Long-form editorial on Córdoba, Spain — history, monuments, food and neighbourhoods from Explore Córdoba. Newest articles first.https://www.explorecordoba.comhttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/roman-circus-cordoba-chariot-raceshttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/roman-circus-cordoba-chariot-racesCórdoba's 450-metre Roman circus held 30,000 chariot-racing fans. It lies buried beneath Plaza de la Corredera — here is where to find its surviving traces.Thu, 23 Jul 2026 10:00:00 GMThttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/cordoba-fuero-ferdinand-iii-charterhttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/cordoba-fuero-ferdinand-iii-charterFerdinand III granted Córdoba the Fuero Juzgo on 10 March 1241 — a Visigothic code in Castilian. It created 14 parishes and governed the city 600+ years.Tue, 21 Jul 2026 10:00:00 GMThttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/history-of-flamenco-in-cordobahttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/history-of-flamenco-in-cordobaFrom Santa Marina's gitano quarter to the 1956 Concurso Nacional (won outright by Fosforito) to UNESCO in 2010: how Córdoba built its own flamenco tradition.Mon, 20 Jul 2026 10:00:00 GMThttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/stargazing-near-cordobahttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/stargazing-near-cordobaCórdoba's Caliphate-era astronomers charted the stars centuries ago; today Los Pedroches, under 90 minutes north, offers certified dark skies to see them.Mon, 20 Jul 2026 10:00:00 GMThttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/corpus-christi-cordoba-16th-centuryhttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/corpus-christi-cordoba-16th-centuryCorpus Christi in Córdoba has paraded a 200-kilo Gothic silver monstrance through herb-strewn streets since 1518—five centuries of Counter-Reformation theatre.Fri, 17 Jul 2026 10:00:00 GMThttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/cordobans-in-dantes-infernohttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/cordobans-in-dantes-infernoSeneca, Lucan, and Averroes: three Córdoba-born intellects who share a single canto of Dante's Inferno. Why the poet admired them yet placed them in Limbo.Thu, 16 Jul 2026 10:00:00 GMThttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/cordoba-spanish-civil-war-1936https://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/cordoba-spanish-civil-war-1936On 18 July 1936, a coup plunged Córdoba into the Spanish Civil War: Plaza de las Tendillas seized, thousands executed, and a failed August counter-offensive.Wed, 15 Jul 2026 10:00:00 GMThttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/roman-houses-cordoba-colonia-patriciahttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/roman-houses-cordoba-colonia-patriciaRoman houses in Cordoba, Spain, had atriums, peristyle gardens, and hypocaust floors. Surviving mosaics, frescoes, and the patio tradition they started.Mon, 13 Jul 2026 10:00:00 GMThttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/hisham-ii-cordoba-boy-caliphhttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/hisham-ii-cordoba-boy-caliphHisham II became caliph of Córdoba at ten, ruled as a puppet for Almanzor, vanished during the 1013 sack, and taifa kings still invoked his name in 1082.Fri, 10 Jul 2026 10:00:00 GMThttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/etymology-of-cordoba-namehttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/etymology-of-cordoba-nameThe name Córdoba has passed through five civilisations, each leaving a phonetic trace on the word: from Iberian Corduba to Arabic Qurṭuba to Castilian Córdoba.Wed, 08 Jul 2026 10:00:00 GMThttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/vikings-cordoba-844https://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/vikings-cordoba-844In 844, a Norse fleet of up to 80 ships sailed the Guadalquivir and sacked Seville. Abd al-Rahman II's response changed Andalus naval strategy for a century.Sat, 04 Jul 2026 10:00:00 GMThttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/abd-al-rahman-ii-cordobahttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/abd-al-rahman-ii-cordobaThe albolafia waterwheel is on Córdoba's coat of arms since the 14th century. Abd al-Rahman II built it, expanded the Mezquita, and brought Ziryab to court.Fri, 03 Jul 2026 10:00:00 GMThttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/guadalquivir-mills-historyhttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/guadalquivir-mills-historyIn 1492 Isabella I ordered Córdoba's Albolafia wheel pulled down because it kept her awake. Eleven Guadalquivir mills, three civilisations, one story.Tue, 30 Jun 2026 10:00:00 GMThttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/al-hakam-i-cordobahttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/al-hakam-i-cordobaAl-Hakam I ruled Córdoba from 796 to 822 CE. Between the golden narratives lie three events: a banquet massacre, a suburban uprising, and 20,000 exiles.Mon, 29 Jun 2026 10:00:00 GMThttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/hasdai-ibn-shaprut-cordobahttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/hasdai-ibn-shaprut-cordobaCourt physician, diplomat, and Hebrew literary patron: how Hasdai ibn Shaprut turned 10th-century Córdoba into the centre of Jewish intellectual life.Sun, 28 Jun 2026 10:00:00 GMThttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/lubna-of-cordobahttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/lubna-of-cordobaLubna of Córdoba was an enslaved mathematician who became secretary to Caliph al-Hakam II and helped build his legendary 400,000-volume palace library.Sat, 27 Jun 2026 10:00:00 GMThttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/martyrs-of-cordoba-850https://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/martyrs-of-cordoba-850Between 850 and 859 AD, 48 Christians walked into Córdoba's courts and denounced Muhammad. Who they were, why they did it, and what split their own community.Fri, 26 Jun 2026 10:00:00 GMThttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/noor-gastroarchaeology-cordobahttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/noor-gastroarchaeology-cordobaPaco Morales spent years in medieval manuscripts before opening Noor. What caliphate food córdoba actually was — and how he rebuilt it without a single tomato.Fri, 26 Jun 2026 10:00:00 GMThttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/hammam-bath-culture-cordobahttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/hammam-bath-culture-cordobaAt its Caliphal peak, Córdoba had 300+ public hammams — more than any medieval European city. The theology, architecture, and social rituals behind them.Thu, 25 Jun 2026 10:00:00 GMThttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/medina-azahara-night-lightshttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/medina-azahara-night-lightsMedina Azahara night visits run Fri–Sat at 9 p.m. (€15). What chroniclers recorded about the mercury-pool throne room and what the ruins look like after dark.Wed, 24 Jun 2026 10:00:00 GMThttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/cordoba-before-the-mezquitahttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/cordoba-before-the-mezquitaWhat stood on the Mezquita site before 785? Roman Corduba, Visigothic bishops, and a contested basilica: the archaeology of pre-Islamic Córdoba explained.Tue, 23 Jun 2026 10:00:00 GMThttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/salmorejo-vs-gazpacho-cordobahttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/salmorejo-vs-gazpacho-cordobaSeville got gazpacho. Córdoba got salmorejo. Both cities, identical climate, 150 km apart — yet completely different cold soups. Here's why the split happened.Mon, 22 Jun 2026 10:00:00 GMThttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/slow-travel-cordobahttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/slow-travel-cordobaThe Córdoba operating system for slow travellers: timing windows, neighbourhood rhythms, market days, and siesta economics to outflank the day-tripper crowd.Mon, 22 Jun 2026 10:00:00 GMThttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/mezquita-prayer-banhttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/mezquita-prayer-banThe Mezquita prayer ban began in 2003 when Muslims were ejected mid-prayer. The Church registered the building for €30 in 2006. UNESCO still calls it a mosque.Sun, 21 Jun 2026 10:00:00 GMThttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/subh-cordoba-sultanahttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/subh-cordoba-sultanaSubh was a Basque concubine who became regent of Córdoba in 976. She put Almanzor in power, then spent a decade trying to bring him down — and failed.Sat, 20 Jun 2026 10:00:00 GMThttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/al-zahrawi-cordoba-surgeonhttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/al-zahrawi-cordoba-surgeonAl-Zahrawi, the father of modern surgery, was born near Córdoba in 936 CE. He invented the scalpel and catgut sutures, and shaped surgery for 500 years.Fri, 19 Jun 2026 10:00:00 GMThttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/lucero-inquisitor-cordobahttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/lucero-inquisitor-cordobaLucero El Tenebroso jailed 400+ people and staged Córdoba's largest auto-da-fé in 1504. The only Spanish inquisitor ever removed for abuse of authority.Thu, 18 Jun 2026 10:00:00 GMThttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/cordoba-1391-pogromhttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/cordoba-1391-pogromIn summer 1391, pogroms swept Córdoba's Jewish quarter. Forced conversions created the converso class and set the preconditions for the 1492 expulsion.Wed, 17 Jun 2026 10:00:00 GMThttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/spain-travel-statistics-2026https://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/spain-travel-statistics-2026Spain welcomed a record 96.8M tourists in 2025. See full 2026 travel statistics: arrivals, spending, top regions, source markets, and wellness trends.Wed, 17 Jun 2026 10:00:00 GMThttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/palacio-de-viana-twelve-patioshttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/palacio-de-viana-twelve-patiosThe Palacio de Viana's twelve patios weren't planned: they accumulated across 500 years and 18 aristocratic owners. How each era shaped a new courtyard.Tue, 16 Jun 2026 10:00:00 GMThttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/siege-of-cordoba-1236https://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/siege-of-cordoba-1236The full account of the 1236 Siege of Córdoba: almogávars scaling a tower in winter, Ferdinand III's forced march, and the surrender five months later.Mon, 15 Jun 2026 10:00:00 GMThttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/roman-amphitheatre-cordobahttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/roman-amphitheatre-cordobaCórdoba's Roman amphitheatre was discovered in 2002 beneath the university building. At 178m, third-largest in the empire, and still not open to the public.Sun, 14 Jun 2026 10:00:00 GMThttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/alcazar-inquisition-cordobahttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/alcazar-inquisition-cordobaThe Alcázar de los Reyes Cristianos was headquarters of the alcazar cordoba inquisition for 330 years. What happened inside, and what remains visible today.Sat, 13 Jun 2026 10:00:00 GMThttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/lucan-cordoba-poethttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/lucan-cordoba-poetBorn in Córdoba in 39 AD, Lucan wrote Rome's most defiant epic against a reigning emperor and was forced to die at 25. Complete story of lucan poet cordoba.Fri, 12 Jun 2026 10:00:00 GMThttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/abd-al-rahman-iii-caliphatehttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/abd-al-rahman-iii-caliphateAbd al-Rahman III had blue eyes, reddish-blond hair, and a Christian grandmother from Pamplona — yet dyed it black to be Caliph of Córdoba on January 16, 929.Thu, 11 Jun 2026 10:00:00 GMThttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/almanzor-cordobahttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/almanzor-cordobaAlmanzor ran Córdoba for 25 years without claiming the caliphate. Fifty-seven undefeated campaigns, the bells of Santiago, a purged library — and civil war.Thu, 11 Jun 2026 10:00:00 GMThttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/cordoba-golden-age-civil-warhttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/cordoba-golden-age-civil-warThe siege of Córdoba lasted from 1009 to 1013, as rival claimants and unpaid Berber mercenaries tore apart the Umayyad Caliphate and burned Medina Azahara.Thu, 11 Jun 2026 10:00:00 GMThttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/cordoban-leather-cordwainerhttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/cordoban-leather-cordwainerCórdoba gave English its word for shoemaker. How medieval goatskin tanned with sumac became Europe's finest leather and named a London guild still active today.Thu, 11 Jun 2026 10:00:00 GMThttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/luis-de-gongora-mezquitahttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/luis-de-gongora-mezquitaLuis de Góngora, born in Córdoba in 1561, invented a style of poetry so difficult it scandalized Spain. His tomb is inside the Mezquita, behind an iron grille.Thu, 11 Jun 2026 10:00:00 GMThttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/plaza-corredera-roman-secrethttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/plaza-corredera-roman-secretCórdoba's only Castilian arcaded square was built in 1683. Roman mosaics found beneath it in 1959 are now in the Alcázar's Hall of Mosaics. Food market daily.Thu, 11 Jun 2026 10:00:00 GMThttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/pastel-cordobes-historyhttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/pastel-cordobes-historyFlaky pastry filled with candied pumpkin, the pastel cordobés has Moorish roots. A Córdoba confectioner named the miniature Manolete version in the 1940s.Wed, 10 Jun 2026 10:00:00 GMThttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/roman-temple-cordoba-discoveryhttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/roman-temple-cordoba-discoveryIn 1951, Córdoba's City Hall expansion broke through to a Roman temple buried for 1,900 years. What workers found, how it was identified, and what survives.Wed, 10 Jun 2026 10:00:00 GMThttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/charles-v-mezquita-1523https://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/charles-v-mezquita-1523Charles V approved inserting a Renaissance nave into Córdoba's Great Mosque in 1523, overriding local opposition. His alleged regret may be apocryphal.Tue, 09 Jun 2026 10:00:00 GMThttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/columbus-cordoba-beatriz-aranahttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/columbus-cordoba-beatriz-aranaBeatriz Enríquez de Arana met Columbus in Córdoba in 1487, bore his son Ferdinand, and raised him alone. Columbus never married her, despite a deathbed apology.Mon, 08 Jun 2026 10:00:00 GMThttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/ziryab-cordoba-musicianhttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/ziryab-cordoba-musicianZiryab was a Baghdad musician who settled in Córdoba in 822 CE, added a fifth string to the oud, and tradition credits him with inventing the three-course meal.Sun, 07 Jun 2026 10:00:00 GMThttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/cruces-mayo-origins-historyhttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/cruces-mayo-origins-historyFrom Roman Floralia to the True Cross of Saint Helena: two millennia of religious syncretism shaped the flower-draped May crosses Córdoba celebrates today.Sat, 06 Jun 2026 10:00:00 GMThttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/cordero-a-la-miel-historyhttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/cordero-a-la-miel-historyCordero a la miel descends from the lamb-and-honey tradition of caliphal Córdoba. The culinary history behind Córdoba's most layered slow-roasted dish.Fri, 05 Jun 2026 10:00:00 GMThttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/julio-romero-de-torres-cordoba-painterhttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/julio-romero-de-torres-cordoba-painterJulio Romero de Torres (1874–1930) turned Córdoba's women, light, and flamenco into Andalusian symbolism. His last painting remains in his Córdoba museum.Thu, 04 Jun 2026 10:00:00 GMThttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/cordoba-silver-filigreehttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/cordoba-silver-filigreeSilver filigree Córdoba: the Umayyad craft of the Judería, nearly lost, then carried to Colombia. History, technique, and where to buy authentic pieces today.Wed, 03 Jun 2026 10:00:00 GMThttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/perol-cordobes-traditionhttps://www.explorecordoba.com/articles/perol-cordobes-traditionThe perol cordobés is not a recipe. It is a communal outdoor feast anchored to San Rafael Day (October 24) where families of 50+ cook in the countryside.Wed, 03 Jun 2026 10:00:00 GMT