Generalife

Alhambra, Generalife and Albayzín, Granada*
UNESCO World Heritage Site
State Party	Spain
Type	Cultural
Criteria	i, iii, iv
Reference	314
Region**	Europe and North America
Inscription history
Inscription	1984  (8th Session)
Extensions	1994
* Name as inscribed on World Heritage List. ** Region as classified by UNESCO.

The Palacio de Generalife (Arabic: Jannat al-'Arif‎ - Architect's Garden) was the summer palace and country estate of the Nasrid sultans of Granada.

The palace and gardens were built during the reign of Muhammad III (1302-1309) and redecorated shortly after by Abu I-Walid Isma'il (1313-1324).

The Court of la Acequia.

View of the Court del ciprés de la sultana.

The complex consists of the Patio de la Acequia (Court of the Water Channel or Water-Garden Courtyard), which has a long pool framed by flowerbeds, fountains, colonnades and pavilions, and the Jardín de la Sultana (Sultana's Garden or Courtyard of the Cypress). The former is thought to best preserve the style of the medieval garden in Al-Andalus. Originally the palace was linked to the Alhambra by a covered walkway across the ravine that now divides them. The Generalife is one of the oldest surviving Moorish gardens.^[1]

The present-day gardens were started in 1931 and completed by Francisco Prieto Moreno in 1951. The walkways are paved in traditional Granadian style with a mosaic of pebbles: white ones from the River Darro and black ones from the River Genil.^[2]

References

A window of the Generalife.

1. ^ Burton, Rosemary and Cavendish, Richard (2003). Wonders of the World: 100 Great Man-Made Treasures of Civilization. Sterling Publishing Company, Inc., ISBN 1-58663-751-7, p.27.
2. ^ Núñez, J. Agustín (Ed.). (2002). Muslim and Christian Granada. Edilux. ISBN 84-95856-07-7.

There is an imitation of part of the Generalife at Roundhay Park in Leeds, UK.

See also

• Palacio de Galiana

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Generalife

• Alhambra and Generalife Official Site
• Alhambra, Generalife and Albayzín, Granada
• Museum With No Frontiers [1]
• BBC Picture Gallery

v • d • e World Heritage Sites in Spain Alhambra, Generalife and Albayzín · Aranjuez Cultural Landscape · Archaeological Ensemble of Mérida · Archaeological Ensemble of Tárraco (Tarragona) · Archaeological Site of Atapuerca · Ávila with its Extra-mural Churches · Burgos Cathedral · Cáceres · Catalan Romanesque Churches of the Vall de Boí · Cathedral, Alcázar and Archivo de Indias, Seville · Caves of Altamira and Paleolithic Cave Art of Northern Spain · Córdoba · Cuenca · Doñana · El Escorial · Garajonay · Ibiza (Biodiversity and Culture) · Las Médulas · Mudéjar Architecture of Aragon · Monuments of Oviedo and the Kingdom of the Asturias · Palau de la Música Catalana and Hospital de Sant Pau, Barcelona · Palmeral of Elche · Poblet Monastery · Pyrénées - Mont Perdu (with France) · Renaissance Monuments of Úbeda and Baeza · Rock-Art on the Iberian Peninsula · Roman Walls of Lugo · Route of Santiago de Compostela · Salamanca · San Cristóbal de La Laguna · San Millán Yuso and Suso Monasteries · Santa María de Guadalupe · Santiago de Compostela · Segovia and its Aqueduct · Silk Exchange in Valencia · Teide National Park · Toledo · Tower of Hercules · University and Historic Precinct of Alcalá de Henares · Vizcaya Bridge · Works of Antoni Gaudí

Coordinates: 37°10′37″N 3°35′07″W / 37.17694°N 3.58528°W / 37.17694; -3.58528

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