The rural mosque uncovered in the Andalusi village of La Graja (eleventh century ce)

ABSTRACT This article examines the rural mosque recently excavated in the archaeological site of La Graja (Higueruela, Albacete). This is a very important find from a historical point of view, since there is little archaeological evidence for this type of building despite the fact that many examples must have existed in al-Andalus. This congregational mosque served the inhabitants of an Andalusi village (Ar. qarya) and other small hamlets in its vicinity. It was built in the early eleventh century ce and abandoned, along with the rest of the settlement, towards the end of the century. Owing to its good state of preservation, its constructive characteristics and architectural plan could be analysed in detail. The most interesting aspect of this find was, however, that it was possible to study the mosque in the spatial context of the village as a whole. This reveals aspects of urban planning at the time of the mosque’s construction and, therefore, the social structure of the group of founding settlers. The excavation also provided relevant data about the uses of the space around the prayer hall and how its presence affected the evolution of the urban layout of the village.