two stories at the southern end of the Court of the Fish-pond, which still remains, that the part of the Moorish building destroyed to make way for the Palace of Charles V., must have been of considerable consequence. No traces of the numerous apartments, which must have been required for guards and attendants, now exist; and a most important feature--the hareem--is wanting. The Alhambra, occupying the plateau of the _Monte de la Assabica_, is situated at one extremity of the city of Granada, above which it rises like the Acropolis at Athens. The usual entrance is by the Gate of Justice. From the Gate of Justice we pass the _Puerta del Vino_, or Wine Gate, to the large square called the _Plaza de los Algibes_, or Place of the Cisterns. On the right is the Palace of Charles V.; beyond, but without revealing any indication of its internal beauty, is the _Casa Real_; on the left of the Place of the Cisterns is the _Alcazába_--_Kussábah_, the citadel--long used as a place of detention for convicts. There are several ruined towers here, which are, perhaps, the remains of the most ancient part of the fortress. The severe and striking aspect of the towers with which the walls of the fortress are studded, arouses no suspicion of the art and luxury enshrined within; they are formed to impress the beholder with respect for the power and majesty of the King; whilst within, the fragrant shrubs and running streams, the porcelains, Mosaics, and gilded stucco work, and particularly the pious inscriptions which are in such profusion upon the walls, constantly reminded the sovereign how all that ministered to his happiness was the gift of Allah. The inscriptions are of three sorts--“_ayát_,” _i.e._, verses from the Korán; “_asjá_,” pious or devout sentences not taken from the Korán; and, thirdly, “_ash’ár_,” poems in praise of the builders or owners of the Palace. Those belonging to either of the first two classes are generally written in the Cufic character, and the letters are often so shaped as to present a uniform appearance from both sides, and make the inscription readable from the right to the left, and _vice versa_, or upwards and downwards.