Moorish History and More in Albarracín

By Linda Tancs

Albarracín is a pretty little Spanish village west of Teruel, characterized by pastel-hued medieval homes and narrow streets. Its Moorish roots arise from its status as the former capital of a tiny Islamic state ruled by the Berber Banu Razin dynasty from 1012 to 1104. After the Reconquest, most of the forts and towers that remain today were erected by the Christian lords and kings of Aragon. More history abounds at Albarracín Cultural Park, where up to 26 rock-art sites comprise one of the greatest concentrations of post-Paleolithic art in southwest Europe. Top that off with the last vestiges of the Roman era, including the 11 mile-long aqueduct that went from Albarracín to Cella.