In Articulating the Ḥijāba, Mariam Rosser-Owen analyses for the first time the artistic and cultural patronage of the ‘Amirid regents of the last Cordoban Umayyad caliph, Hisham II, a period rarely covered in the historiography of al-Andalus. Al-Mansur, the founder of this dynasty, is usually considered a usurper of caliphal authority, who pursued military victory at the expense of the transcendental achievements of the first two caliphs. But he also commissioned a vast extension to the Great Mosque of Cordoba, founded a palatine city, conducted skilled diplomatic relations, patronised a circle of court poets, and owned some of the most spectacular objects to survive from al-Andalus, in ivory and marble. This study presents the evidence for a reconsideration of this period.

In Articulating the Ḥijāba, Mariam Rosser-Owen analyses for the first time the artistic and cultural patronage of the 'Amirid regents of the last Cordoban Umayyad caliph, Hisham II, a period rarely covered in the historiography of al-Andalus.

This book addresses the reception of Islamic visual culture by the northern Iberian kingdoms, by systematically comparing works of art from both sides and fleshing out their historical context. This study includes figurative and iconographic motifs, architectural forms, and even the spolia from constructions and Arabic inscriptions that were embedded in Christian buildings. The Islamic visual culture of al-Andalus was often transformed as it was recreated by Christian hands, bringing to the fore various nuances in the relationship between the two religious communities. Artistic transfer was conditioned by social coexistence between Christians and Muslims—both in the caliphate al-Andalus and in the northern realms—and military conflict. To approach the different ways in which Andalusi visual culture was received in the northern kingdoms, while embracing the vast diversity of case studies available, this book is divided into three thematic sections: Reinterpretation, Appropriation, and Artistic Transfers. This book will be of interest to scholars working in art history, visual culture, and medieval studies.

The Medieval Iberian Treasury in the Context of Cultural Interchange—expanded beyond the special issue of Medieval Encounters from which it was drawn—centers on the magnificent treasury of San Isidoro de León to address wider questions about the meanings of cross-cultural luxury goods in royal-ecclesiastical settings during the central Middle Ages. Now fully open access and with an updated introduction to ongoing research, an additional chapter, composite bibliographies, and indices, this multidisciplinary volume opens fresh ways into the investigation of medieval objects and textiles through historical, art historical, and technical analyses. Carbon-14 dating, iconography, and social history are among the methods applied to material and textual evidence, together shining new light on the display of rulership in medieval Iberia. Contributors are Ana Cabrera Lafuente, María Judith Feliciano, Julie A. Harris, Jitske Jasperse, Therese Martin, Pamela A. Patton, Ana Rodríguez, and Nancy L. Wicker.

A Bridge to the Sky explores the close connections between science, arts, and visual culture as they developed in the medieval Islamic lands. It presents a significant study of the career of 'Abbas Ibn Firnas, (d. 887), the most celebrated 'scientist' and polymath of early Islamic Spain, best known for conducting an experiment that has been celebrated as a milestone in the history of human flight.

A beautifully illustrated exploration of the famed palace-city that was once the heart of Islamic Spain Madinat al-Zahra, a tenth-century palace-city on the western outskirts of Córdoba, Spain, and a UNESCO World Heritage Site, stands as a testament to the multicultural environment fostered by its founders. Built by ʿAbd al-Rahman III (r. 929–961), a member of the Umayyad dynasty and the first caliph of al-Andalus, the city symbolized the caliph’s aspiration to rule over the Fatimid Caliphs of Ifriqiya in North Africa and the Abbasid Caliphs in Baghdad and was the site of vast cultural and artistic creation. The companion volume to an exhibition at New York University’s Institute for the Study of the Ancient World, this book showcases the complex visual vocabulary of Madinat al-Zahra, which derived from diverse cultural traditions and was translated into new and unique architectural and material cultures. Thematic essays examine the history of the Islamic Caliphate in Muslim Iberia (al-Andalus), the cultural and artistic traditions of the time, and the resulting multicultural society, while shorter, object-focused chapters explore the variety of works found at the ancient site—from jewelry and ceramics to medical texts and epigraphic materials. Contributors include Nour Ammari, Maribel Fierro Bello, Gerrit Bos, Roberta Casagrande-Kim, Patrice Cressier, Miquel Forcada, Teresa Garulo, Fabian Käs, Ana Labarta, Eduardo Manzano Moreno, Antonia Martínez Núñez, Jorge Elices Ocón, Mariam Rosser-Owen, Irene Montilla Torres, Antonio Vallejo Triano, and Mercè Viladrich. Distributed for the Institute for the Study of the Ancient World at New York University Exhibition Schedule Institute for the Study of the Ancient World, New York University October 30, 2024–March 2, 2025

How widespread was authorship among rulers in the premodern Islamic world? The writings of different types of rulers in different regions and periods are analyzed in this book, from the early centuries in the central lands of Islam to 19th century Sudan. The composition of poetry appears as the most fertile area for authorship among rulers. Prose writings show a wide variety, from astrology to bookmaking, from autobiography to creeds. Some of the rulers made claims to special knowledge, but in all cases authorship played a special role in the construction of the rulers' authority and legitimacy. Contributors: Ahmed Ibrahim Abushouk, Sean W. Anthony, María Luisa Ávila†, Teresa Bernheimer, Philip Bockholt, Sonja Brentjes, Christiane Czygan, David Durand-Guédy, Anne-Marie Eddé, Sinem Eryılmaz, Maribel Fierro, Adam Gaiser, Angelika Hartmann†, Livnat Holtzman, Maher Jarrar, Robert S. Kramer, Christian Mauder, Matthew Melvin-Koushki, Letizia Osti, Jürgen Paul, Petra Schmidl, Tilman Seidensticker.