Vol. 33 No. 2 (2025)
Articles

A Vertical Palimpsest. Construction and structural evolution of the Bell Tower of the Mosque-Cathedral of Córdoba

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  • Isabel Cuerda-del-Valle,
  • Emilio Romero-Sánchez,
  • Antonio Morales-Esteban
Isabel Cuerda-del-Valle
Department of Building Structures and Geotechnical Engineering, University of Seville, Spain
Bio
Emilio Romero-Sánchez
Department of Building Structures and Geotechnical Engineering, University of Seville, Spain
Bio
Antonio Morales-Esteban
Department of Building Structures and Geotechnical Engineering, University of Seville, Spain
DOI: https://doi.org/10.36253/rar-19358

Published 2026-05-26

Keywords

  • Heritage tower,
  • Mosque-Cathedral of Córdoba,
  • construction phases,
  • composite masonry

How to Cite

Cuerda-del-Valle, I., Romero-Sánchez, E., & Morales-Esteban, A. (2026). A Vertical Palimpsest. Construction and structural evolution of the Bell Tower of the Mosque-Cathedral of Córdoba. Restauro Archeologico, 33(2), 44–55. https://doi.org/10.36253/rar-19358

Copyright (c) 2026 Isabel Cuerda-del-Valle, Emilio Romero-Sánchez, Antonio Morales-Esteban

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Abstract

The Bell Tower of the Mosque-Cathedral of Córdoba is one of the most significant composite towers in the western Mediterranean. Rising 54 m above the historic centre, it encloses the caliphal minaret of ʿAbd al-Raḥmān III, which now acts as the structural core of the present tower. This article interprets the tower as a vertical palimpsest, in which successive historical layers have reshaped the structure while preserving key traces of its previous forms. Drawing on earlier studies, archival sources, recent 2D/3D reconstructions and an on-site survey, it reconstructs the main construction phases of the tower and analyses their implications for its geometry and structural behaviour. The tower is understood as a composite vertical system, in which the caliphal core, the later Christian masonry shell and modern interventions interact. The study provided a preliminary geometric and structural framework to guide future seismic and geotechnical assessments of this complex heritage structure.

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