In this article we approach the most representative monument of the city of Córdoba, its Mosque - Cathedral, currently known as the Cathedral of the Assumption of Our Lady. This building was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1984 and perfectly represents the timelessness and cultural mix that this Andalusian city has always displayed. In this article we will be breaking down the evolution of this magnificent building and how the passage of centuries and its rulers have made a dent in its structure.

 

Perhaps the most curious thing about the Mosque of Cordoba is the mixture of three quite different societies among them, the Visigoth, the Muslim and the Castilian society, because vestiges of the three can be found in this monument that perfectly represents that cultural and economic bonanza from the Caliphate era. In the area of ​​the current Mosque-Cathedral of Cordoba was the Basilica of San Vicente, from the Visigothic period. The remains of this Hispano-Roman temple served the Muslims in the year 785 to build their Mosque. It had a construction time of three centuries, from the arrival of the Muslims to the 11th century. When it is finished it will be the second largest mosque in the world, the largest is the Masjid-Haram Mosque in Mecca. During the time of the Emirate of Cordoba and the following Caliphate will undergo successive extensions, which we will describe below.

 

The beginning of its construction is attributed to the first Umayyad emir of Córdoba, Abderramán I, with a space for 8,000 prayers. Classical historiography tells us that the growth of the Cordovan city made it necessary to extend the temple, this extension will be carried out by the Emir Abderramán II, finishing his works in the middle of the IX century. Already in Caliphate time Abderramán III will enlarge the patio and his son Alhakén II, maximum exponent of the caliphal splendor, will carry out the most beautiful and rich extension of the temple.

 

Here we come to the period of Almanzor, late tenth century, and the most curious thing is that the expansion in this period will double the size of the mosque for the first time to the east and not to the south as was the norm in previous extensions , because the proximity of the Guadalquivir River prevented construction in that area. In the time of Almanzor, eight completely new ships were built, leaving the mihrab, the tower and the door off center.

 

Due to these successive enlargements, the mosque would be able to accommodate eight thousand prayers to the figure of forty thousand thanks to its latest enlargements. Closing the chapter of the extensions we can say that from the 9th century and with the arrival of Almorávides and Almohades, the most purists of Islam, it is not going to expand the temple or apparently change its physiognomy.

 

Next we will talk about the interior of the temple that we will divide into two spaces. In the first place we have the Sahn, a term we use to refer to the arcaded religious courtyard that gives rise to a free space surrounded by walls on three sides and with a free side, and presided over by the Sabil, the public fountain destined for the rituals of ablution , cleaning and purification.

 

In second place we have the Haram area, that is, the space in which the faithful gather for prayer and in which we can appreciate the successive enlargements carried out by the aforementioned rulers. Undoubtedly the most breathtaking of this area is the exquisite forest of columns, with clear inspiration in the Roman aqueduct of Los Milagros de Mérida, its horseshoe arches and half-point and the bichromia so typical of the Umayyad period given by the combination of the use of white limestone stone and baked adobe brick.

 

In the extension of Almanzor at the end of the tenth century the most curious thing to point out is that the bichromia is not due in this case to the combination of two materials but to the painting on the stone, which made the work to be done in much less time and that it was less expensive for the coffers of the Caliphate.

 

At the end facing the Guadalquivir River we have the qibla wall, oriented towards Mecca, but the case of the Mosque of Cordoba is quite special because due to a calculation error it is oriented towards the south instead of the southeast. And of course we have to mention the Mihrab, a small room located on the qibla wall that indicates the place to look at when praying.