Spain - Córdoba, Medina Azahara

Medina Azahara (in Arab: Madinat al-Zahra) was a city built in the year of 936 by Abd al-Rahman III and was named after the most beautiful and favorite woman from harem of the caliph. The city was the secular counterpart of the Mezquita in Córdoba.

Building material from Andalusia and North Africa was transported by 15.000 donkeys and 10.000 porters.
The city was built on three levels with a mosque, the home of the caliph and beautiful gardens. Halls and homes were embellished with alabaster, ivory, jasper and marble decorations.

The construction lasted forty years and during that time a complex of palaces, houses, kitchens, stables and bastions had been created. It had about 20.000 inhabitants, mostly military and court personnel with their families.

The city had just been completed when it was sacked by the Berbers in 1013 and razed to the ground.

In 1911 archaeologists started in Medina Azahara excavations. About one tenth of the walled city - with a total area of 112 hectares - is uncovered and partially reconstructed. They are still working on this place, which is considered being one of the most important medieval towns in Spain.

Main picture: an arche of ‘La Casa de la Alberca’ (House of the Pool)
PiP’s: some details of Medina Azahara