Córdoba was an Islamic city from 756 to 1031, and the capital of the Moorish kingdom of Al-Andalus. During that Islamic time period they began building the Great Mosque known as “Mesquite”. throughout the years additions and enlargements were added to the Mosque eventually making it the largest Mosque in all of Islam. It was a massive building and the centre of power for that time period.

The power of Córdoba eroded through internal strife in the early 11th century and al-Andalus splintered into numerous mini states called taigas. Córdoba remained a Moorish city until 1236 when it fell to advancing Christian forces.

When the city was reconquered by the Christians in 1236, the new rulers of the city were so amazed by its beauty that they did not destroy it. Normally a Mosque is destroyed and a church built over the ruins as a symbol of power. However in this case they left the Mosque standing and built the church within the Mosque walls creating the Mosque-Cathedral of Córdoba, in spanish “Mezquita-Catedral de Córdoba”  We did a tour of the Mosque Cathedral and it was an amazing building. The size of the structure is immense in order to appreciate the size I have included an aerial view of the Mosque Cathedral of Córdoba.

Below are only some of the photos we took of this fascinating building.

There are numerous orange trees in the courtyard and a beautiful smell of the oranges and lots of birds singing.

At the courtyard near the entrance into the Mosque Cathedral there are wooden planks displayed on the wall. The planks were part of the original interior roof section of the Mosque. There are arabic writings engraved into the planks.

Once inside the Mosque Cathedral the beauty of the building almost takes your breath away. It is hard to imagine a building this old with such an array of designs, displays and overall vastness to the rooms.

A single arched wall did not signify as much power or grander as a double arched wall. The walls were double arched to represent the power and greatness of the Mosque at that time.

During construction of the Mosque the former Roman city was in ruins.  As a result there were remnants of building parts available for use in the construction of the Mosque. During that time they used pillars from the Roman ruins to build the Mosque. No two pillars are the same as each was “recycled” from former buildings.

The Arabic design is visible in all areas of the Mosque section of the building, from the ornate golden arches to the inlaid arabic letters and symbols in the walls.

Throughout the Mosque Cathedral there are sections of the building that were constructed at different times. We noticed that the construction materials and designs were different as we went through the building. As we progressed further into the building we noticed that the floors changed to wood from the marble that was prominent in other sections. Apparently there was limited money at that time and construction used less costly materials. Even the pillars were changed to simple cement or stone and painted to resemble marble.

There were beautiful and ornate inlaid designs throughout the building.

 

There was a section for the choir of the church. The acoustic sounds within the church are impressive and we can only imagine how the singing choir would sound. They are apparently an excellent choir. If the chairs and seating area are any indication they must be amazing singers.

The ceilings were ornate in some areas and there were several dome areas that had amazing designs.

There were numerous statues and displays throughout the building, below are a few examples.

The photos do not give justice to the beauty and depth of colours in the Mosque Cathedral. We spent a few hours there walking through the building and it was truly a unique and wonderful experience. It is amazing the lengths that people went through to build this building.

“Adios y que tenga un grand días”