Caliphate City of Medina Azahara World Heritage Site

Official name

Caliphate City of Medina Azahara | UNESCO

Country

Spain | Map

Continent

Europe

Location

37.8858° Lat, -4.8676° Lon | Map

Code

1560

Time Zone

Europe/Madrid (CET, +0100)

Current Time

Category

Cultural

Description

Inscribed 2018. The Caliphate city of Medina Azahara is an archaeological site of a city built in the mid-10th century CE by the Umayyad dynasty as the seat of the Caliphate of Cordoba. After prospering for several years, it was laid to waste during the civil war that put an end to the Caliphate in 1009-1010. The remains of the city were forgotten for almost 1,000 years until their rediscovery in the early 20th century. This complete urban ensemble features infrastructure such as roads, bridges, water systems, buildings, decorative elements and everyday objects. It provides in-depth knowledge of the now vanished Western Islamic civilization of Al-Andalus, at the height of its splendour.