A place travelers can visit Mezquita-Catedral

Reviews: Mezquita-Catedral

General description: Mezquita-Catedral

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Description
Those entering the mosque through the Puerta de las Palmas suddenly find themselves in an enchanted forest of stone columns, covered with a double layer of long, red and white arches. The almost square mosque appears to be perfectly symmetrical, but each step you take reveals more of its diversity. Córdoba's Moorish rulers began building the mosque on the site of a basilica which they had purchased from the Christians. The mosque only achieved its present dimensions around the turn of the first millennium after three major expansions. By moving clockwise through the complex, you can also follow its chronology. The columns in the first quarter behind the entrance come from Roman and Visigoth buildings, the arches above are made of yellow-white sandstone and red tiles. On the southeast side, opposite the entrance, you can see the Mihrab, the magnificent prayer niche, which was built in the mid 10th century during the second major expansion. The final section, which extends the mosque to the northeast, is the least elaborate. The arches above the columns are only painted. After the conquest of Córdoba in 1236, the Christians used the mosque as a church, finding pleasure in this fairytale house of worship. Over the following 300 years, they did little more than add some smaller chapels which had barely any impact on the mosque's overall appearance. However, in the 16th century, Bishop Alonso Manrique urged for the construction of a cathedral. In the face of forceful popular protest, a Renaissance-style church was planted in the mosque - thrusting a spear into the heart of this Moorish beauty. Up to today, nobody has dared to remedy this architectural sacrilege. It is an irony of history that this splendid Muslim building belongs to the Catholic Church and is correctly shown in city maps as "Mezquita Catedral".
Visitors to the over 1000 year old Mezquita Catedral de Córdoba can marvel at a forest of stones.

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