Andalusia - The Caliphate of Córdoba

Project	Arrabales - Geomagnetic mapping of arabic suburbs in Córdoba
Location	Córdoba, Andalusia, Spain
Period	Caliphate of Córdoba, 10th to 11th century AD
Methods	Geomagnetics
Client	arqveobética S.L., Córdoba

Geomagnetic mapping on PP-O7 in Córdoba

OBJECTIVES Large spaces at the western fringe of Córdoba were populated bewteen the 9th and 11th century. Suburbs of the Caliphate period, the so-called Arrabales extended over several hundred hectares. Around AD 1000 Córdoba was supposedly one of the largest cities in the world. Modern city planning requires dealing sensitively with the buried cultural heritage. Clearly target-orientated excavacions in large areas can be efficiently planned using prior geophysical prospection.
COMPLETED WORKS AND RESULTS
In the development area of the Plan Parcial O7 in Córdoba geomagnetic mapping was carried out covering an area of 23 hectares. The fieldwork was completed within two weeks. The data shows the ground plans of entire suburbs including streets, water conduits and wells. The geomagnetic map formed the base for the subsequent archaeological excavations.

Section of the geomagnetic map in Córdoba, Plan Parcial O7

CONTACT Cornelius Meyer (meyer@eastern-atlas.com )
Juan F. Murillo, Oficina de Arqueología de Córdoba (gmu.arqueologia@ayuncordoba.es )
Antonio Molina (ARQUEOBETICA@terra.es )