This is the story of a city, a city that is now in ruins and lies five kilometres outside of Cordoba in Spain: MADINAT AL ZAHRA. The story is set in the 10th century, a time when southern Spain was under the rule of the Moors. The ruler, Caliph Al Rahman III was rich, powerful and cultured. His caliphate was, at long last, at peace and the capital, Cordoba, was considered to be not only the most beautiful city in the civilised world but also the seat of learning and culture.
Fact to fiction:
MADINAT AL-ZAHRA
When I first heard about the ruins of Madinat al-Zahra, in southern Spain, I was
intrigued by the idea that a palace-city of such magnificence should have lasted for so
few years. Civilisations come and go, as any reader of history knows but for such a
magnificent place to last no more than seventy-five years seemed a tragedy. It was the
summer of 2001. I picked up a leaflet about an exhibition that was to be held in the
museum at Madinat al-Zahra, just outside Córdoba. It was entitled The Splendour of
the Cordovan Umayyads. I remembered my childhood love of Tales of the Arabian
Nights and I was hooked. So we drove across from Málaga, on a blistering hot day to
see what it was all about.
I have been back many times since and the place holds a fascination for me; so much
so that it inspired me to write the novel The Shining City. I gave it that title because
‘Madinat’ (or medina) is the word for town and ‘Zahra’ means shining or brilliant. It’s
said that the caliph called the city al-Zahra because, at the time it was being built, he
was in love with a slave girl called Zahra. It could be true; there are certainly
written references to a concubine of that name, but I think ‘Zahra’ referred to the
magnificence of the city itself. As one of the principle characters in my novel, Omar,
tells his nephew:
‘It means shining, glistening, brilliant. Possibly his concubine glittered and shone
with all the jewels and beautiful silks he showered upon her but then so did the city.
It was indeed the Shining City. When visitors entered through the Grand Portico,
passing beneath its enormous, red and white arches, when they climbed the ramped
streets that were paved with blocks of dark mountain stone, passing the lines of
uniformed guards in their scarlet jackets and the richly robed civil servants that
flanked their way, when they reached the royal residence and saw the golden inlay on
the ceilings, the marble pillars, the richly woven rugs scattered across the floors and
the brilliant silk tapestries, when they saw the moving tank of mercury in the great
reception pavilion that caught the sunlight and dazzled all who beheld it, then they
indeed knew that they were in the Shining City.’
Of course today, looking at the ruined paths, the piles of broken tiles, the
reconstructed arches and pillars, we need to use our imagination to see it as it once
was. Having declared himself the caliph of al-Andalus, and with the country now
more or less at peace, Abd al-Rahman III wanted to follow in the tradition of previous
caliphs and build himself a palace-city grander than anything that had been built
before.
The construction of the city attracted many workmen from all parts of al Andalus and the work began in the year 939 AD and took forty years to complete.
I decided to tell the story of the city through a family of artisans that lived there; I
had the bare bones of my novel before me, in the stone walls and paved paths, in the
narrow passageways, the ornate gardens, the artefacts in the museum and the story of
Abd al-Rahman III himself. All I needed to do was to make the city come alive
through my fictional characters. A new city required many artisans, especially potters,
one of whom is Qasim, who has brought his family to Madinat al Zahra to make his
fortune and escape from his past. All is going well until his son, Omar falls in love with al-Rahman’s favourite concubine.
Thanks to author Joan Fallon
Learn more about this author at: Website
You can find other books by Ms. Fallon at: BRAG Medallion
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