Martin M. Miles' photos with the keyword: Mithras

Córdoba shares its history with many cities in Southern Spain. It was Carthaginian and Roman (from 260BC on), later it belonged to the Byzantine Empire for two decades, was looted by the Vandals before the Visigoths conquered it in 572. In 711 it was taken by the by the Umayyad army and became a provincial capital. At that time a Christian church erected by the Visigoths was on the site, it was divided and shared by Muslims and Christians. In 784 the Christian half was purchased by Emir Abd al-Rahman I, who then demolished the church and started to build the grand mosque of Córdoba on its ground. The Mezquita reached its current dimensions in 987 with the completion of the outer naves and courtyard. It covers an area of more than 23.000 m². Nothing in Cordoba compares to the Mezquita-Cathedral, but this place has a very long history - and an interesting archaeological museum. Mithras sacrificing the bull, Roman, 2nd century

Where the church is now, was a temple where worshippers of Mithras met in Roman times. Ruins of the pagan place got excavated - and some parts were reused, when the church got erected within the 10th century. During the Battle of Ravenna (1512), fought by forces of the (Spanish-Papal) Holy League and France, lead by Gaston de Foix, who died in that battle, the church got severly damaged. It got rebuilt and consecrated again in 1527.