The Alca.::ar, or palace, was contemporaneous with the Giralda, but it was afterward essentially rebuilt, and many of these later parts yet exist. The most sumptuous halls were built by Arabian workmen under Chris tian rule in the reign of Don Pedro the Cruel (1353-1364). To this period belong the halls shown on Plate 20 (figs. 2, 4); these bear the imprint of the later Arabian art as it is displayed in all its splendor at Granada. The Corinthian-like columns and simple horseshoe arches may be rem nants of the works of the close of the twelfth century. Through the window of Don Pedro's Hall the Cathedral was visible, and near it the Giralda.
The the last residence of the Moorish princes, was the scene of the most elegant and brilliant display which the art of Islam has produced. The Alhambra (signifying in Arabic " the red," from the color of the bricks of which the outer walls are built) is the upper part of the city of Granada, the citadel, where were situated the royal palace and a number of other structures. The exterior shows only the fortifications, a strong wall flanked by thirteen square towers and enclosing an area of about thirty-five acres; towers and walls rise in solemn defiance above rugged cliffs. The palace was begun in the thirteenth century; at the beginning of the fourteenth cen tury Mohammed III. erected from the tribute of conquered Christians a mosque richly decorated with mosaics and sculptures. To Vusuf I. (1333-1354) are ascribed the brilliant decorations of the palace, particu larly the exquisite painting of the interior. The principal parts of the structure belong to the reign of Yusuf's son, Mohammed V. (died 139o), whose name is inscribed in various halls. Some parts are even later; Muley Hassan (1445-1453), one of the last kings, added some portions.
Court of the apartments are grouped chiefly around two courts. In one angle, where the ground-plan (p1. 2r, fig. 6) shows a struc ture whose later origin is easily recognizable, is the entrance, which is enclosed by a building of several storeys. A corridor leads from this entrance to a court which is variously known as the Court of the Blessing (Patio de la Berkah), Court of the Pond, or Court of the Myrtles. It is 14o feet long by 74 feet broad; it is paved with white marble, and in its centre is a pond full of goldfish. There are arcades at both ends of the court, while the sides are formed by the walls of two wings of the palace. At the end opposite the entrance is situated the Tower of Comares, the true keep of the palace. A room within the tower, occupying its entire width and height, was the throne-room or audience-hall, now known as the Hall of the Ambassadors (Sala de los Ambajadores); this was the grand reception-room, and the throne of the sultan was placed opposite the entrance. The ceiling is admirably diversified with inlaid work of
white, blue, and gold in the shape of circles, crowns, and stars, and the walls are covered with varied stucco-work of most delicate patterns. There are nine deeply-recessed windows, three on each façade, which almost form small rooms in the massive wall, and from winch is obtained a beautiful view of the city of Granada. A hall in front of the tower is called the " Hall of Blessing." Most of the buildings on the west side, which served various purposes, are now destroyed.
The Court of the Lions (Patio de los Leones, pl. 20, fig. 3) is oblong 116 feet by 66 feet. It is surrounded by arched porticoes, and from the centre of each extremity projects au arched pavilion affording admirable perspectives. Figure 3 (pi. 19) shows the vista from the rooms behind the rear arcade, through the entrance, the arcade, and the pavilion, into the court. The square is paved with colored tiles, and the arcades with white marble. In the centre of the court is the celebrated Fountain of the Lions, a magnificent alabaster basin supported by the figures of twelve lions in white marble. From the fountain was thrown up a great volume of water, which fell into the basin and, passing through the lions, flowed from their mouths. Around the eastern side of the court were grouped the living-rooms of the royal family.
The Hail of the Abencerrages (fig. 2), in the centre of the south ern side, is a square chamber with a fountain and basin; from the hall two lower alcoves are separated by arcades. From pendentives fancifully con structed rises a star-shaped, dome-like tambour through whose sixteen small trellised windows a rich light enters the hall, and above which rises a cupola entirely composed of honeycombed work on small pendentives set over one another even to its summit. On the northern side of the court the Hall of the Two Sisters and its adjoining rooms correspond to the hall just described. A longer but narrower hall on the east side of the court is entitled the " Hall of Justice." The "Garden of the Architect "), a pleasure-palace near Granada, exhibits an architecture similar to that of the Alhambra. It is separated from the latter by a ravine, and was prob ably in the first instance an outwork of the fortress, afterward the summer villa of the sultans of Granada. Here dwelling-rooms are grouped around a great court with elegant columns and arches. An Arabian writer praises the garden, with its regal rose-bushes, clear brooks, and cooling zeph yrs.