gan to
sing round us with their books in their hands; every wretch presented us
the palm of his withered hand (with the holy water), but they were even
like the bat, whose safety consists in his hatred for light; offering us
every attraction that their drinking of new wine, or their eating of
swine's flesh, could afford." This narrative is in many respects very
characteristic of an Arab writer, who would not feel the incongruity of
an illustration on such a theme drawn from "the lips of a maid," or the
irrelevancy of a reference to swine's flesh. But the account merits
attention on other grounds, for it shews how little even the more
intelligent Moslems understood the ceremonies of the religion which they
had conquered, though they might be pardoned for thinking that the
Christians worshipped the Virgin Mary, both because Mohammed himself
fell into the same error, and because probably the Roman Church and its
adherents had already begun to pay her idolatrous worship.

The chief church in Cordova at the conquest seems to have been the
church of St Vincent. On the taking of the town,[2] the Christians had
to give up half of it to the Arabs, a curious arrangement, but one
enforced elsewhere by the Saracens. In 784 the Christians were induced,
or compelled, to sell their half for 100,000 dinars, and it was pulled
down to make room for the Great Mosque.[3] In 894 we find that the
Cordovans were allowed to build a new church.

[1] Ahmed ibn Abdilmalik ibn Shoheyd, Al Makk., i. 246. I quote
De Gayangos' translation.

[2] De Gayangos on Al Makk., i. 368, says the cathedral was at
first guaranteed to the Christians. Some time later than 750
they had to surrender half of it; in 784 they were obliged to
sell the other half, and in return were allowed to rebuild the
destroyed churches. For the "church of the burnt" see above, p.
29, note 1.

[3] This was not finished till 793. The original structure cost
80,000 dinars. Several Khalifs added to it, and Hakem II.
(961-976) alone spent on it 160,000 dinars.

Besides these within the walls, there were ten or twelve monasteries and
churches in the immediate neighbourhood of Cordova: among them the
monastery of St Christopher, the famous one of Tabanos, suppressed as
above mentioned, in 854;[1] those of St Felix at Froniano, of St Martin
at Royana, of the Virgin Mary at Cuteclara, of St Salvator at
Pegnamellar; and the churches of SS. Jus