterranean Europe. Within a short time, after very few battles and some sieges...
View ArticleIslamic Architecture of Andalusia
Spain’s Islamic centuries (AD 711-1492) left a particularly rich heritage of exotic and beautiful palaces, mosques, minarets and fortresses in Andalusia, which was always the heartland of Al-Andalus...
View Article
