Le Minbar de la Mosquée Kutubiyya

VVAA

ISBN: 978-84-86022-96-9

Year: 1998

Pages: 124

Illustrations: 123

Binding: in hardcover

Size: 23 x 30.5 cm

Published by: New York, The Metropolitan Museum of Art; Madrid, Ediciones El Viso; and Rabat, Ministry of Foreign Affairs

The minbar of the Kutubiyya Mosque in Marrakech, one of the masterpieces of Islamic art, was built around 1137 in Córdoba, then the cultural center of Andalusia. Commissioned by the Almoravid sultan Ali ibn Yusuf, this raised pulpit for Friday prayers quickly became known for its beauty and technical perfection, becoming a benchmark of Western Islamic art. On the occasion of the exhibition Al-Andalus: Islamic Arts in Spain, the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York collaborated with the Moroccan Ministry of Foreign Affairs to restore this piece with Moroccan technicians. The result was a pioneering book, entirely dedicated to analyzing its structure, history, and significance. Specialists from the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Bibliothèque Générale de Rabat, restorers, and a Moroccan architect participated. The work examines its decoration, materials, and state of conservation, placing it in the context of minbars since the time of Muhammad. Photographs and drawings document the entire process and reveal its complexity.