“Ribat da Arrifana, material culture and spirituality” is the title of the documentary exhibition that opened on May 18, International Museum Day, at the headquarters of the Association for the Defense of the Historical and Archaeological Heritage of Aljezur.
The exhibition, which can be seen until the 18th of June, features posters, books and newspaper articles about this important archaeological site, recently classified as a national monument.
O convent or ribat of Arrifana, located on the Ponta da Atalaia peninsula, west of Aljezur, was founded around 1130 (525 H), by the mystic and political-religious leader Ibn Qasī.
«There, that Sufi master proceeded to disseminate his doctrinal principles, to prepare his co-religionists for the holy war, and he tried to draw closer to God, developing an important philosophical and ideological problem, which would lead to his revolt against Almoravids or Almoadas and to creation of theocratic state», explain Mário and Rosa Varela Gomes, the couple of archaeologists who for over a decade have discovered and have been excavating this archaeological site located on the coast of Aljezur.
This place was mentioned earlier, its precise location was, however, unknown, until the identification occurred in 2001. Since then, annual archaeological excavations have led to the discovery of the remains of six mosques, with different constitution and dimensions, of cells and “villas ”, such as minaret and possible madrasa or daaras.
A large number of items were also found, now made known, namely ceramics, used in everyday life, weapons of different types, small amulets and inscriptions with religious content.
The high coastal shelf of Ponta da Atalaia is covered by dunes and undergrowth, being swept away by intense sea winds and most days shrouded in dense fog. The landscape is telluric, with the action of the sea being heard, agitated or calm, but incessantly invading the black cliffs, whimsically jagged.
On days with clear and luminous skies, from there you can see a wide stretch of coastline, from Cape São Vicente, in the extreme southwest, to Cape Sardão, on the Alentejo Coast, like the vastness of the ocean.
"The mentioned geographical characteristics correspond to the need for isolation and austerity, essential to asceticism, the contemplation of Nature and metaphysical reflection, factors intrinsic to the Sufi mystic, followed by Ibn Qasī, thus providing an encounter with the transcendent", they add the archaeologists.
«It is quite possible that in that place, where the Sufi master raised his ribāt, he also wrote the famous work “Livro do Descalçar das Sandálias”», conclude Mário and Rosa Varela Gomes.
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