ARCHITECTURE. 145 
On another hill opposite Alhambra is El Generalife, a villa of the . 
Moorish Kings, with beautiful gardens. Its entrance (pl. 31, jig. 4) 
exhibits the peculiar arches used in this villa. They have the height of the 
horse-shoe arches, but are closed above with the true arc of the Romanesque 
style, only with the addition of the Moorish ornaments. The capitals of 
the columns are of the true Moorish form, resembling hour-glasses in shape. 
The villa is surrounded by pleasure groves, with numerous fountains. 
In Alcagar, the citadel of Seville, there are several Moorish remains, of 
which we mention the chapel Zancaron, an interior view of which is given 
in jig. 3. This building evidently belongs to a much later period than 
Alhambra, as it has German pointed arches besides the Moorish horse-shoe, 
and numerous ornamental details borrowed from the German style. 
In Constantinople the forecourt of the mosque of Osman is a remarkable 
Moorish structure. The mosque itself is a more recent building, dating 
only from the last century, whilst the court (pl. 30, fig. 8) which forms the 
avenue to it is probably 800 years old. It is in the purest Moorish style, 
although the columns, which are somewhat thicker than usual in Moorish 
buildings, have clearly been taken from ancient Roman buildings, their clumsy 
capitals notwithstanding. The construction of the cupolas over the single 
vaults is very curious, the ribs of the vaults only being executed rising from 
the side arches and forming the transition from the quadrangular to the 
circular form, their upper extremities carrying a circular cornice and a low 
drum with windows, surmounted by the low cupola, which has the form of 
a small spherical segment. 
In Egypt there are several interesting Moorish edifices, from which we 
select as examples the two mosques of Ebn Touloun and of El Moyed, both 
in Cairo. The former was built in the 9th century, by Ahmed Abn Touloun, 
governor of Egypt. It is peculiar for having no other columns than two at the 
K blah (direction of the eyes : therefore sanctuary). Ahmed’s first plan had 
been to excel all older mosques in splendor. He accordingly ordered more 
than 300 columns to be placed in the forecourt alone. On learning that 
all Egypt could not furnish this number of columns except by despoiling 
all the ancient monuments and the Christian churches of theirs, he changed 
his design, and ordered his architect to build the mosque entirely without 
columns. This mosque is known by the name Djama ben Touloun. In 
illustration of the same we have given in pi. 33, jig. 5, the ground plan ; 
jig. 6, perspective view of the court; pl. 32, jig. 26, longitudinal section 
along the line ¢d of the plan (B being the upper part of the minaret or 
steeple A); jigs. 27, 28, windows ; jig. 29, one of the niches between the 
windows ; jigs. 30 a), 31, friezes from the interior ; figs. 32, 33, the capitals 
of the columns of the Azbiah in the wall Mihrab. The ground plan forms 
a square of 280 feet; on three sides there are two rows of quadrangular 
pillars; on the south side A, five rows. The entire building, in which 
Moorish and pointed arches occur in tasteful connexion, is of brick, coated 
with stucco, and partly painted, partly inlaid. The wall W/Arad especially 
is richly inlaid with ivory, and has numerous inlaid inscriptions in the 
Kufic character. 
ICONOGRAPHIC ENCYCLOP£DIA.—VOL, Iv. 10 145 
