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02 · Medieval

Moorish / Mudéjar

c. 800–1600

Spain's Islamic tradition: horseshoe arches, carved stucco, glazed tilework, and patterned brick.

Look for

Horseshoe arch Geometric ornament Arcade
Court of the Lions, Alhambra, Granada, Spain: an example of Moorish / Mudéjar architecture
Court of the Lions, Alhambra, Granada, Spain. Photo: Jebulon, CC0
Mosque–Cathedral of Córdoba, Córdoba, Spain
Mosque–Cathedral of Córdoba Córdoba, Spain · Toni Castillo Quero, CC BY-SA 2.0
Giralda, Seville, Spain
Giralda Seville, Spain · Ingo Mehling, CC BY-SA 4.0
Alcázar of Seville, Seville, Spain
Alcázar of Seville Seville, Spain · Ajay Suresh from New York, NY, USA. Edited by MenkinAlRire, CC BY 2.0
Aljafería Palace, Zaragoza, Spain
Aljafería Palace Zaragoza, Spain · Fernando, CC BY-SA 4.0

what it is

This is the architecture of al-Andalus, Muslim-ruled Spain and Portugal, and of the Mudéjar style that grew from it under Christian rule. Horseshoe arches curve inward below the half-circle before meeting the column; multi-lobed arches have a scalloped edge. Walls have glazed tile mosaics below and carved stucco above. Ceilings use muqarnas, tiers of small niches, or artesonado, wooden panels fitted together in star patterns. Palaces surround courtyards with pools and fountains. Mudéjar towers and churches are of patterned brick inset with glazed tiles.

The Great Mosque of Córdoba has about 850 columns carrying two tiers of arches in alternating red brick and white stone. At the Alhambra in Granada, the Court of the Lions and the Hall of the Two Sisters, whose muqarnas dome has at least 5,000 cells, date from the 14th century. In Seville, the Giralda was the minaret of the Almohad mosque, and the Palace of Pedro I in the Alcázar dates from 1364-1366. Teruel in Aragon has brick bell towers inlaid with glazed ceramics.

how to spot one

Horseshoe arch An arch whose curve continues past a half circle, so the opening narrows at its base. It is common in Islamic architecture, especially in Spain and North Africa. Geometric ornament Decoration made of zigzags, chevrons (V shapes), stepped forms and other repeated geometric shapes instead of plants or figures. It is the main ornament on Art Deco buildings. Arcade A row of arches carried on columns or piers (thick square supports), often forming a covered walkway along a building. Arcades are common on Roman, Romanesque, Renaissance and Spanish Colonial buildings.

Also look for

CourtyardStucco wallDeep-set window

history

Abd al-Rahman I, founder of the Umayyad emirate of Córdoba, began the Great Mosque in 785. Abd al-Rahman II enlarged it in 833-848, al-Hakam II added ribbed domes and Byzantine mosaics in 961-971, and al-Mansur extended it in 987-988. The Almohads built the Giralda minaret in Seville between 1184 and 1198. In Granada, the Nasrid rulers Yusuf I (1333-1354) and Muhammad V built the principal palaces of the Alhambra.

Muslims who remained under Christian rule after the reconquest were called mudéjares. The historian José Amador de los Ríos gave the name Mudéjar in 1859 to the building that combined Islamic decoration with Christian building types, mainly from the 13th to 16th centuries. Examples include the Teruel towers and Pedro I's palace in Seville, for which the Nasrid ruler Muhammad V probably sent craftsmen. Córdoba's mosque became a cathedral in 1236, and Granada surrendered in 1492. The style reached Spanish America in the 16th century. Neo-Mudéjar buildings followed in the 19th and 20th centuries, including Seville's Plaza de España for the 1929 Ibero-American Exposition.

where to find it

The Alhambra in Granada, the Mezquita in Córdoba, the Real Alcázar and Giralda in Seville, and the towers of Teruel.

easy to confuse with

Dome of the Rock, an example of Islamic Medieval Islamic Medieval Domes and minarets over courtyards, pointed and horseshoe arches, and dense geometric and calligraphic ornament. Mission San Xavier del Bac, an example of Spanish Colonial Spanish Colonial White stucco walls, red clay tile roofs, arcades, courtyards, and wrought iron grilles.