Search Results (3)

The aim of this article is to analyse the material remains of the ancient miḥrāb of the Friday Mosque in Ronda (Malaga, Spain), preserved in the present-day church of Santa María de la Encarnación la Mayor, and to propose preservation and valorisation measures to bring these remains to light. After the Christian conquest of Ronda, the church of Santa María de la Encarnación la Mayor was built on the site of the former Friday Mosque. In the 16th century, an altarpiece featuring niches and wall paintings was built, covering the plasterworks of the ancient miḥrāb. The primitive altarpiece was replaced by a Baroque one in the 17th century (El Sagrario altarpiece). At the beginning of the 20th century, the remains of the ancient miḥrāb and the 16th-century altarpiece were discovered while preparing the space for burial sites. Since then, a section of the plasterworks was recovered, although part of them remains covered by the 17th-century altarpiece. In this article, we analyse in detail the remains of the Islamic plasterworks that covered the qibla wall and the ancient miḥrāb, and propose a series of preservation and valorisation measures aimed at restoring these remains, without damaging the 17th-century altarpiece. Full article

The maqṣūrah commissioned by Caliph al-Hakam II in the 10th-century Mosque of Córdoba epitomizes the blend of sacred grandeur and political symbolism in Islamic architecture. This structure enhances aesthetic experiences, allowing worshippers to connect with divinity during Friday prayers. A distinctive feature is its qibla wall, divided into three parts, with a central empty miḥrāb symbolizing sacred force. This spatial organization, reminiscent of Late Antique basilicas in the Iberian Peninsula and the Mediterranean, persisted in peninsular mosques even after the Christian conquest of al-Andalus. Mudejar Islamic communities replicated this design in smaller mosques, perhaps to preserve al-Andalus’s memory amidst growing repression. Following the 17th-century expulsion of the Moriscos, similar architectural elements appeared in Testour, Tunisia, built by Morisco exiles. These visual codes, shared among Hispanic Islamic communities, reflect the enduring memory of the exile. Full article

The conservation of monuments in Cairo represents a complex matter, influenced by the cultural context, the intrinsic features of a vast and heterogeneous architectural heritage, and the environmental conditions. Monument vulnerability levels strongly need to be systematized to delineate adequate programs of control, management, and intervention. Despite their leading role in the Egyptian architectural heritage, many monuments experience a critical state of conservation. Here, we report the results of a multi-scale investigation of the northern mausoleum in the complex of the Khanqah of Al-Nasir Faraj Ibn Barquq, located in the Islamic cemetery of Al-Qarafa Al-Kubra (Cairo, Egypt). Our research aims to increase the knowledge on the decorative stones used in the mausoleum and their decay processes. The investigation has been focused on the two areas of the building covered by a colored stone-slabs pattern: the floor and the qibla wall. A detailed architectural survey, carried out through photogrammetric techniques, provided a three-dimensional morphological knowledge of the mausoleum, upgrading the available surveys made about 50 years ago. The distribution of the materials has been verified by visual analysis, integrated by the first detailed mineralogical and petrographic characterization made on this mausoleum. The digital survey of the stone surfaces and the mineralogical, chemical, and petrographic analyses allowed a systematic mapping of the decay phenomena and some insights on the morphological alteration of single elements. The obtained results indicate a capillary rise of groundwaters and airborne pollution as the main degradation processes. Full article