Partal Palace
Partal Palace () is a palatial structure inside the Alhambra fortress complex located in Granada, Spain. It was originally built in the early 14th century by the Nasrid ruler Muhammad III, making it the oldest surviving palatial structure in the Alhambra. History. The Partal Palace was built by the Nasrid ruler Muhammad III who ruled the Emirate of Granada, the last Muslim state in Al-Andalus (the Iberian Peninsula), from 1302 to 1309. This dating makes it the oldest remaining remaining palace in the Alhambra today. It was also the first of several palaces that were eventually built along  the northern perimeter of the Alhambra. Another palace, called the "Palacio del Partal Alto" by archeologists, once stood to the south in an area now occupied by gardens. Though traditionally attributed to Yusuf III (r. 1408–1417), it was most likely built by Muhammad III's predecessor, Muhammad II (r. 1273–1302). The space between the "Palacio del Partal Alto" to the south and the outer Alhambra walls to the north was a large garden, the "Riyad as-Sayyid" ("Garden of the "Sayyid"", "Sayyid" being an honorific used by the Nasrids), which may have initially stretched from the Comares Palace in the  west to the Torre de las Infantas in the east. Muhammad III built the Partal Palace in this garden area. He re-used a former fortification tower and turned it into a "mirador" (lookout chamber) integrated into a decorated building. The Partal Palace is one of the structures that has undergone the most alterations after the Nasrid era. Unlike the neighboring Comares Palace and Palace of the Lions, which were used by Spanish monarchs after the conquest of 1492, the Partal Palace passed under private ownership and was remodeled into a residence by its owners. It was only ceded to  the Spanish government in 1891 and then incorporated into the rest of the Alhambra historical site. Over the course of the 20th century it underwent multiple restorations by archeologists and architects in charge of the Alhambra. Two large 14th-century marble lions, originating from the now-demolished Maristan in the Albaicin, had previously been moved to the Partal Palace but were removed in the 1890s to be restored and preserved. They are now kept at the Alhambra Museum. Between 1923 and 1924 Leopoldo Torres Balbás restored and partly rebuilt the portico façade, revealing and reconstituting the "sebka" stucco decoration above  the arches. Francisco Prieto Moreno replaced the portico's brick pillars with slender Nasrid-style marble columns in 1965. Description. Section::::"Palacio del Pórtico" and the "Torre de las Damas". The palace is only partly preserved, with only the tower and portico on its north side remaining. According to some scholarly views, this was originally part of an enclosed rectangular courtyard rather than the open garden it appears as today. It would have thus had the typical layout seen in other palaces nearby: a private courtyard centered on a large reflective pool with porticoes at either end and a "mirador" tower  at one end that looked down on the city from the edge of the palace walls. Another scholarly view holds that the Partal Palace never had an enclosed courtyard, and consisted mainly of the present structure facing an open landscape with the pool. This arrangement would differ from other Nasrid palaces, but it had precedents in earlier Almohad-era country estates such as the "Buḥayra" of Seville (built in 1171–1172). In this scenario, the Partal Palace would have been an essentially outdoor space that could be enjoyed during good weather. The main remaining structure today is also known as the  Palacio del Pórtico. Both the arched façade of the external portico and the interior walls are carved or covered with intricate stucco decoration from the time of Muhammad III. Much of this decoration was originally painted with colours, though much of this has faded over time. The calligraphic inscriptions in the decoration include poems by Ibn al-Jayyab (d. 1349) dedicated to Muhammad III. The portico was originally supported on brick pillars, but these were replaced in the 20th century by slender marble columns as seen today. The palace still preserves its large reflecting pool in front of the portico . Behind the portico is a chamber projecting outwards and northwards from the Alhambra walls. This acted as a "mirador", similar to the "Sala Regia" in the Generalife, offering views over the city below through the windows on its three sides. Windows also lined other parts of the building. As a result of its open portico and many windows, scholar Arnold Felix describes it as the most "transparent" building in the Islamic architecture of Al-Andalus. The palace structure also includes the "Torre de las Damas" (Tower of the Ladies), a tower to the left (or west) of the main portico  and mirador. Its top floor had two chambers. The original wooden cupola ceiling inside the larger chamber was dismantled and moved by its last private owner, Arthur von Gwinner, around the beginning of the 20th century. It is now preserved at the "Museum für Islamische Kunst", the Islamic art section of the Pergamon Museum in Berlin, Germany. The other chamber is covered by a small dome carved with "muqarnas" (or "mocárabes" in Spanish), which is the oldest "muqarnas" vault in the Alhambra today. The oratory (prayer room). On the right (east) side of the main tower is a small pavilion  structure that stands alone today but was originally part of the surrounding palace wall. The small room inside served as a private mosque or prayer room, as evidenced by its "mihrab". The mihrab, the room, and its external double-arched window are richly decorated with carved stucco in the Nasrid-era tradition. The structure contains an inscription with the name of Yusuf I (ruled 1333–1354), indicating that it was finished or redecorated by this ruler; however, art historian Marianne Barrucand notes that the structure itself was likely first built by Muhammad III, like the rest of the Partal. The structure  is also referred to by its Spanish designation, the "oratorio" or 'oratory'. Nasrid houses. On the left (west) side of the tower are four Nasrid-period houses from the 14th century, which did not have their own internal courtyards. They are known today as the González Pareja House, the Villoslada house, the House of the Balconies, and the House of the Paintings. Although less impressive in design, they still contain some carved stucco decoration and are especially notable for the remnants of painted decoration, which may be the only surviving painted decoration executed by Nasrid artists. (The painted ceilings in  the Hall of Kings in the Palace of the Lions, by contrast, is believed to be have been made by Christian artisans.) The mural paintings were discovered in 1907. Among other things, they depict rows of horsemen as well as tents with musicians, servants, and women of the Nasrid court. Partal Gardens. The extensive Partal Gardens ("Jardines del Partal") stretch over the area to the south of the Partal Palace and its pool. They date from the time of Gómez-Moreno (1910s-1920s) and from landscaping carried out in the 1930s. They have little relation with any original Nasrid-period elements , but the landscaping allowed for further archeological investigations and replaced what was at that time an unkempt area. Among the gardens are the remains of the foundations of other houses and urban structures. One of these remains, located on the upper terrace of the gardens, belongs to a former palace known as the "Palacio del Partal Alto".