The Head of the Collections and Excavations Unit of the MARQ, the archaeologist Rafael Azuar, will give a talk today Friday at 16.00 on The metalwork of the Umayyad Caliphate of Cordoba, as part of the Second Interdisciplinary Seminar "Diversity in Mediterranean al-Andalus: new research in metals and metallurgy", which has been taking place online since Wednesday 21 October.
The sessions aim to present new research on Andalusian metals and metallurgy from various scientific angles. Azuar's lecture presents a series of aulic objects, mostly from the workshops of the palatine city of Medina al-Zahara, such as the gilded bronze deer to embellish its courtyards, fountains and pools, together with the splendid gilded silver chests, or delicate and refined silver containers or essenciers for storing exotic perfumes. These pieces are magnificent examples of the luxury and splendour achieved by the Umayyad Caliphate of Córdoba in the 10th century AD.
This Seminar is inspired by the exhibition "Metal Arts in Al-Andalus" co-produced by the MAN and the MARQ with the collaboration of Acción Cultural Española and the MARQ Foundation, which took place at the National Archaeological Museum MAN and which will be exhibited in Alicante after the exhibition that the Alicante museum will dedicate to the Terracotta Warriors of Xi'an. The seminar is aimed primarily at students of Philology and Geography and History.
Al-Andalus is of fundamental importance in Spanish history. It extended from the 8th to the 15th century, generating religious, cultural and social diversity in the Iberian Peninsula, fostering a relatively peaceful coexistence among its inhabitants and leaving an immense historical and cultural legacy open to knowledge and research.
