Alhambra
Historic furnishings and art objects

While the walls and rooms of the Alhambra are devoid of furnishings today, they would have originally been decorated and filled with many objects such as carpets, floor cushions, and tapestries or similar objects to be hung on the walls. The custom of sitting on the ground explains why some of the windows in the miradors (lookout rooms) were situated so low, where the eyeline of seated persons would be.

Among the most famous objects from the Nasrid palaces are the "Alhambra vases", a type of large Hispano-Moresque ware from the Nasrid period that were mostly found in the Alhambra. They stood on display in parts of the palace, probably in the corners of rooms. Their practical function, if any, is unclear but they probably served as accessories to complement the architecture. They stood about 125 centimetres tall on average, making them the largest lustreware pieces ever made. They were shaped like amphorae with narrow bases, bulging body, and narrow ribbed necks flanked by flat handles shaped like wings. They were decorated with Arabic inscriptions and other motifs, with the most common colours being cobalt blue, white, and gold. Ten vases of this kind have survived and began to be documented in the 18th century, making their way into museums afterwards. The earliest examples are dated to the late 13th or early 14th century, but the most elegant examples date from the late 14th or early 15th century. It is unclear where exactly they were produced, as there were several centres of ceramic production in the Nasrid kingdom, including Granada and Málaga. One of the best examples is the 14th-century Vase of the Gazelles, now kept at the Alhambra Museum. It stands 135 centimetres tall and is named after the image of confronted gazelles painted on its body.

Smaller jars and vases were also kept in niches in the walls and entrances of many rooms of the Alhambra. A taqa, a niche set into the walls under an archway (in the jambs), was a characteristic element of Nasrid architecture where such jars were kept, possibly filled with water for visitors. Examples of these niches are found in the entrance to the Hall of Ambassadors.

Another significant surviving object from the Alhambra is an elaborate bronze lamp that once hung in the main mosque, dated to 1305. The main section of the lamp is conical in shape, tied to a shaft or stem above which is punctuated with small spherical sections. The bronze is pierced to create Arabic inscriptions in a Naskhi script and a background of vegetal Arabesque motifs. After the 1492 conquest it was confiscated and made part of the treasury of Cardinal Cisneros. It is now on display at the National Archaeological Museum in Madrid, although a replica is also kept at the Alhambra Museum.
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