The Islamic Villa in Early Medieval Iberia

Prize: Winner of the Eleanor Tufts Award 2015, American Society for Hispanic Art Historical Studies 'This publication met and surpassed the stipulated award criteria of originality of conception, thoroughness of research, rigor of argument, brilliance of insight, significance of findings, and clarity of expression. Although the book will engage and satisfy specialists in Islamic art and architecture, Andersons clear prose makes it accessible and valuable to anyone with an interest in a host of related fields.' The 2015 Eleanor Tufts Book Award Committee '...an innovative study and an enjoyable read, conjuring a world of palaces and gardens, but providing at the same time a rigorous and serious study of the villas function and meaning at the Umayyad court at an important moment of the dynastys establishment and legitimation.' Mariam Rosser-Owen, Victoria and Albert Museum, UK 'Andersons meticulous study illustrates the ways in which the country residences (munya) located in the region of Crdoba formed an integral part of the political, cultural and economic life of the Umayyad dynasty. She demonstrates how ideas of sovereignty were intimately linked to the cultivation of the land, and provides important parallels between the munya and the Umayyad country residences of eighth-century Syria. This book makes a major contribution to our understanding of the culture of the villa in the Medieval Mediterranean.' Marcus Milwright, University of Victoria 'The Islamic Villa in Early Medieval Iberia provides a detailed and pleasant addition to literature on the Iberian peninsula, while expanding villa studies to encompass "nonWestern" examples. It will benefit those interested in this type of architecture as well as in the life and material culture of the Muslim elite of al-Andalus. Architects, historians, and art historians, as well as scholars and students of medieval culture, will undoubtedly enjoy Anderson's book.' Traditional Dwellings and Settlement

Glaire D. Anderson is Associate Professor of Art History at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, USA.

Contents: Introduction; Social dimensions of patronage; Architecture and ornament; Gardens; The landscape of sovereignty; Epilogue; Appendix; Timelines; Bibliography; Index.