Mosque-Cathedral: St Stephen’s Gate

Look at that horseshoe arch of red and white voussoirs: this is the oldest gate of the Mosque and the model for all those that came after. The Cordobans call it St Stephen’s, but its Andalusi name was Bab al-Wuzara, the Viziers’ Gate. The emir and his officials probably came in this way from the palace, which stood just opposite.

1From emirate to caliphate

Abd al-Rahman I, the Umayyad prince who escaped the massacre of his family in Damascus and founded the emirate of Córdoba in 756, began the mosque in 785. It went up in less than two years, reusing Roman and Visigothic columns and capitals. His successors enlarged it three times: Abd al-Rahman II, al-Hakam II, with his famous mihrab, and Almanzor, at the end of the tenth century. By then Abd al-Rahman III had proclaimed himself caliph, in 929, and Córdoba was one of the most populous and learned cities in Europe.

The Kufic inscription on this gate, dated 855, is the oldest Islamic text preserved in the building.

21236: the mosque becomes a cathedral

On 29 June 1236 Ferdinand III entered the city, and the mosque was consecrated as a church dedicated to St Mary. For three centuries it was barely touched. In 1523, amid strong protests from the city council, work began on the great Renaissance nave that now rises in the middle of the forest of columns. Visiting the interior usually requires a ticket; check the Cathedral Chapter’s website.

3What to look for

• The voussoirs alternating stone and brick.
• The inscription running around the arch.
• The stone lattices on either side.