Courtauld Institute of Art, 17 June, 2005
Organised by Rose Walker and Mariam Rosser-Owen

Reliquary casket of Santo Domingo de Silos, Museo de Burgos, detail
Reliquary casket of Santo Domingo de Silos, Museo de Burgos, detail

This one-day conference will explore relations between the Christian and Islamic kingdoms of Medieval Spain, as expressed through their art and architecture. It will challenge traditional views of reconquista, which saw a planned reclamation of the Iberian peninsular from as earlier as the eighth century, and ideas of convivencia, which perhaps over-romanticised the amicable co-existence of Muslims, Christians and Jews. Papers will look at the issues from both the Christian and Islamic perspectives. They will consider material, ranging from wall-paintings to sculpture, from Castile, Aragon and Islamic kingdoms. Likewise the chronological range will be broad, and thus it may be possible to identify whether there was an identifiable change in the treatment of art and architecture after the preaching of the First Crusade at the end of the eleventh century.

Speakers will include Professor Richard Hitchcock (University of Exeter), David Park (Courtauld Institute of Art), Dr Francisco Prado-Vilar (Princeton University), Dr Mariam Rosser-Owen (Victoria & Albert Museum), and Dr Rocío Sanchez Ameijeiras (Universidad de Santiago de Compostela).

If you wish to register, please complete the form on the website and send it to: Dr. Rose Walker, Courtauld Institute of Art, Somerset House, Strand, London, WC2R 0RN, rose.walker@courtauld.ac.uk. Registration will take place on the day at 10 am in the reception hall of the Institute.

Further information