Almoravid Art and Architecture in Al-Andalus
Almoravid Art in Al-Andalus
As stepped battlements (in Umayyad Cordoba and the world), tumid intersecting arches decorated at the top, and so on. Inside, there is a kind of battery for ablutions. It would be reasonable to think that this construction was related to the Great Mosque, with the task of purifying the faithful before entering the sacred enclosure. Decoration in red and white with the same type of geometric patterns in Madinat al-Zahara.
The Collapse of Almoravid Power and the Second Taifa Kingdoms
The collapse of Almoravid power in the mid-twelfth century implies that in Al-Andalus, a period of transition lasting 20 years will occur until its final conquest by the Almohads. Al-Andalus fragmented again into the second Taifa kingdoms.
The extent of these realms is very different, with varying persistence over time.
The Kingdom of Murcia and the Mardanishi Style
The ruler Muhammad ibn Mardanis propelled numerous architectural projects between 1145 and 1172. He was a sovereign who captured vast areas such as Valencia, part of Murcia and Almeria, Cuenca, and Teruel.
Under his patronage, important architectural work was undertaken at a time of economic prosperity. He conducted propagandistic constructions that coincided with the emerging Almohad power. These buildings are known as post-Almoravid art, but lately, the term Mardanishi style is used, which is local in nature and takes place in the Taifa kingdom.
Within the realm of Murcia, we find the Mardanishi style in Castillejo de Monteagudo.
It is rectangular. It has long been considered Almoravid. Today, there is no doubt that it was sponsored and funded by Muhammad Ibn Mardanis.
It is designed as a fortified area that presents an original solution, with entering angles at the corners created by placing towers.
Another important element is that at the bottom, there is a protective wall called an advanced Barbican, which will become an important element in Almohad military architecture.
The main building was an almunia (cottage, summer residence), outside the city, and located in open territory.
The rooms are arranged around a courtyard.
It features a cruciform patio, which is the first example of its kind in Hispano-Muslim architecture. It has two pools. The most direct antecedent is the Palace of Yusuf in Marrakech. The origin of this style of patio is unknown.
Another important element is that inside the towers were bedrooms with balconies, which anticipates Nasrid models of housing towers, like those in the Alhambra.
There are ruins, as the plant has been rebuilt thanks to archaeological digs. Remains of decorative plasterwork and painted decoration were recovered. It was covered with stucco painted red and white in geometric interlacing.
There are also remains of stucco decoration carved on plates, and epigraphic and vegetal decoration.
Sumptuary Arts: The Kutubiyya Minbar
Only one example of sumptuary arts exists from this period, making it exceptional.
This is the Kutubiyya Minbar from the Mosque in Marrakech.
It is considered the most important work of woodwork in all of Islamic art. A masterpiece of woodwork, it was designed to enable the imam to deliver the khutba (sermon).
According to the inscription on one side, it was built between 1125 and 1130 for the Great Almoravid Mosque of Cordoba in Marrakech. Later sent to North Africa, it is now in Al-Badi Palace.
It measures 4 meters high and is made of carved ebony wood. It features inlaid geometric decoration (a kind of work from the Caliphate period, in which small pieces of bone or ivory are embedded to create different geometric patterns that blend with wood of different colors), and vegetal decoration. It is preserved in very good condition.
This minbar highlights the importance of Cordoba’s joinery workshops. It may be a copy of the tenth-century Cordoba minbar of Al-Hakam II, destroyed in the sixteenth century.