Bent County register., 1888-10-13
The AIhaInbra,

On hill in the city of Granada. prin-
ripal town in the Spanish province OF An
dalusia, stands an extensive fortress known
as the Alhambra, or 1.-The Red Castle.n 1t is
the old citadel of the town, and was built
by the Moors when they were the masters
Of SPAIN Designed for warlike and de-
fensive purposes only it has no pretensio.i
10 architectural grandeur or effect. Its
walls, which average thirty feet in height
and sig feet in thickness, are irregular in
form, and composed chiefly of loose stones
cemented together, and faced with plas-
ter coat The area enclosed by this fortress
is very extensive. 1t is like a town in it
self, having its streets, its church, and ccn-
VENT and is said in its palmy days TO have
afforded accommodation to a garrison of 40
900 men.
PLAIN and rugged rs is this structure in
external appearance, it is the casket which
holds one of the richest gems of tlle archi-
lecture Of any age or time. Within its
walls are enclosed the remains of the Moor
ish palace to which the name of 'the AL
hambrah is generally applied, although it
belong properly TO the fortress itself This
palace was built in the thirteenth and
fourteenth centuries, and all the beauty
and ingenuity of Arabic art were lavisned
upon its construction. Upon the cxpul-
sion of the 8Ioors from Spain, il OCCASION
ally became the residence of the Christian
sovereigns, and Charles V. designed 10
place by its side another palace, which
should eclipse the glOries of the art OF the
'7idel Moor. But this building, though it
was commenced, and some very fine por-
tons of it nre still in existence, was never
completed. Its fragments were suffered to
decay when Granada grew in disiavor as |;
residence with the Spanish monarchs, and,
when compared with the remains OF the
Moorish palace, they now show to grea.
disadvantage; the contrast between the
iwo styles of art and the nature of the
workmanship in each is greatly in favor
of the Moors. THE walls of the Christian
edifce," says one writer, "are defaced, II
paintings faded, the woodwork is decayed,
and festOOns of cobwebs are seen hanging
from the ceiling. In the works OF the
Arabs, on the contrary, the walls remained
unaltered, except by the injuries inflicted
by the hand of man. The color of the
Paintings, in which there is no mixture of
oil, on removing the particles of dust, ap
pear to have preserved their brightness
The beams and woodwork of the ceilings
present no signs of decay; no SPIDERS flies,
or other insects are to be seen there. The
art Of rendering timber and paints durable,
and OF making porcelain mosaics, arabes-
ques, and other ornaments, began and end.
ed in Western Europe with the Moorish
eonquerors Of Spain"
The remains Of the palace Of the Ailam-
bra consist of entrance-arches, corridors,
and courts, constructed chiefly of marble,
and richly adorned with erabesques. The
Arabs were forbidden by thoir religion to
use the representation of living figures OF
animalG In their ornamental Devices which
therefore took the shape Of flowers and
geometrical forms, sometimes very fanci-
full in their nature The term araJes9ue
was applied to this class of ornament, after
tho race by which it was chiefly ustd
These arabesqua ornaments were cast -
nioulds, and Joined with such extreme
nicely that frequently no trace of the point
Of junction can be detected. They W 70
colored in blue, rec, and gold, and the pen-
eral effect in such elifces as the AIh -nbra
- 80 gorgeous that it cannot be realised by
description. An excellent idea of it, how
ever, was given by the Alhambra Court in
in the Crystal Palace at Sydenham, which
was q most artistic imitation of the origi-
nal, both in style and material, although
on = smaller scale.
Tbs many courts and corridors, of the Al.
hambra were very elahorately decorated,
the saloon known as the Hall of Abencer-
rsges, with its beautiful stalacits roof, be-
ing composed Of 5000 separate pieces it-
ting into each other with the greatest ex-
sctitude. The hall takes its name from .
Moorish family, the last members of which
were treacherously murdered in this cham
Der, A mark, aeid to have been left by
their blood, is pointed out upon the marble
Soov' but scsptical people in later timea
ove declared that II 10 nothing but tha
.ef water IN vreguated with iron ::