By Chioma Izzuka

This Storymap examines the legacy of Islamic architecture, and how it has endured, transformed, and has been contested in history. Through six locations in Spain and Morocco, this heritage will be evaluated with a specific focus on the intricate designs that characterize gates, arches, and doors. Marking the character of each site are muqarnas, zellij tilework, and multifoiled arches that appear on both sides of the Strait of Gibraltar, a visual reminder of an intertwined past. These thresholds are often more than just entrances. Gates are commonly imbued with a sense of the sacred power baraka, doors with craftsmanship, and arches with Islamic faith. With Casablanca, Marrakesh, and Fes on one side, and Cordoba and Granada on the other, this digital humanities project explores how the thresholds of Islamic civilization have remained embedded in daily life, lost their original meaning, or have been absorbed into a national identity that distracts from the true origin of their craftsmanship. The StoryMap also highlights how some elements are flattened into tourist exoticism, romanticized as history is overshadowed by orientalism. Going beyond the generalizations of “North African” and “Moorish Influence” in architecture, this project seeks to analyze these sites in a way that acknowledges why these spaces were created, and by whom.