This article analyses Madinat al-Zahra from two perspectives: historical/archaeological and heritage. One side, the city is conceptualized as the great urban creation of the Umayyad Caliphate of al-Andalus within the context of its competition with two other rival Caliphates, Abbasid and Fatimid, and the construction of large urban centers in their respective states. In light of archaeological research, there is an analysis of the processes of urban planning and construction that highlights the political objectives manifested in the different urban and architectural transformations the palace underwent from the time it was founded. While on the other, there is an explanation of the restoration process of Madinat al-Zahra from the beginning of the excavations, demonstrating that both the material reality that can be seen at the site today and also the knowledge we possess on the caliphal city are fundamentally the result of archaeological research. There is also an explanation of the most recent landmarks in this restoration process, particularly the construction of the Madinat al-Zahra museum, and the future that has opened up for the Archaeological Ensemble based on two considerations: firstly, the need to connect the museum to the site and secondly, with 90% of the land surface yet to be excavated, research as the driving force behind Madinat al-Zahra, without which the site would remain fossilized as little more than a tourist centre.
Qurtuba, Cordoba, Madinat al-Zahra.