In the 13th century, King Alfonso X of Castile — known as el Sabio (the Wise) — was both a lawgiver and a chronicler who recorded the history of his realm. His works, including the Cantigas de Santa María and the Estoria de España, contain descriptions of the Moors (Muslims of North Africa and the Iberian Peninsula).
Alfonso X commissioned the above portrait for the “Libro de Los Juegos,” (Book of Games).
In the "Primera Crónica de España," written during his reign, it states: “Las caras dellos negras como la pez, el mas fremoso dellos era negro como la olla”
(“Their faces were black as pitch, the most handsome among them was black as a cooking pot”).
"Digital Library"
