Moorish style (al-Andalus)
Horseshoe arches, carved stucco and water in courtyards: al-Andalus's paradise in stone
How to recognise it
- Horseshoe and multifoil arches
- Arches of alternating red and white voussoirs
- Carved stucco and geometric tilework
- Honeycomb muqarnas vaults
- Courtyards with pools and fountains
Why it emerged
The fugitive Umayyad Abd al-Rahman I founded an emirate at Córdoba in 756 and set out to rival Damascus; Near Eastern, Visigothic and Roman forms, funded by rich Andalusi cities, produced a style that lasted until Granada fell.
Examples
.jpg?width=640 "Toni Castillo Quero · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Wikimedia Commons")
Mosque–Cathedral of Córdoba785–987A forest of some 850 columns with two-tone arches; a cathedral was built inside in the 16th century.jpg?width=640 "Kent Wang from Barcelona, Spain · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Wikimedia Commons")
Medina Azaharac. 936Palace-city of Caliph Abd al-Rahman III, sacked as early as 1010
Aljaferíac. 1065Palace of the Taifa of Zaragoza with interlaced multifoil arches — a bridge to Mudéjar.jpg?width=640 "Alberto-g-rovi · CC BY 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons")
Giralda1184–1198 · Ahmad ibn BasoAn Almohad minaret turned bell tower of Seville Cathedral, sister of Marrakesh's Koutoubia
Alhambrac. 1238–1391Nasrid palace with the Court of the Lions and muqarnas domes — the summit of Andalusi artHow it spread
- 785 Córdoba
- 999 Toledo
- 1065 Zaragoza
- 1147 Marrakesh
- 1184 Seville
- 1238 Granada
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