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Symposium: “The Friday Mosque in Al-Andalus” 

From November 29, 2021 until December 14, 2021Monday, December 13, from 9:00 a.m. to 7:45 p.m., and Tuesday, December 14 from 9:00 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.
ONLINE
Zoom. Monday, December 13, from 9:00 a.m. to 7:45 p.m., and Tuesday, December 14 from 9:00 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. You must sign up in advance to watch the symposium sessions.
Registration open until December 12, by following this link.  
In Spanish.

This international symposium is intended to address different approaches and methodologies in the study of this major historical heritage. It will be taking place on December 13 and 14, on Zoom. In order to attend these online sessions, please fill out this form

The Friday mosques of Al-Andalus came to acquire great importance. However, this has not been translated into any further study of them. Even today, it is difficult to fit them into existing lines of research on Al-Andalus. In part, this paradox has arisen as a result of the little information available on these mosques until recent years, due to certain historical dynamics: after the conquest, many mosques were replaced by churches and even cathedrals, leading to the loss of the former Islamic constructions over time. In some places, there are hardly any hypotheses about where the mosque might have been located. Such enigmas are difficult to solve today due to a resistance to change in some traditional historiographical beliefs, the difficulties required to work on buildings used for worship today, the frequent paralysis among certain heritage managers and, in a certain sense—although with honourable exceptions—, also to the low level of interest in the scientific community and society as a whole. 

Fortunately, recent archeological activities at different sites to uncover Al-Andalus’ geography of yesteryear have been revealing remains and traces of these ancient mosques. Thanks to this, the list known until a few years ago has grown longer, and we can propose new methodological approaches and lines of work. 

Organized by Casa Árabe, the University of Cordoba and the Autonomous University of Barcelona, the purpose of this symposium is to create a space for bringing together, presenting and reviewing the most recent lines of research, approaches, proposals and interpretations from a material—and eminently archeological—perspective on different factors related with the old Friday mosques in the cities of Al-Andalus. It is also intended to spur debate on the new methodologies in research and historical heritage management and ultimately to remind us of everything that these mosques represented: a setting for the prevailing ideology, a space for training and administering justice, a site for disseminating city-building and artistic models, a meeting point for the community, a focal point of transformation and social resistance, a political tool and a backbone of the city, just to name a few.

Coordinated by Dr. Jesús Brufal Sucarrat (Universidad Autónoma de Barcelona) and Dr. Carmen González Gutiérrez (Universidad de Córdoba), the event will include the participation of many professionals and scholars from the fields of Archeology, Medieval History and Arab Studies, as well as others. 

For more information, please contact simposiomezquitasalandalus@gmail.com

Symposium: “The Friday Mosque in Al-Andalus” 


Casa Árabe, University of Cordoba and Autonomous University of Barcelona.


Cabildo Catedral de Córdoba