The Antiquities Of Cordoba

Scottish Country Dance Instruction

1-4 All cross over passing their partner by the right shoulder, 1st and 2nd women dancing under arches made by the men. All set on opposite sides.
5-8 All half turn their partner with both hands, opening out so that 1st couple face down while 2nd and 3rd couples face up. All set retaining nearer hands.
9-12 1st couple dance down under arches made by 2nd and 3rd couples. Then 1st woman crosses in front of 1st man and they both curve to their right to end between 2nd and 3rd places facing in, 1st man in front of 1st woman who is on the sideline.
 Meanwhile 2nd and 3rd couples dance up, cross over and curve out to opposite sides facing across. 3rd woman ends in front of 2nd woman who is on the sideline. All join hands facing across.
13-16 All repeat the pattern of bars 9-12 across the dance.
 2nd and 3rd men dance across under arches made by 3rd woman with 1st man and 2nd woman with 1st woman. Then 3rd man crosses in front of 2nd man and they curve left to end in their original places.
 Meanwhile 3rd woman with 1st man followed by 2nd woman with 1st woman dance across to the women's side, cross over, 3rd and 2nd woman passing in front of 1st couple, and curve away to end in their original places.
17-24 All set on the sides.
 1st and 2nd couples dance half right hands across while 3rd couple cross over giving left hands.
 2nd couple cross over giving right hands while 1st and 3rd couples dance half left hands across.
 All set on the sides.
25-32 All circle six hands round to the left and back. The final order is 2,3,1.

(Dance crib compiled by the deviser, Murrough Landon, CC BY-SA June 2024)

Dance Notes

Broken arches could symbolise the incongruous church blighting the centre of the original mosque.

(Dance notes by the deviser, Murrough Landon, CC BY-SA June 2024)

Dance Instruction Videos

Dance Information

The double arch Rondel-like figure in bars 9-16 evokes the original Moorish Mosque (La Mezquita). The opening arches are for the old "Roman Bridge" over the Guadalquivir river and the hands across in the Cogwheel figure of bars 17-24, and the final circle, are for the old water mill (Albolafia).

Both the bridge and the mills have been rebuilt, more than once, since Roman times.

The current form of the bridge dates from the Moorish period which is also thought to be when the Albolafia was constructed.

Suggested tune: Marchioness of Huntly (William Marshall).

Suitable recording: Mrs May Anderson's Strathspey (Gordon Shand and his SDB: Reels and Wheels).

(Dance information by the deviser, Murrough Landon, CC BY-SA June 2024)

Originally established as a Roman colonia, the city was later taken over by the Visigothic Kingdom before falling to the Muslim conquest in the eighth century. Córdoba then became the capital of the Caliphate of Córdoba, where the Umayyad dynasty ruled all of al-Andalus until 1031. Under Umayyad rule, Córdoba evolved into a world-renowned center of education and learning, becoming the second-largest city in Europe by the 10th century.

The Mosque–Cathedral of Córdoba, officially named the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Assumption, serves as the cathedral of the Diocese of Córdoba, dedicated to the Assumption of Mary, in the Andalusian region of Spain. Due to its history as a former mosque, it is also commonly referred to as the Mezquita (meaning "mosque" in Spanish) or the Great Mosque of Córdoba.

The Albolafia is a medieval waterwheel, or noria, situated along the Guadalquivir River in the historic center of Córdoba, Spain. It is one of the city's several historic watermills, located near the Roman Bridge and the Christian Alcazar.

The Roman bridge of Córdoba, located in the historic center of Córdoba, Andalusia, in southern Spain, was originally constructed in the early 1st century BC to span the Guadalquivir River. Although it has undergone several reconstructions over time, it is still known locally as the Old Bridge. For nearly two thousand years, until the mid-20th century when the San Rafael Bridge was built, it remained the city's sole crossing over the river.

Roman Bridge Of Córdoba

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