Mosque–Cathedral of Córdoba

Mosque–Cathedral of Córdoba
Cathedral of Our Lady of the Assumption
Mezquita-Catedral de Córdoba (Spanish)
37°52′45″N 04°46′47″W / 37.87917°N 4.77972°W / 37.87917; -4.77972
LocationCórdoba
Address1, Cardenal Herrero Street
CountrySpain
DenominationCatholic Church
Previous denominationIslam
Sui iuris churchLatin Church
Websitemezquita-catedraldecordoba.es
History
StatusCathedral
DedicationAssumption of Mary
Dedicated1236
Architecture
StyleMoorish, Renaissance (with Gothic and Baroque elements)
Groundbreaking785 (as a mosque)
Completed1607 (last major addition as cathedral)
Specifications
Number of towers1
Tower height54 m (177 ft 2 in)
Administration
MetropolisSeville
DioceseDiocese of Córdoba
Clergy
Bishop(s)Demetrio Fernández González
CriteriaCultural: i, ii, iii, iv
Designated1984 (8th session)
Part ofHistoric Centre of Cordoba
Reference no.[1]
Spanish Cultural Heritage
TypeNon-movable
CriteriaMonument
Designated21 November 1882
Reference no.RI-51-0000034

The Mosque–Cathedral of Córdoba[1][2] (Spanish: Mezquita-Catedral de Córdoba [meθˈkita kateˈðɾal de ˈkoɾðoβa]) is the cathedral of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Córdoba in the Spanish region of Andalusia. Officially called the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Assumption (Spanish: Catedral de Nuestra Señora de la Asunción), it is dedicated to the Assumption of Mary.[3][4] Due to its status as a former mosque, it is also known as the Mezquita (Spanish for 'mosque')[5][6] and in a historical sense as the Great Mosque of Córdoba.[7][2][8]

According to traditional accounts a Visigothic church, the Catholic Christian Basilica of Vincent of Saragossa, originally stood on the site of the current Mosque-Cathedral, although this has been a matter of scholarly debate.[9][10] The Great Mosque was constructed in 785 on the orders of Abd al-Rahman I, founder of the Islamic Umayyad Emirate of Córdoba.[11][12][13][14] It was expanded multiple times afterwards under Abd al-Rahman's successors up to the late 10th century. Among the most notable additions, Abd al-Rahman III added a minaret (finished in 958) and his son al-Hakam II added a richly decorated new mihrab and maqsurah section (finished in 971).[15][12] The mosque was converted to a cathedral in 1236 when Córdoba was captured by the Christian forces of Castile during the Reconquista. The structure itself underwent only minor modifications until a major building project in the 16th century inserted a new Renaissance cathedral nave and transept into the center of the building. The former minaret, which had been converted to a bell tower, was also significantly remodelled around this time. Starting in the 19th century, modern restorations have in turn led to the recovery and study of some of the building's Islamic-era elements.[16][17] Today, the building continues to serve as the city's cathedral and Mass is celebrated there daily.[18]

The mosque structure is an important monument in the history of Islamic architecture and was highly influential on the subsequent "Moorish" architecture of the western Mediterranean regions of the Muslim world. It is also one of Spain's major historic monuments and tourist attractions,[19] as well as a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1984.[20]

  1. ^ "Web Oficial del Conjunto Monumental Mezquita-Catedral de Córdoba". Retrieved 15 August 2016.
  2. ^ a b "Mosque–Cathedral of Córdoba". Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. Retrieved 15 August 2016.
  3. ^ 100 Countries, 5,000 Ideas. National Geographic Society. 2011. p. 299. ISBN 9781426207587. The eight-century Great Mosque with double arches in Córdoba was transformed into the Cathedral of our Lady of Assumption.
  4. ^ Daniel, Ben (2013). The Search for Truth about Islam. Westminster John Knox Press. p. 93. ISBN 9780664237059. The church is Catholic and has been for centuries, but when Catholic Spaniards expelled the local Arabic and Muslim population (the people they called the Moors) in 1236, they didn't do what the Catholic Church tended to do everywhere else when it moved in and displaced locally held religious beliefs: they didn't destroy the local religious shrine and build a cathedral of the foundations of the sacred space that had been knocked down. Instead, they built a church inside and up through the roof of the mosque, and then dedicated the entire space to Our Lady of the Assumption and made it the cathedral for the Diocese of Córdoba.
  5. ^ Andrew Petersen (2002). Dictionary of Islamic Architecture. Routledge. p. 55. ISBN 978-1-134-61365-6.
  6. ^ Lawrence S. Cunningham; John J. Reich; Lois Fichner-Rathus (2016). Culture and Values: A Survey of the Humanities, Volume I. Cengage Learning. p. 262. ISBN 978-1-337-51494-1.
  7. ^ "Historic Centre of Cordoba". UNESCO. Retrieved 17 August 2016. The Great Mosque of Cordoba was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1984
  8. ^ Lapunzina, Alejandro (2005). Architecture of Spain. Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 81. ISBN 9780313319631.
  9. ^ Cite error: The named reference grove was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  10. ^ Cite error: The named reference khoury was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  11. ^ Cite error: The named reference :02 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  12. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference :0 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  13. ^ Cite error: The named reference :4 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  14. ^ Bloom, Jonathan M.; Blair, Sheila S., eds. (2009). "Córdoba". The Grove Encyclopedia of Islamic Art and Architecture. Oxford University Press. pp. 505–508. ISBN 9780195309911.
  15. ^ Cite error: The named reference :1 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  16. ^ Cite error: The named reference :7 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  17. ^ Ecker, Heather (2003). "The Great Mosque of Córdoba in the Twelfth and Thirteenth Centuries". Muqarnas. 20: 113–141. doi:10.1163/22118993-90000041. JSTOR 1523329. Finally, adding to present difficulties in perceiving the sequence of post-conquest restorations, additions, and demolitions is the fact that the cathedral has to a certain extent been 're-islamicized': twentieth-century restorers have removed medieval sarcophagi and other structures from around the mihrab area and along the qibla wall, erected a sort of maqsura structure around the same area, and replaced the ceiling with one based on that of the Great Mosque of Qayrawan.
  18. ^ Armstrong, Ian (2013). Spain and Portugal. Avalon Travel Publishing. ISBN 9781612370316. On this site originally stood the Visigoths' Christian Church of San Vicente, but when the Moors came to town in 758 CE they knocked it down and constructed a mosque in its place. When Córdoba fell once again to the Christians, King Ferdinand II and his successors set about Christianizing the structure, most dramatically adding the bright pearly white Renaissance nave where mass is held every morning.
  19. ^ "Top things to do in Spain". Lonely Planet. Retrieved 10 December 2020.
  20. ^ "Historic Centre of Cordoba". UNESCO World Heritage Centre. Retrieved 10 December 2020.
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