Moorish Metalwork of Spain and North Africa Moorish metal work of Spain follows in general the style of Islamic art, with the addition of characteristic features of this country. Hispano-Moresque gold jewelry, made mostly in Granada, is frequently in filigree work and sometimes combined with enamel inlay, as in a group of fourteenth century necklaces and bracelets in the Morgan collection of the Museum. The treasuries of Spanish Churches contain several silver boxes with relief decoration and filigree work. Most famous among them is a gilded silver box in the Cathedral of Gerona, scrolls. According to an inscription, it was made at the order of Caliph Hakam II (961-76) for his successor, Hisham II.
Noteworthy among the bronzes is a lamp from the ’Alhamra mosque, now in the Archaeological Museum of Madrid. It was made to order for Muhammad in in the year A.H. (705) (1305) and has an openwork decoration of arabesque and Arabic inscriptions. There are several bronze doors of Moorish workmanship, including one in the Cordova Cathedral bearing the date 1415 of the era of Caesar (13 77), and one in Seville Cathedral which is similar in style. In North Africa the art of metalwork never achieved a high standard. Inlay, if not entirely unknown, was at least very rare. Such metalwork as we known is mostly of later date and decorated in the usual Moorish style.
