Track 2: ROOM I-II

This museum introduces a unique gilt-leather panel collection in the world using the Umayyad original technique during the historic and cultural past from the Caliphate. The Arab in Cordoba were the first ones to craft this sumptuary art on leather technique reaching its highest quality in the 10^th century. These magnificent pieces were named gilt-leather panels.

The gilt-leather panel consists of silver, golden, polychrome and iron garnished sheepskin, which became very popular in the whole world due to its artistic quality and amazing beauty, decorating the most important houses by that time.

Nowadays, José Carlos Villarejo García is the most outstanding disciple of Master Ramón García Romero. José Carlos, the same as his uncle and Master Ramón, devotes right now all his professional and artistic career to researching and disseminating this historical and cultural past on the leather working.

Master and Disciple, Uncle and Nephew, are the authors of this collection, as well as the first researchers/artists about the Caliphal techniques on the Cordovan leather ornamentation in a sad time when this city had completely forgotten its place in History and Time.

Thanks to their effort, today, we can enjoy this Umayyad gilt-leather collection unique in the world, which José Carlos goes working on and keeping alive.

In this first Room, we will enjoy some gilt-leather panels using the same technique as in the 10^th century in the city of Medina Azahara. We would like to remark its polychrome, living up to the dying and pigmentation of the time, as well as the harmony and balance on its own ornamented pieces.

We would like to highlight the gilt-leather panel named “Tree of Life” like the most representative foliage adornment meaning “spring of wisdom and happiness”. In particular, you can admire a replica of the gilt-leather panel Cordoba City Hall ordered Ramón García Romero for the present Spanish Monarchs on their wedding day.