The December session of the Al-Andalus Chair moves to the Infanta Elena Provincial Public Library, this time with Dr. Azucena Hernández, with whom we will learn more about this astronomical instrument.
The production of astrolabes in al-Andalus, from the 10th century until the fall of Granada in 1492, occupies an important place both in the history of scientific instrumentation and in medieval artistic metalwork. The constructive quality and decorative repertoire of the more than thirty Andalusian astrolabes that have survived to the present day highlight the usefulness of these instruments for the scientific community and for society as a whole, as well as their symbolic dimension, as an image of the universe and an evocation of erudition linked to power.
Andalusian astrolabes, illustrious witnesses to the synergy between science and art, attest to the balance between mathematical-astronomical precision and decorative dimension that was achieved in the workshops and centres of knowledge in al-Andalus. Important astrologists such as Muḥammad ibn al-Ṣaffār in Córdoba, Ibrāhīm ibn Sa'īd al-Sahlī in Toledo, Muḥammad ibn Fattūh al-Jamā'irī in Seville or Aḥmad ibn Ḥusayn ibn Bāṣo in Granada contributed to the dissemination of astronomical and mathematical knowledge, both to the Hispanic Christian kingdoms and to the rest of medieval Europe, demonstrating Andalusian scientific leadership.
About the author
D. in Art History from the Complutense University of Madrid, a degree in Physical Sciences and a Master's degree in Advanced Studies in Spanish Art from the same university. She currently collaborates as a researcher in the Department of Medieval Art History at the UCM and is a member of the national R+D+i project 'Al-Andalus, the Hispanic kingdoms and Egypt: art, power and knowledge in the medieval Mediterranean'.
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