|
|
..
| Cordoba (pop.
300,000), one of Andalusia's eight provincial capitals, stands on
the banks of the River Guadalquivir, north of Sevilla. The city
was founded circa 169 B.C. by the Roman praetor Claudius Marcelus and was
the birthplace of Séneca. The city boomed under the Arabs and on
the arrival of the Caliphate, became the most civilised and sophisticated
city of 10th-century Europe. During this century Cordoba had nearly 1,000
mosques, 600 public baths and street lighting (700 years before London
or Paris). Cordoba´s sophistication attracted numerous intellectuals,
scholars, poets, doctors and philosophers. Later the city was conquered
by the Christians and this equally important legacy can still be seen today.
Recently the old quarter and mosque have been declared World Heritage City. |
|
|
