The Generalife

The agronomist Ibn Luyūn (1282-1348), describing the peri-urban gardens in the Treatise on Agriculture, seems to be giving the instructions for projecting the Generalife:
«On what to choose in the layout of the gardens, their homes and workhouses:
To locate a house among gardens, a hillock must be chosen that facilitates its guarding and surveillance. The building is oriented at midday, at the entrance to the property, and the well and pool are installed at the top [Ladies' pool with well and blood wheel] or, better than a well, a ditch is opened that runs between the shade [Two Thirds ditch]. The house must have two doors, so that it is more protected and the rest of the person living in it is greater.
Next to the pool, flower beds are planted that remain always green and brighten the eye. A little further away there must be paintings of flowers and evergreen trees. The property is surrounded with vineyards, and grapevines are planted on the paths that cross it.
The garden must be surrounded by one of these walks in order to separate it from the rest of the property. Among the fruit trees, in addition to the vineyard, there must be hackberries and other similar trees, because their wood is useful.
At a certain distance from the vineyards, what is left of the farm is used as arable land and thus what is planted there will prosper.
Fig trees and similar trees are planted on the boundaries. All large fruit trees should be planted in the northern part, so that they protect the rest of the property from the wind. In the center of the property there must be a pavilion equipped with seats and with views to all sides, (...). The pavilion will be surrounded by climbing rose bushes, as well as myrtle beds and all the plants typical of an orchard. It will be longer than it is wide so that the view can expand in its contemplation [pavilion on the south side of the Patio de la Acequia].
In the lower part, a space for guests and friends [Casa del Amigo] will be built, with an independent door and a pool hidden by trees from the eyes of those above…”

In this oil painting by Santiago Rusiñol you can see a corner of the Generalife, an almunia formed by several orchards outside the walls of the Alhambra and a recreational place for the Nasrid sultans. In the early hours of the morning, sunlight falls on the east side of the Alhambra, honoring its name “the Red”. It is also reflected in the skin of each of the white houses, the famous Granada “cármenes”, from the Albaicín neighborhood of Granada.