The Jewish community of Alandalús gave the world extraordinary thinkers like Maimonides,
diplomats like Ibn Shaprut, and poets like Ibn Gabirol and Judah Halevi, whose wisdom, works,
and accomplishments resonate through the ages. 820 years after his death, the
RAMBAM’s contributions to medicine, philosophy, diplomacy, and Jewish law continue to
inspire wonder and influence till today.
The intellectual and cultural splendor of the Iberian Sephardic Jews was always linked to the
economic bonanza derived from the Mediterranean commercial trade networks, which were
consolidated by the Umayyad dynasty during its reign of almost three centuries at Cordoba and
further developed by the Taifa, Almoravid, and Almohad sovereigns who ruled Alandalus.
Across the Mediterranean in Fustat (Cairo) about two hundred thousand documents
accumulated in the Ben Ezra Synagogue’s Genizah—a room or grave where obsolete sacred
documents are respectfully discarded—over the course of nearly a millennium. Discovered by
European explorers in the nineteenth century, the Cairo Genizah contain sacred and secular
works, scientific treatises, literature, business transactions, amulets, medical prescriptions, and
personal letters. Indeed, an array of documents that give us a glimpse into what daily medieval
life was like in the first person.
The geographical location of Egypt, a natural bridge between the Islamic East and Christian
West, made it possible for many of these documents to be of Andalusian origin. This exhibition,
curated by the University of Granada Professor José Martínez Delgado, offers authentic
testimonies of the time, which allow us to approach their way of life, their concerns, needs,
skills, and problems. A journey from the origins of this important community to its exodus and
extinction in the XIX century helps us to question how much we really know about the Middle
Ages, as well as to compare our intimate and daily lives to those of our Andalusian ancestors.
This exhibit analyzes this incredible content and brings the history of one of the most splendid
periods of Jewish and world history closer to life. Although subsequently scattered all over the world,
Sepharadim have maintained connections to their past by perpetuating traditions, the Ladino
(Judeo-Spanish) language, as well as exemplifying a seriously Jewish yet cosmopolitan worldview.
The exhibition has been organized by Centro Sefarad-Israel, with the collaboration of Casa del
Mediterráneo, the Miller Center for Contemporary Judaic Studies, and The George Feldenkers
Program in Judaic Studies of the University of Miami, the Red de Juderías de España, the World
Jewish Congress, Fundación Hispano Judía, and the American Sephardi Federation.
It also has the support of Spain’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs - European Union and Cooperation,
the Community of Madrid, the Madrid City Council, ElAl, Instituto Cervantes, the University of
Cambridge, the University of Granada, Trinity College Dublin, and the European Research
Council.