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THE NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC MAGAZINE 



THK Giralda: SEVILLE (see page 208) 



tower of the mosque. Finished in 1196, 

 it rises 300 feet above the street. The 

 ascent is easy, up a corkscrew inclined 

 plane, and the view down upon the mas- 

 sive cathedral and over the city and plain 

 is most impressive. The great bells swing 

 and clang from time to time, scaring 

 away the myriads of little sparrow-hawks 

 which make their home here. The 

 Orange Court of the cathedral keeps its 

 Moorish Gate of Pardon ; but the mosque, 



which vied with that of Cordova, was 

 razed to make room for the noble Gothic 

 cathedral. 



Not far away, however, the Moorish 

 Alcazar is still preserved as a royal 

 palace. Though built by Christian kings 

 of Castile, its architects were Moors, and 

 they employed all the delicate refinements 

 of their art. Standing in the Court of 

 the Damosels, where Charles V married 

 Isabella of Portugal, one can hardly be- 



