Uploaded August 2021 | Updated September 2026, 2 hours ago
The Alhambra is a combination of multiple palaces constructed throughout the course of history. It was built chiefly between 1238 and 1358, in the reigns of Ibn al-Aḥmar, founder of the Naṣrid dynasty. The site occupies fourteen hectares, which could accommodate 40,000 people. Therefore, the Arab sources referred to the area not as a palace, but as a town, for the place was a city in its own right. This historical artifact sits over the city of Granada on the Sabika hill where it meets the Sierra Nevada, Spain’s highest mountain range. So, let’s take a look at The Alhambra Palaces and their cultural and historical significance.
The Alhambra was built with the climate and environment in mind. The structure of the Palace functioned like a geode, with a rough turreted exterior crust constructed within fortress-like stone and stucco. These masonry materials and construction methods maintained the cool of nights into days and stored the sun's heat during winter. The external walls had a whitewash coat that would reflect the heat of the sun and had overhanging roofs to control solar exposure inside. Pools provided an evaporating cooling effect allowing air to be circulated through openings within. A qanat aqueduct was used that ran underneath the ground to prevent evaporation, using gravity to distribute water throughout the city.
The Alhambra is a combination of multiple palaces constructed throughout the course of history. It was built chiefly between 1238 and 1358, in the reigns of Ibn al-Aḥmar, founder of the Naṣrid dynasty. The site occupies fourteen hectares, which could accommodate 40,000 people. Therefore, the Arab sources referred to the area not as a palace, but as a town, for the place was a city in its own right. This historical artifact sits over the city of Granada on the Sabika hill where it meets the Sierra Nevada, Spain’s highest mountain range. So, let’s take a look at The Alhambra Palaces and their cultural and historical significance.
The Alhambra was built with the climate and environment in mind. The structure of the Palace functioned like a geode, with a rough turreted exterior crust constructed within fortress-like stone and stucco. These masonry materials and construction methods maintained the cool of nights into days and stored the sun's heat during winter. The external walls had a whitewash coat that would reflect the heat of the sun and had overhanging roofs to control solar exposure inside. Pools provided an evaporating cooling effect allowing air to be circulated through openings within. A qanat aqueduct was used that ran underneath the ground to prevent evaporation, using gravity to distribute water throughout the city.
