ABSTRACT
Of all the lands of the earth which have preserved masterpieces of Islamic architecture, or from which unique monuments of craftsmanship attributable to Muslim artisans or to Muslim patronage have come, two are no longer ruled by Muslims. Good arguments can be made, and have been made in the past, in favor of either one of these positions or approaches toward the arts of Muslim Spain; for indeed each one of them is justified by some at least of the factual characteristics of the monuments involved, but especially by reference to two diametrically opposed ideological positions. It is as though collective memory, Muslim, and probably also Christian since that particular mosque has been preserved, recognized something unique about the Cordoban monument. In all likelihood it was the possibility of reusing the objects for church treasures which saved them from being destroyed or utilized, and then handled over the centuries to the point of becoming totally worn.
