The Alhambra: being a brief record of the Arabian conquest of the Peninsula with a particular account of the Mohammedan architecture and decorationCalvert, Albert Frederick
Islamic
The Alhambra: being a brief record of the Arabian conquest of the Peninsula with a particular account of the Mohammedan architecture and decoration
[Illustration: GARDEN OF “LINDARAJA,” AND THE APARTMENTS TRADITIONALLY
SAID TO HAVE BEEN OCCUPIED BY “LINDARAJA,” A FAVOURITE SULTÁNA.]
hedges of myrtles and roses. The _Mirador_ is a charming little
apartment of fifteen feet by ten feet, or thereabouts, with three tall
windows protected by _jalousies_. It is ordinarily and
[Illustration: THE GARDEN OF “LINDARAJA.”]
erroneously pointed out as the residence of Washington Irving during his
abode in the Palace in 1829. His apartments were, however, in the Mihráb
Tower, now known as the _Tocador de la Reina_.
TOCADOR DE LA REINA--THE QUEEN’S DRESSING-ROOM--
so called by the Spaniards, is about nine feet square. It was,
[Illustration: MOSAIC PAVEMENT IN THE QUEEN’S DRESSING-ROOM (TOCADOR DE
LA REINA).]
in part, modernised and painted in arabesque by Charles V. In a corner
is a marble slab drilled with holes, through which, it is said, perfumes
were wafted while the Queen was dressing.
It is not unimportant to locate precisely the dwelling-place of
Washington Irving during his sojourn in the Alhambra in 1829. It was in
the suite of rooms annexed to the Queen’s Dressing-room that he took up
his quarters. The kindly American genius, who regarded Englishmen as his
own kith and kin, makes it quite plain. He says: “On taking up my abode
in the Alhambra, one end of a suite of empty chambers of modern
architecture, intended for the residence of the
[Illustration: “THE QUEEN’S DRESSING-ROOM,” AT THE SUMMIT OF THE MIHRÁB
TOWER, WITH DISTANT VIEW OF THE GENERALIFE.]
Governor, was fitted up for my reception. It was in front of the
Palace.... I was dissatisfied with being lodged in a modern
apartment.... I found, in a remote gallery, a door, communicating
apparently with an extensive apartment, locked against the public.... I
procured the key, however, without
[Illustration: TOWERS AND PROMENADE.]
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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