Preview
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Creation Year
1963
Image ID
CS.030
Alternate Identifier
B49.211
Subcollection
CS: Granada
Abstract
The famous fountain in the Court of the Lions. The dating of the stone lions has been disputed. Robert Irwin thinks they date from the 14th century, whereas most guide books prefer a date in the 11th century. The jet fountains are also most probably anachronistic—gentler flowing water is more plausible. Finally, the courtyard was once covered with white marble, and is so today after renovations in 2012. About this building, Robert Irwin in his book The Alhambra writes that ‘Though there is much of technical and historical interest to be said about the Court of the Lions, the first thing to be remarked is that it is, by common consent, one of the most beautiful buildings in the world, and there are many who would even go beyond that qualified judgment.’
Description
The palace was built in the second half of the fourteenth century in the reign of Muhammad V. The central courtyard is traversed by water-channels with a water fountain in the center. This is in the form a basin below which stand the eponymous twelve stone lions. 124 slender columns establish a harmonious internal rhythm to the building. The Alhambra as a whole is one of the most fantasized monuments of Islamic Architecture, captivating the imagination of a vast number of writers and artists, including Washington Irving and the French author Chateaubriand, to name just a couple. Indeed, some parts of the Alhambra, such as the Court of the Lions, are commonly written about examples of the most beautiful architecture in the world. The palace-complex as it stands today was built mostly in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries under the Nasrid dynasty (1238-1492), in particular by Yusuf I (1333-54) and his son Muhammad V (1354-59, 1362-1391). Out of six royal palaces, only two survive (the Comares palace and the Palace of the Lions). A summer palace called the Generalife (from the Arabic jannat al-arif, ‘the garden of the architect’) is also extant. – SK
References
Robert Irwin, The Alhambra. Profile Books, London, 2004. p. 49.
Image Notes
Photograph created 1963. Photograph processed September 1963. Formerly catalogued as B49.211, BV.030. Notes written on the slide or index: Court of the Lions.
Image Format
35 mm slide
Geographic Reference
Granada, Spain
Keywords
Moorish, Muslim, Fourteenth Century, Fifteenth Century, Reconstructed, Palace, Arches, Stucco, Stucco Carving, Archway, Columns, Courtyard, Fountain, Arcade, Pointed Arches, Portico