The Alhambra
A palace and citadel located in Granada, originally constructed as a small fortress in 889 on Roman ruins, until it was renovated and rebuilt in the mid-13th century by the Nasrid emir Mohammed ben Al-Ahmar of the Emirate of Granada, who built its current palace and walls.
Purpose / Function
The Alhambra has changed purposes in its long evolutionary history, but primarily as a palace, and so evinces great beauty with extensive gardens keeping in a theme of "paradise on earth."
Architecture
Mostly noted as one of the greatest examples of Islamic architecture in Europe, the Alhambra is a UNESCO cultural heritage site and one of the most popular tourist destinations in Andalusia. It was described by Moorish poets as a "pearl set amongst emeralds" for the pale stone in contrast to the woodland around them. Despite its many changes, it lacks the Byzantine influences seen in many other European Islamic architecture, and so is considered atypical amongst sites of this kind.
The upper walls are decorated with Arabic script, mostly writings by the poet Ibn Zamrak, turned into elaborate geometric patterns. Rather than stone, these are carved stucco. On the lower walls, there are panels of intricate tile mosaics laid out in intricate series, of particular note because they contain all seventeen possible wallpaper patterns.
Following the Christian Reconquista in 1492, damaged or intentionally destroyed parts of were reworked in the Renaissance style with whitewashing and gold to serve as the court of Ferdinand and Isabella. It is in this palace that Christopher Columbus received his patronage from the royal couple. By the 1500s, Charles I (later Holy Roman Emperor Charles V) commissioned a palace in the new Mannerist style, but it was never completed.
Philip V brought in an Italian influence during his reign and had several portions of the grounds blocked up, sealing up several rooms and apartments from use. More and more of the Moorish influence was damaged or removed over time, but significant restoration efforts have been ongoing since the 1800s, with many blockades and forgotten sections opened up in the 1930s.
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