Salam Aleikum, 

The following pictures are from Olhão (Al ayn) "the eye", a city in the south of Portugal with a strong Moorish and Islamic heritage. From the architecture, to the gastronomy and obviously the people. One of the last places in Portugal to capitulate to the "reconquest" and one of the few still maintaining a strongly North-African-Moorish feel to it.

MUSLIM SORTELHA

In a recent trip to the northern historic village of Sortelha in the North East of Portugal, we came across what we were looking for.

There were some references in old books to a street named "the Mosque street" in portuguese "Rua da Mesquita". We went hunting for this one and we found it! there were also references to a house with the Crescent etched in stone above one of the entrances but we could not find this. througout the last decades there have been lots of "requalification"and rebuilding of this little town now aiming more than ever to tourism, and probably some fo the muslim references succumbed to this. Anyway we found the Street where the mosque was supposed to exist.
enjoy the photos of this beautiful place.

Books

سلام عليكم

I just found these books on the arquimedes books website:

http://www.arquimedeslivros.net/index.php?cPath=110

they are basically avaiable from this website and most of them are published by the excellent hugin a publisher dealing mostly with spiritual/alchemical/religious titles.

Only in Portuguese:

this is the result of an international symposium on culture and literature in the Gharb-Al-Andaluz (Portugal during Muslim rule):

This one is an excellent work of the renown historian Santiago Macias on the Islamic period of Mertola-a small village in the south of Portugal where still nowadays you can see the mirhab on the church that was built upon the mosque.

This is an old book on the influence of arabic language in the folklore of a southern area in Portugal surrounding the village of Serpa. specifically focusing on the herdsmen language.

This is a Classic from the Great Adalberto Alves: Qalbi Arabi (My heart is arab):

A Very interesting study on the Muslim Community of Lisbon in the XIV and XV centuries.

This is an interesting study on the Jews of Islam, the two abrahamic brothers.

A Specific study on the Ceramics of Islamic Portugal.

In a time when the Christian Kings of the North could barely sign their own names in the South, Portugal was populated by great sages, walids, teologians, philosophers, jurists and poets. this is the Theological and juridical writings of one of those men. the Great Abul-Walid Al-Baji (the one from Beja-an important city in the south of Portugal)

Ma-Salaama!

An Old Masjid???

Salaam aleikum!
O Altinho-Ermida de São Gens/Nossa Senhora da Guadalupe in Serpa

This is one of those contructions that if it didn't have the Christian cross I would swear it was a Mosque, notice the 2 round domes, the archs and even the tower of the minaret!!! I don't know when exactly this one was built but it seems to me another Christian Church built on top of an old Mosque as it was popular to do at the time of the reconquest. Not Only Serpa was an Area deeply into Moorsih/Muslim territory but also it was an important centre of commerce of the Alentejo. Nowadays there is a Geodesic mark on top of the minaret people seem to believe that it wasn't a minaret but a watchtower (in portuguese: torre de atalaia) to be honest I've got my doubts...It looks really an old masjid to me...check the Photos

Some posters of Activities related to the Gharb

Salaam Aleikum Wa Rhamatullah Wa Barakatu!
This is a small collection of posters of activities related to the Al-Gharb Al-Andaluz.
The First is the announcement (and the cover as well) of the collection of stamps by the Portuguese Post that celebrate the great Al-Gharb Al -Andaluz and the deep marks that were left in and outside ourselves.




this second one is an archeology course on the Gharb Al-Andaluz...

This is the Classic Mértola Islamic Festival that happens every 2 years. 2009 is the next year and it should be around May!

This is an exposition of islamic ceramics from the small town of Cacela in the south of Portugal

This is a Poster of the 6th Archeologists Convention on the Gharb Al Andaluz...

happening in Silves (Xelb)

This is the poster of an homage to the great muslim geographer Al'Idrisi and to the historian Mahmoud Ismaili by 2 towns in the south of Portugal.

A Mix of Amulets, Coins Architecture and stamps...

Continuing with the architecture here we have the Moçarabe church of Lourosa possibly a mosque before:

Another Morabit of Ferreira do alentejo nowadays a small chapel.

The New mosque of Odivelas (Wadi velas'?)

Aisha Sidique.

The CTT company the Portuguese Post Company decided to honour the glourious Al'Gharb Al Andaluz with a collection of commemorative stamps named "Arabic Lisbon-Lisboa Arabe":

here´s one of them:

And here´s the whole collection of 6:

these next are details of amulets and coins from the Islamic period kept in Museum and private collections...

this one is from the Museum in Serpa:

These are coins in a private collection'they are from the almohad period

More coins, these ones coined in Xelb from the almohad period.

An interesting painting based on a poem by Al'Mutamid the muslim Poet and King of Baja (Beja) who was born in Xelb (Silves) and where he spent most of his Childhood.

the translation would be something like:

"Give my salute oh Abu Bakr to those dear places of Silves and tell me if they miss me as much as I miss them..."

An interesting inscription in Évora (Al'Yabura)

a muslim amulet with some Quranic writings to give protection to its user.

The Moorish Architecture and the People

This is a selection of some interesting muslim/moorish architecture of Portugal (AL'Gharb'Al'Andaluz)

This is Évora, an important city of the Gharb Al'Andaluz:

Castro da Cola was an old celtic village with later islamic occupation as the archeological findings seem to demonstrate:

Another perspective of the Castro da Cola.

A Picture of the Muslim Castle of Monsarraz:

This is the Moorish well of Alhos Vedros:

Another Moorish Castle, this time Noudar, Close to Barrancos by the Spanish border:

A Detail of the Noudar´s Castle:

Castro de Marraxique (note the typical north african name similar to Marrakesh)

The islamic pathwalk of São Brás de Alportel:

The Arabic Room of The Oporto Stock Exchange:

The Moorish house of Óbidos:

The Awarded (Prémio Valmor) Moorish house in Lisboa (Al'Ushbuna):

The Islamic southern town of Cacela, where the old muslim wall still exists:

The Classic "Praça de Touros do Campo Pequeno" built in a imposing moorish arquitecture style:

The Moorish Castle of Aljezur, probably one of the places well known to the great Ibn Qasi (ra)

The Muslim well of Silves (Xelb) today part of the islamic museum there.

A detail of the Moorish Castle of Al'Shantarin (nowadays Santarém):

A classical arabic door at the Castle of "Castelo Rodrigo" in the North of the Gharb Al Andaluz.

An Amazing detail of the Medina of Olhão (Al'Ayn-the Eye). note the typical north'african moorish maze of cubic buildings in a harmoniously chaotic pattern.

Coimbra the entrance to the Medina. Still called nowadays "The Medina´s Gate":

A new building in Xelb (Silves) which will house the "House of Islamic Culture"-this is Portugal waking up to his islamic heritage! Alhamdullilah!

Same building an outside perspective:









And again:

In Al'Sintara (Sintra) there is this beautiful building just in front of the masonic Quinta da Regaleira in a typical arabic fashion with some arabic writing at the entrance. beautiful!:

The Oporto Moorish House:

And Alfama one of the classic old moorish neigbourhoods in Old Lisbon. According to some the name means "warm springs":




















A reference to the architecture without a reference to the people would be empty....

old working class ladies from the southern province of alentejo, one of the areas with stronger islamic presence. note the similarities between their traditional dresscode and the shia muslim dresscode.

a young portuguese lady with the typical portuguese "hijab" from the very same province as the old ladies in the previous photos.