Mosque of las Tornerias

This modest former mosque has an unusual square plan, the function of it changed drastically over the course of history and now it houses the "Foundation Center for the Promotion of Crafts" that hosts temporary exhibitions.

About this building

A mystery bewildered archeologists for a long time, the original function of the monument remained unclear until in 1905, archive search found out that it was a mosque dating back to 11th or 12th century. Over the course of time, it was converted to an inn, guild headquarters and even a local domicile. The vicissitudes stripped off the iconical architectural elements of a mosque, such as the mihrab and the pulpit, which made the experts hard to conclude whether it was a Moorish synagogue or a mosque. Now the original traces include the vaulted bays and columns.

Key Features

  • Architecture

Visitors information

  • Bus stop within 100m

Other nearby buildings

Toledo Cathedral

The Cathedral of Santa María, known locally as "Dives Toletana", dates back to 1226 during the reign of Ferdinand III, although Gothic contributions were made until the 15th century.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/eltb/18536331095

Santa Iglesia Catedral Primada de Toledo

The Holy Cathedral Church, Consecrated to the Virgin Mary in her Assumption into heaven, began to be built in 1226, under the mandate of Archbishop D. Rodrigo Jimenez de Rada, on the foundations of the Visigoth Cathedral of the S. VI, which was used as a mosque. The construction is Gothic style with a clear French influence. It measures 120 m long by 60 m wide. It is composed of 5 naves, supported by 88 columns and 72 vaults. The side naves extend behind the Main Chapel surrounding the presbytery and creating a girola with a double semicircular corridor. Its first architect is the master Martun, of French origin, to whom the traces of the plan and the beginnings of the work at the head of the temple are due.

Wikimedia Commons/Richard Mortel

Church of Cristo de la Luz

The Church of Cristo de la Luz, formerly the Bab al-Mardum Mosque, was one of the ten mosques that the city once had and is the best preserved. Founded in 999, various elements, mainly an apse, were added to it in the 12th century, after the Christian conquest of the city, making it one of the oldest known examples of Mudéjar art.