1 / 25

The Alhambra: A Medieval Royal Palace in an Era of Regional Power Centers

The Alhambra: A Medieval Royal Palace in an Era of Regional Power Centers. I. Design and plan of the medieval court-centered palace. The Alhambra, Granada, Spain, 13 th -14 th century. I. . End of Umayyad caliphate in Spain in 1031 left smaller dynasties to fill the power vacuum.

fai
Download Presentation

The Alhambra: A Medieval Royal Palace in an Era of Regional Power Centers

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript

  1. The Alhambra: A Medieval Royal Palace in an Era of Regional Power Centers

  2. I. Design and plan of the medieval court-centered palace The Alhambra, Granada, Spain, 13th-14th century

  3. I. End of Umayyad caliphate in Spain in 1031 left smaller dynasties to fill the power vacuum. Nasrid dynasty: 1238-1492 Umayyad dynasty, 711-1031 Spain 1031-1238

  4. I. Comares Palace Riyad Palace invited guests Yusuf I celebratory palace for Muhammed V (self-fashioned Solomon) public reception 1238-99 1333-54 1369-91

  5. I. non-axial communication between complexes The Alhambra

  6. I. A. What typologies does the location and plan of the Alhambra draw on 1. for the position of the Alhambra vs. the city of Grenada? The Alhambra

  7. I. B. Establishing the idea of order 1. How is the idea of order established by ornament in the council chamber (Mexuar) of the palace? I. B. 2. What is the nature of the basic structural element established in the Mexuar? The Mexuar domed center muqarnas bracket stucco panels column geometric tile base

  8. II. The Comares Palace, 1333-54: the Sultan’s domain A. The Court of the Myrtles: courtyard design II. A. 1. What role does water perform here as an architectural element? Comares Palace: Court of the Myrtles (north side) 36.6 m (120') x 23.5 m (77')

  9. II. B. Throne room suite in the Comares Palace 1. Basic Mediterranean compositional unit: portico, long hall, square hall Comares Palace: Court of the Myrtles

  10. II. B. 3. How are the axes resolved in the long units? II. B. 2. What basic structural element returns in the north and south portico? Court of the Myrtles: Portico exaggerated impost block Ends or resolves in niches slender column design casts structural role into doubt

  11. II. B. 4. What is the basic elevation treatment in the Long Hall? Comares Palace: Long hall (“Sala de la Barca”) niche at ends of long hall vaulted ceiling of long hall

  12. II. B. 5. What is the basic elevation in the Throne Room? Comares Palace: square hall Throne Room (“Hall of the Ambassadors”)

  13. II. B. 5. Greco-Roman Classicism: Figure/ground clarity Alhambra: Figure/ground ambiguity

  14. II. B. 5. Comares Palace: Square hall Throne Room (“Hall of the Ambassadors”) “He has chosen me as the throne of his rule; may his eminence be helped by the Lord of light, of the divine throne and see.”

  15. II. B. 6. Political symbolism: how does the sultan in the throne room appear in his full power both in this life and in the life to come? Square hall, the Throne Room (“Hall of the Ambassadors”)

  16. III. Riyad Palace, 1361-91: A second, triumphal sultan’s residence A. The Court of the Lions: courtyard design in the 14th century III. A. 1. Water: What is the architectural role and the symbolism of water here? Riyad Palace: Court of the Lions Muhammed V’s victory in Algeciras (paradise garden courtyard) 28.5 m (93') x 15.5 m (50')

  17. III. A. 1. Riyad Palace Court of the Lions

  18. III. A. 2. How is power expressed as holding the most delicate forces in balance: a. in the portico elevation? no end to the monument’s directions Riyad Palace: Court of the Lions

  19. IV. A. 2. b. in the columns of the Court of the Lion? Comares Palace: Court of the Myrtles Riyad Palace: Court of the Lions

  20. III. A. 3. How is monumentality expressed in modest size spaces (e.g., in the east corridor)? The east corridor of the Court of the Lions

  21. III. B. North Hall and South Hall in the Riyad Palace 1. How is the basic compositional unit present and reversed? Riyad Palace: north hall (“Hall of Two Sisters”) mirador alcove long hall domed square hall portico Hall of Two Sisters

  22. III. B. 1. Riyad Palace: South hall (“Hall of the Abencerrajes”)

  23. III. B. 2. What is the symbolism of the muqarnas vaults? Comares Palace: throne room RiyadPalace: north hall Riyad Palace: south hall maqsura in the Great Mosque at Cordoba Nero’s DomusAurea

  24. III. B. 3. What message is conveyed by the use of fragile stucco in the Riyad Palace? God is the only permanent existence Riyad Palace Redundant inscriptions: “Benediction” “There is no victorious one but God” “Power is to God” Etc. etc.

  25. Quiz Question: Where were Arab architects of the later Middle Ages looking for alternative sources of architectural authority (ancient or contemporary) other than classical antiquity? Name at least one example in the Madrasa of Sultan Hasanandone in the Alhambra.

More Related