Name of Object:Foundation plaque Location:Madrid, Spain Holding Museum:National Archaeological Museum About National Archaeological Museum, Madrid Date of Object:Hegira 357 / AD 968 Museum Inventory Number:1907/32/101 Material(s) / Technique(s):Sculpted marble. Dimensions:Height 86 cm, width 61 cm, depth 17 cm Period / Dynasty:Umayyads of al-Andalus, Caliphate period Provenance:Castle at Baños de la Encina, Jaen, Spain. Description:Foundation plaque of a defensive construction. The piece is a rectangular prism, the front of which bears a kufic inscription in relief, framed with a moulding. The archaic and orientalising characters, quite deteriorated from the fifth line onwards, are difficult to read. The last line is almost completely illegible. The best-preserved part reads 'In the name of God, the Merciful, the Compassionate. God's servant al-Hakam al-Mustansir bi Allah, Amir of the faithful, may God prolong his life, was ordered to build this tower (burj) under the direction of his mawla and Qa'id Maysur ibn al-Hakam. It was finished and completed with God's help and existence in the month of Ramadan of the year seven and fifty and three hundred'. View Short DescriptionThis plaque, in quite deteriorated kufic characters, mentions the construction of a castle at the behest of the Umayyad Caliph al-Hakam II. It was found near to Baños de la Encina, and is thought to refer to that town’s fortress. How date and origin were established:The inscription on the plaque indicates the year AH 357 / AD 968. How Object was obtained:The piece was deposited with the National Archaeological Museum by the Royal Academy of History on 28 June 1907. How provenance was established:According to the deposit report, the piece came from the castle at Baños de la Encina, Jaen. Selected bibliography:Lévi-Provençal, E., Inscriptions Arabes d'Espagne, Paris, 1931, p.134, no. 150, plate 32a. Citation of this web page:Margarita Sánchez Llorente "Foundation plaque" in Discover Islamic Art, Museum With No Frontiers, 2024. https://islamicart.museumwnf.org/database_item.php?id=object;ISL;es;Mus01;19;en Prepared by: Margarita Sánchez Llorente
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