“Rawdiyat” from Valencia

A new literary genre come into being in Valencia in the 11th century, celebrating the marvels of the gardens and fruit of the period. The poet Ali ben Ahmad, for example, describes the garden of the “almunia” of al-Mansur in Valencia:

“Come and drink with me, now that the garden wears,

A gown of flowers woven by the rain,

Now the veil of the sun is golden

And the green skirt of the earth pearled with dew

In this pavilion which is like the firmament in which

The face of my beloved like the moon shines.

The stream is like the Milki Way flanked by The guests brilliant stars”.

Source: Al-Andalus, culinary magic and seduction, Inés Eléxpuru and Margarita Serrano. Islamic Culture Foundation. Madrid, 1991

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