MR reeds hie = ew . SERRATE Ks tah ORs ee CSA teeTnadie ae? riche GY ital LON ap enya, ah ROC at t= aloe epee nena Per Ty, nee ~ Se ee ee Pin ae Minha » _ ’ F Je s “ , : a 44 . stony r a ‘ + z « > « esi i) Pod . \ 7 . ‘ > . ? B-_Se A rte | 2 j ‘ "7 yf eS | a : . ' . ‘ >, < a. = %. . aja a ‘ “ bs ¢ . * - 4 r , > ® Sy COPYRIGHT, 1924, BY ROSE STANDISH N ALL RIGHTS RESERVED ‘ The Riverside Press CAMBRIDGE - MASSACHUSETTS PRINTED IN THE U.S.A. IN MEMORY OF MY FATHER ARTHUR HOWARD NICHOLS WHOSE ENTHUSIASM FOR SPAIN FIRST AROUSED MY INTEREST IN ITS TREASURES CONTENTS INTRODUCTION I. Tue OriteEnTAL BackGRounpD II. Moorisu INFLUENCE IN ANDALUSIA III. On THE Istanp or Majorca IV. THe CioisTer-GarTH V. RENAISSANCE PLEASURE-GROUNDS VI. Some SMALLER GARDENS AND ParTIOos VII. EtcoTeentH-CENTURY DEVELOPMENTS VIII. Mopern GarpDEns — IX. Tue PortTuGuEseE PLEASAUNCE X. ARCHITECTURAL ACCESSORIES XI. Living Matertar Books or REFERENCE INDEX X1l1 ILLUSTRATIONS AN EIGHTEENTH-CENTURY GARDEN Frontispiece A GARDEN AT GERONA, PAINTED BY S. RuSINOL XV THE Stairway AT Ex Raxa XV1l THE Poot aT THE QUINTA DE FRONTEIRA XE TEMPLE AT EnpD or Watk, Et LABERINTO XXII An EIGHTEENTH-CENTURY FORMAL GARDEN IN INDIA XXV1l Paseo DE LAS DELiciAs DE Maprip, BAYEN XX1X PASEO, JARDIN DE LA IsLa, ARANJUEZ, BAYEN OE A PLEASURE BOAT ABOUT 2000 B.C. LOGGIA OVERLOOKING GARDEN, ABOUT 2000 B.C. A PERSIAN PRINCE UNDER A CANOPY, SIXTEENTH CENTURY 9 MuHAMMED SHAH RIDING IN A ForRMAL GARDEN i INDIAN GarpEN-PAviLions 15 Humay in A CHINESE GARDEN AT NIGHT uy, A Persian TERRACE 1g A Persian PRINCE IN A GARDEN-PAVILION aN MoortsH Fountain, Court oF CATHEDRAL, SEVILLE 31 Locoia AND Patio DE ACEQUIA, GENERALIFE 39 PATH TO THE GENERALIFE 42 PATIO DE LA ACEQUIA, GENERALIFE 43 PaTIO DE Los CIPRESES, GENERALIFE 46 x ILLUSTRATIONS Mrrapor, GENERALIFE GARDENS PATIO DE LOS ARRAYANES Patio DE Daraxa, ALHAMBRA THe MeEsaquiTa or Ext PARTAL PaTIo DE Los CIPRESES, ALHAMBRA THE Patio at Et Raxa Tue Recrory or San Lorenzo, Majorca THE ARCHBISHOP’S GARDEN, PALMA A STAIRWAY AT BENDINAT THE SUMMIT OF THE STAIRWAY, EL Raxa THE Topmost TERRACE, EL Raxa THE Larce REseErvorr, Et Raxa THe Larce REservorr, EL Raxa (another view) A PERGOLA AT ALFABIA ENTRANCE TO Patio, ALFABIA FouNTAIN, ALFABIA A PErGoLA aT La GRANJA DE ForTUNY A PERGOLA OVER A WELL AT CANET A Group OF ARCHITECTURAL FEATURES AT CANET CLoIsTERS, VALLDEMOSA, PAINTED BY S. RuSINOL MONTSERRAT, PAINTED BY S. RuSINOL CroisTerRsS, MonaAsTERY, BANOLAS CLOISTERS, SAN PABLO A Fountain, CATHEDRAL CLOISTERS, BARCELONA IOI 103 ILLUSTRATIONS x1 WELL IN CLOISTERS, CISTERCIAN CONVENT, PEDRALBES 107 CLOISTERS, CISTERCIAN CONVENT, PEDRALBES I10 Fountain House, PoBLetr T12 CLOISTERS, CONVENT OF SAN JUAN DE LA PENITENCIA nL CLOISTERS, SANTO TomAs, AVILA 11g FounTAIN PaviILIon, GUADALUPE 120 FOUNTAIN AND Cypress WALK, THE ALCAZAR [22 _ Fountain AND BENCHES, ALCAZAR GARDENS 12h GARDENS OF THE ALCAZAR, SEVILLE 128 Poo. oF JUANA AND PaviILion oF CHarRLes V 129 PAVILION OF JUANA THE Map, THE ALCAZAR - ieee Patio DE Los EVANGELISTAS, ESCORIAL 133 ARANJUEZ, PAINTED BY S. RUSINOL 136 JARDIN DE LA IsLa, ARANJUEZ 138 JARDIN DE LA IsLa, PAINTED BY S. RUSINOL 139 Tue Fountain oF NEPTUNE AT La GRANJA 145 Patio, Los VENERABILES, SEVILLE 154 Patio, MusEo PRovINcIAL, PAINTED BY A. GRosso 156 A Patio, GARDENS OF THE ALCAZAR, SEVILLE 157 A FounTAIN IN A Patio, THE. ALCAZAR 158 Patio, SEMINARIO, SANTIAGO 159 Patio aT THE CarTuyA, VALLDEMOSA 161 THe Flower GARDEN AT Ex LaBERINTO 165 ENTRANCE TO GARDENS, Et LABERINTO 168 xii ILLUSTRATIONS A Poot at Ext LABERINTO THE LaByRINTH AT EL LABERINTO STraiRWAY, EL LABERINTO Tue PaviLion AND REsErvorR, EL LABERINTO TERRACE, Et LABERINTO THE GARDEN AT Casa GOMEZ THE GARDEN AT TorrE GLORIES ReEsERvorRr, Quinta CaMEROSA, Oca JARDINES DE LAS DELICIAS, SEVILLE | Jarpin DE Monrorte, PAINTED BY S. RUSINOL A GLORIETA, PAINTED BY S. RUSINOL GARDEN OF THE CONDE ee GUELL, BY S. RusINOL THE Upper GARDEN AT THE CASA DEL GRECO GARDEN, CASA DEL GRECO, TOLEDO ParQuE DE Maria Luisa, SEVILLE MurILLo GARDENS, SEVILLE THE PALACE AND GARDEN, QUINTA DE FRONTEIRA THE TERRACE AND CHAPEL, QUINTA DE FRONTEIRA TERRACE AND Pool, Quinta DE FRONTEIRA A Fountain, QUINTA DE FRONTEIRA PARAPET SEATS, QUINTA DE FRONTEIRA THE GARDEN wk ate Monastery OF SAo Domincos Tue Upper Poot, QuiInTA DE FRONTEIRA THE GARDEN AT LARANJEIRAS 211 218 ILLUSTRATIONS xl THE PERGOLA IN FRONT OF THE SWIMMING-POoOL, LARAN- JEIRAS 214 THE Forecourt, PALACE Or PALHAVA 216 SWIMMING-PooL aT LARANJEIRAS Pu THE Roya PALace AT QUELUZ 219 TERRACE AND FOUNTAIN, QUELUZ 290 THE Poo. oF THE Swans, Roya PALace, CINTRA 223 SALA DE CONSELHO, Roya PAtace, CINTRA 224 A HILusipE CHAPEL, PENHA VERDE 2 A Batuinc-Poot at EspLucuEs DE LLOBREGAT 233 Reservoir, Torre FIGUEROLA, NEAR BARCELONA Pes Fountain, Cistercian Monastery, MOnrERO 236 FounTAIN, Patacio CAMEROSA, OcA Deg Lion, PaviLion or JUANA 238 A WELL aT THE HERMITAGE OF Los ANGELES 239 Watt Fountatn, Patacio CAMEROSA 241 A Wa tt Fountain, Roya PAtace, CINTRA 243 PaviILion OF CHARLES V, ALCAZAR GARDENS 245 A BrIDGE ACROSS THE RESERVOIR, JARDINES DE CAMEROSA, Oca : 247 Reja, CiorsTErs, TOLEDO CATHEDRAL Dash A WIinvow IN THE WALL, ALCAZAR GARDENS on An ArcHway, ALCAZAR GARDENS ONG Baroque ARCHITECTURE, Casa Gomez, Horta 259 XIV ILLUSTRATIONS A PErRGOLA AT SanTA Maria, Majorca 260 A PERGOLA AT ALFABIA 261 SEMICIRCULAR SEAT, TORRE GLORIES 263 PAvILION OVER WELL, HospiTat REAL, SANTIAGO 265 TERRACE, Et LABERINTO, Horta 267 FouNTAIN AND GROTTO, QUINTA DE FRONTEIRA 269 A Tite PicrurE AND FAaiENCE SCULPTURE, QUINTA DE FRONTEIRA 270 STONE BALUSTRADE, QUELUZ oy A GREEN ALLEY AT LARANJEIRAS 7G A STANDARD Rose, QuINTA DE FRONTEIRA Dag ps GARDEN, Sao Domincos 279 Tue HEART OF THE LABYRINTH 280 Cypress ARCHES, ALCAZAR GARDENS 281 A GLorieTa OF ANCIENT CYypRESSES, HorTA 283 THE Enp or A Vista, Et LaBERINTO 285 _A FounTAIN IN THE GARDENS AT QUELUZ 286 A GARDEN AT GERONA, PAINTED BY S. RUSINOL INTRODUCTION From the standpoint of a garden architect the Iberian Peninsula is an undiscovered country. While the gardens of France, England, and Italy have been visited, de- scribed, and catalogued over and over again, with few exceptions those of Spain and Portugal, though equally beautiful, remain practically unknown. A list of the books that have helped me to learn a little about them will be found at the end of this volume, but neither a history of, nor a guide to, the public or the private pleasure-grounds of these last two countries has ever been xvi INTRODUCTION published. The only records that give us much idea of their number and their charm are Gothein’s Geschichte der Gartenkunst and the volumes containing reproduc- tions of paintings by the distinguished Catalan painter Santiago Rusinol. When I went abroad in the winter of 1924 to try to study the best examples of Spanish and Portuguese gardens, I was much handicapped, there- fore, by lack of information, and had to pick it up as best I could upon the spot, so I regret that I have not been able to cover the ground completely. Indeed, no record can be final, for every day new creations are springing into existence and others are fading from sight. My task was made less difficult owing to the untiring assistance given me by my travelling companion, Mrs. Sterling Frost, and to the unfailing courtesy that I was shown on every hand. At the very start, when I arrived at Barcelona, Don Miguel Utrillo, the well-known painter and architect, hastened to come to the rescue. His wide- spread acquaintance with the people and with the archi- tecture of his country was of the greatest possible value to me. Through his introductions I was privileged, by the kindness of the Cardinal-Archbishop of Toledo, to visit some rarely accessible convents there, and also re- ceived permission from the Marquesa de Alfarras to go over her beautiful gardens at E/ Laberinto, near Barce- lona. Another of my informants was the French land- scape architect, Monsieur J. C. N. Forestier, who has laid out extensive public pleasure-grounds at Barcelona oe e camer roe SS ae te ag THE STAIRWAY AT EL RAXA un | YL? ~qare INTRODUCTION XIX and Seville, besides some charming private gardens there and at Ronda. Before going to the Island of Majorca, my friend the Boston architect, Gordon Allen, had given me an en- thusiastic description of the ancient and romantic gar- dens he had recently visited there. The journey in a comfortable steamboat takes twelve hours from Barce- lona and a few hours longer from Valencia. Upon my arrival at the fascinating seaport, Palma de Majorca, I fell into the kind hands of Mr. and Mrs. Frederick Chamberlin, Americans whose devotion to the island has led them to adopt it as a second home and to become real authorities as to its past and present attractions. At Madrid, a letter from Ralph Adams Cram, an ar- dent lover of Spain, brought a kindly response from the Marqués de la Vega Inclan, President of the Comisaria Regia del Turismo y Cultura Artistica, of Spain. This society has been organized to help tourists to see and understand Spanish art and architecture. It publishes a series of monographs regarding places of especial interest from this viewpoint and manages to open to privileged enthusiasts doors that would otherwise remain closed. The Marqués de la Vega Inclan has been made an honor- ary member of the Hispanic Society of America, not merely on account of his learning, but because of his generous efforts to assist Americans in many ways. Miss Margaret Palmer, corresponding member of the Carnegie Art Institute of Pittsburgh, who keeps in touch with aaK INTRODUCTION modern developments in Spanish art, gave me some in- valuable introductions and advice, before I left Castile and took the interesting journey through desolate La Mancha to smiling Andalusia and to Granada, with its dramatic contrasts between the solemn grandeur of the rocky mountains and the luxuriant subtropical vegeta- tion on the undulating plains. There is a school of vigorous young artists and archi- tects in Seville, who are doing some of the best modern work in Europe to-day. One of their number, a brilliant painter, Alfredo Grosso, has exhibited pictures in Amer- ica under the auspices of the Carnegie Art Institute, and helped me to appreciate how strongly Moorish traditions still influence modern Spanish architecture. Don Gon- zalo Bilbao, another artist, whose paintings have been admired in America, arranged for me to visit some of the Sevillan palaces, with classic patios and lovely gardens. Although Portugal can be reached easily from the United States now that several lines of steamers run directly from American ports to Lisbon, it seems in- finitely remote. The influx of travellers is chiefly from England, and few have ventured there from across the Atlantic. English writers, notably H. G. Wells, John Galsworthy, and A. $8. M. Hutchinson, who have recently wintered at Mt. Estoril, are soon likely to lead others to enjoy one of the best winter climates in Europe, in a country of great natural beauty. Portuguese architecture shows Moorish influence, and INTRODUCTION XXxl aE POOL AT THE QUINTADE FRONTEIRA has developed along original and very interesting lines. The use of color on the walls of the houses is daring but very successful in many instances. The diversity of the tiles and the manifold ways that they are used to em- bellish garden architecture are also surprising. Ralph Adams Cram has well pointed out the reasons why architects should make more use of color on the outside as well as in the interior of buildings. The greatest revelation of all to me, on a trip where unexpected thrills of pleasure came in almost too rapid succession, was the mellow charm of the eighteenth- XXll INTRODUCTION century villas. This style of architecture is admirably adapted to our needs, especially in a mild climate like that of Georgia or California, but it could also be used, with very slight modifications, in the more northern parts of the United States. The main lines of the build- ings are simple, the construction is solid, and the de- tail is treated with a freedom and an originality that produce an effect of comfort combined with gaiety. The same delightful sentiment and a sort of bland apprecia- tion of the good things of life prevailed in the gardens of this period, and have lasted, in spite of wars and eco- nomic vicissitudes, up to the present day. For, in countries which we are accustomed to chink can base their claims to glory only on the past, the love of tradition has not destroyed the power to create new forms of art and architecture. Both in Spain and in Portugal new gardens and houses are springing up as if by magic. They may be smaller than their earlier prototypes, but they are not less gay and charmingly unselfconscious.. I wish that Don Javier de Winthuy- sen, the well-known landscape architect, whom I met in Madrid, could come to lecture to students in this country, not only about the great historical gardens of Spain, but concerning the splendid work that he and many others are doing to make new constructions that fit harmoniously into their environment. Although my journey lasted only a short time, the results of my experience may help to simplify the way Mas TEMPLE AT END OF WALK, EL LABERINTO INTRODUCTION XXV for others eager to start on a similar quest. At least I can assure them that nowhere are there purer sources of inspiration for garden-lovers looking for ideas that can be carried out on a very moderate, or, indeed, on a humble scale. While the subjects are comparatively few, the variety in their treatment is endlessly rich. A few photographs from Senor Rusinol’s pictures will show some of the more salient features that have for him a loveliness that appeals, both to the eye and to the soul. His preference is for the gardens of the past, and he has described them, not only with his brush, but in words that have deep significance. ‘“A garden,’ Rusinol explains, ‘is a country-place in verse, and the verses are decreasing on every side.”’ So he has travelled through all the provinces, making records on canvas of what has impressed him most. To quote him again: “Like poetic oases on the plains of Spain, you will meet the gardens which I have gleaned before they disappeared. Long was the walk to find them. For every tuft of green which you find near an old house, whether in the depths of a valley or in the shelter of a mountain-side, you will pass for hours and hours through wilderness and desert. For every leafy branch there are vast solitudes and sterile plains; for every flower, count- less miles of land without any grass, without the sign of a tree, without sound of a fountain, without refuge for the human being who seeks repose from the burning sun. ... The old gardens are dying, but dying with so much XXVI1 INTRODUCTION dignity that with their passing away a new poetry en- velops them in harmony with their dissolution.” The illustrations are derived from many sources. Be- sides expressing my gratitude to Senor Rusinol for several of them, I wish to thank for the use of other photographs Senoras B. Ferra and M. Reyes, Senores A. Linares, Roig, Moreno, Mas, Trujol, Grosso, and Garzon, also the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York and the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston. The rest I took myself or had taken especially for me by Senor Mas, of Barcelona, Senor Trujol, of Palma, and Mr. Lazarus, of Lisbon, under my direction. Spanish vegetation suffers from being subjected to great extremes of heat and cold. In the north the winters are often severe, and even in the south there are occa- sional snowstorms. The summers, on the other hand, are extremely hot, and the sun parches the flowers unless they can be kept well watered and protected from its rays. Broad-leaved evergreens, however, can be grown in great variety. Box-edging withstands both heat and cold. Orange- and lemon-trees are covered with fruit and flowers, despite a background of snow-capped moun- tain-peaks. Spain is essentially a land of contrasts. Flower-beds, therefore, are outlined with box, ac- cented with oleanders, laurels, or tall, slender cypresses. Enclosures are often formed by well-clipped evergreen hedges or by massive walls. Water is a vital necessity and always appears in abundance. Large reservoirs, VIGNI NI NAdUVO TVWYOd AYNALNAO-HLNAALHOId NV INTRODUCTION XX1X PASEO DE LAS DELICIAS DE MADRID. BY BAYEN resembling our swimming-pools, are very common. Rivu- lets run in stone gutters along the surface of the ground and fountains throw up sprays of water to moisten the air. Steps, balustrades, and pavilions are among the interesting architectural features which I should like to describe later in detail. There is everywhere an ab- sence of sharp corners. The stone-work soon becomes weather-worn. Lichens spread over the vases and statu- ary. Soft greens and grays dominate the color-scheme, relieved by a touch of flaming-red pomegranate blossoms or golden-yellow mimosa. The time to see most of these gardens at their best is in April or May or the early autumn. Majorca, Va- lencia, Andalusia, and Portugal are also very beautiful XXX INTRODUCTION PASEO, JARDIN DE LA ISLA, ARANJUEZ. BY BAYEN in February or March when the almond- and the peach- trees have come into bloom. Since the backbone of the planting is formed by evergreens and the architectural features are numerous, the design never becomes wholly obliterated. Each section of the country has developed a style of its own, but all are founded on certain tra- ditions that they have in common, inherited chiefly from the Visigoths and the Moors. Like Spanish art, the gardens went through phases that might be classi- fied as Hispano-Moorish, Christian Moorish or Mudejar, French, Italian, and typically Spanish Renaissance, al- ways strongly colored by the local atmosphere. INTRODUCTION XXX Many of these lovely spots seem haunted by departed spirits. Who can visit the Generalife without seeing vi- sions of turbaned Emirs and lovely sultanas enjoying the air upon the terraces or mournfully leaving all its de- lights when driven forth into exile? Unquestionably the superb cloisters of the Escorial would fail to cast such a gloom over even the most casual tourist if he could forget that they had once sheltered unhappy Philip II, seeking peace for his soul in monastic seclusion. Pleasanter asso- ciations enhance the bright parterres and shady alleys at Aranjuez, and perhaps it is as well not to have our eyes opened to the bitterness that lay behind the merrymak- ing there as exposed in the proverbs illustrated by Goya. His tapestries and those of Bayen show how much their contemporaries lived in the open air. The representation of the Paseo de las Delicias, with the world of fashion pacing up and down, needs but a change of costume to make it true to the life on many an alameda to-day. ~y SPANISH AND PORTUGUESE | GARDENS Cla eyet listen WE THE ORIENTAL BACKGROUND THE mysterious beauty illuminating the pleasure-gardens of Spain and Portugal will not fail to impress even a casual visitor, but no one can truly appreciate either spirit or substance without some knowledge of their interesting derivation. Early in the eighth century East and West met in battle on the Iberian Peninsula. A small force of brave Moslems easily defeated the weak and divided Christians and gained control of the coun- try. Subsequently the conquering Arab leaders treated the vanquished Visigoths and the other inhabitants of the invaded territory with such magnanimity that soon, notwithstanding their differences of race and re- ligion, they all settled down peaceably to work together for their common welfare. Assimilating the best of each other’s ideas, they combined to lay the foundations of a new and striking school of art. The Arabs had acquired their knowledge of architecture from what they had seen and learned in Egypt and Persia. To be intelligible, therefore, any account of Spanish and Portuguese gar- 2- SPANISH AND PORTUGUESE (GA RD Bins dens must begin with a description of those prototypes in the Near East that have served as sources of inspir- ation. At the dawn of civilization the peoples grouped on the eastern shores of the Mediterranean, in the neighborhood of the probable site of the Garden of Eden, were the first to express a worship for nature and a love of beauty in forms that still command our highest admiration. Among these pioneers the Egyptians flourished long be- fore the Christian Era, and, later, the Persians and the Arabs. From an artistic standpoint the temples, the tombs, and the palaces that they erected many centuries ago, remain unsurpassed and destroy any illusions as to our modern superiority in architectural achievement. Continuity characterizes Oriental civilization, so the present clearly helps us to reconstruct its past. Sir John Chardin well points out, in his seventeenth-century book of travels, ‘“‘that it is not in Asia as in our Europe, where there are frequent changes in the forms of things, as the habits, buildings, gardenings, and the like. In the East they are constant in all things. The habits are at this day in the same manner as in the precedent ages; so that one may reasonably believe that in that part of the world the exterior forms of things (as their manners and customs) are the same now as they were two thousand years since, except in such changes as may have been introduced by religion, which are nevertheless very inconsiderable.”’ The important part played by religion in the gardens THE ORIENTAL BACKGROUND 3 of Asia is little understood in the West. While some of the architectural features and sculpture, such as statues of the gods and shrines for their worship, obviously had religious significance, it is hard to grasp that Nature was literally adored as a divine manifestation and that water, trees, shrubs, and flowers were actually. wor- shipped or regarded as sacred, either as symbols of the gods or as national emblems. Monastic cloisters still con- tain a Way of the Cross intended to promote pious medi- tation, but any attempt at religious symbolism in our pleasure-grounds (graveyards can hardly be included here under that head) would be regarded as meaningless, or despised as the height of affectation. We may say that we believe that God is everywhere, still outside of our churches we do not like to be constantly reminded of His Presence as were the Orientals thousands of years ago, and as they continue to be wherever they are free to practice their religion openly. Egyptian civilization is the earliest of which we have any full and reliable records. Within the last hundred years buildings, inscriptions, paintings, and sculpture have been discovered that help us to enter into the lives of the people dwelling on the banks of the Nile. Recent excavations have made us especially familiar with the brief and dramatic career of King Akhenaten, the founder of a new religion and the builder of the *‘ City of the Hori- zon,” or Akhetaten, at El-Amarneh. In this city and its suburbs have been found traces of many gardens both 4. SPANISH AND PORTUGUES RSGARDENG A PLEASURE BOAT ABOUT 2000 B.C. large and small. Sometimes where massive walls have crumbled into indistinguishable dust, the removal of a few inches of sand blown there from the desert has disclosed the mud borders encasing flower-beds and the hollows scooped out for artificial pools retaining, on their mud floors, the impress of innumerable lotus and papyrus plants. In Oriental language the words for a ‘“‘garden,” or its synonym on a large scale, a ‘‘ paradise,” clearly signified some sort of an enclosure. The beautiful grounds sur- rounding the important residences in the “City of the Horizon”’ were always enclosed by high walls. A visitor would usually enter through a lofty and massive gateway, THE ORIENTAL BACKGROUND ; covered by pictorial representations and inscriptions, with an opening barely wide enough to admit a two- horse chariot. Here might be also the porter’s lodge and a reception-room. Inside the enclosure a straight walk would lead up to the house, its gaily frescoed walls half- hidden by trees. Only part of the grounds at a time would meet the eye, for they were laid out in a series of walled subdivisions. In some of these, vegetables may have dominated; in others, flowers, shrubs, or trees. Under the scorching summer sun and in the dry season an ample irrigation system was essential, involving large reservoirs of water and wells worked by long wooden poles. Tanks, fish-ponds, and canals were numerous and often of decorative appearance. From the surface of the water rose many-colored lotuses, cherished not only for their beauty, but for their fragrance, and reverenced as the mystical abode of departed spirits, besides being symbolic of life, immortality, and resurrection. Shady walks were provided by double rows of fruit-trees, palms, and sacred sycamores, supposedly inhabited by various deities. Vine-covered pergolas also afforded protection from the sun. | Every one was fond of living out of doors, and various architectural features served to make this agreeable. Broad loggias were attached to the houses and airy kiosks, with carved wooden columns, were placed near the pools and in other attractive spots. Banquets were often given in these open-air pavilions. Flowers decked the food, and 6) “SPANISH AND» PORTUGUESE“ GARDENS the guests, wearing garlands around their necks and carrying lotuses in their hands, would politely invite each other to inhale the fragrance of a blossom as an especial compliment. If it was an evening party, the white lotus would be in request, as it opens at night, while the blue one unfolds itself in the daytime. Musicians and dancers added to the festivity of the occasion. Several examples of this type of garden connected with the larger dwellings have been found at Thebes as well as at Akhenaten’s new capital. The sculptured scenes in the tomb of his High-Priest Merya clearly show a back yard charmingly arranged to serve as an open-air living-room. A second type of pleasure-ground was a park in the LOGGIA OVERLOOKING GARDEN, ABOUT 2000 B.C. THE ORIENTAL BACKGROUND a country where merrymakers could seek a day’s recrea- tion. It is sometimes distinguished by being called a mparadise:” The buildings erected there were not in- tended for residences and were merely adjuncts to the sheets of water, the groves of trees, and the flower- beds. Shelter from inclement weather was provided by pavilions that could be used as banqueting-halls and by kiosks placed near enough to the pools to be convenient for fishermen. There were also small temples for the worship of the gods and sacred trees marked by votive offerings. Boating and duck-shooting enlivened the arti- ficial lakes. Trees were planted in rows, with a saucer of earth around each trunk to hold the moisture, connected by small irrigating canals, just as we see them to-day in the gardens built by the Arabs in Spain. Ridges of earth also encased the beds of flowers, which were sometimes designed in connection with the waterways. The whole effect displayed a grasp of the principles underlying all forms of art and must have been very beautiful. Akhenaten, as befitted a prince with the highest ideals, was an ardent lover of art and nature as well as a religious devotee. In the palace he erected after leaving Thebes, on the bank of the Nile in Akhetaten, his new capital, the walls of his own bedroom were covered with paintings of flowers. Unfortunately, we have learned, as yet, very little about the gardens there. In a southern suburb called Maru-aten, however, the site of one of his ‘‘ para- ’ dises’”’ was excavated by the Egyptian Exploration So- 8 SPANISH AND PORTUGUESE GARDENG ciety in 1921-22, and the accounts they have published of what they found there give us a remarkably complete picture of this royal picnic-ground. We can easily im- agine how the King must have enjoyed coming here to get away from the messengers bringing word of disasters in many parts of his empire and from the intrigues of the politicians and the priests of Amen, eager to regain their lost power. Here he and his beloved wife and their young daughters could go boating on the lake, walk along shady paths shaded by date-palms or sycamores, or feast in one of several kiosks overlooking the water. There was also a temple in the centre at one end of the lake where they could worship their one and only God, whose power was symbolized by the sun and its far- reaching rays. Probably docile monkeys climbed over the branches of the trees and helped to gather the fruit, pet gazelles played with the children and their dwarfs, ducks dwelt among the papyruses growing on the margin of the water, and fish swam about under the blue, white, and pink lotuses ornamenting the pools. It might be interesting to study the plan and some of the architectural features in detail. There are distinct indications of two walled enclosures. The larger one was designed with especial care. It contained a large oblong lake one hundred and twenty metres long and half that in width. This was a favorite proportion judging from the fact that the pond in the smaller enclosure was also twice as long as it was wide, as are the enclosures them- > SIXTEENTH CENTURY CE UNDER (A, CANOPY N A PERSIAN PRI eS, eatin nee > ie « THE ORIENTAL BACKGROUND II selves, the larger being two hundred metres long by one hundred wide, and the smaller, one hundred and sixty by eighty. [he main axis is emphasized by the temple at the head of the larger lake; other minor axes were also brought out by the planting and the disposition of the various buildings. In establishing the continuity of tradi- tional styles, a pavilion enclosing a central court with a colonnade is noteworthy, as foreshadowing the Greek peristyle and the Spanish patio. Then there is a curious water-court with interlocking T-shaped tanks, and a row of columns down the centre suggestive of certain features in both Persian and Moorish gardens. In fact, in sundry ways impossible to enumerate in a limited space, the con- nection between them is very close. After being subjugated by the Assyrians and forming part of their empire, Egypt was conquered by the Per- slans In 525 B.c., and remained under their dominion for about two centuries. During this period there was a constant interchange of ideas between the two countries. On this account it is easy to understand that, when many years later Persian garden-making was brought to per- fection, it showed traces of Egyptian inspiration. Differ- ences of religion, of climate, and in the physical con- formation of the two countries (one lying in a narrow river valley and the other on a high plateau) were re- flected in a certain dissimilarity of plan, but hardly altered other ideas. A Persian “‘paradise,” resembling the one attributed to Akhenaten, was a walled enclosure 12 SPANISH AND PORTUGUESE GARDENS containing tanks of water, ornamental kiosks, avenues of trees, and flower-beds. Until the reign of Chosroes I, the most illustrious King of the Sassanid Dynasty, flourishing in the sixth century A.D., our knowledge of the Persian paradise-plan is in- complete. His travelling carpet furnished a valuable key to much fragmentary information. This magnificent rug, sixty ells square, was covered with a design sym- bolizing the cosmic cross and depicting the type of pleasure-garden admired not only then, but for centuries afterward, in both Persia and India. It showed a square enclosure divided by two streams of running water, and containing paths and beds. Seed pearls represented the gravel; trees and flowers were of silk and their branches were of gold and silver thread. On the outside border were shrubs ornamented by many-colored precious stones. It was called the “‘spring carpet,” and after the death of its original owner was used by his successors until the last of the Sassanids was defeated by the Arabs in 637, when it was carried away as part of their booty. The Arab writers described its sumptuousness, and from their records various details of the design have been handed down to us. Many later rugs elaborate the same idea. Perhaps the most interesting of those now in existence is ene that belonged to the Shah Abbas, who laid out some fine gardens in the Persian capital at the beginning of the sixteenth century. On this carpet water-courses accen- NAdUVO TVWUOT V NI ONICIY HVHS QGYUWNWNVHNW THE ORIENTAL BACKGROUND 15 tuate the two main axes and at their intersection is a square of water dominated by a small pavilion or a fountain-basin. Birds are swimming in the pool, and on INDIAN GARDEN-PAVILIONS each side of the canal are star-shaped beds suggesting those beside the long central canal leading up to the Taj Mahal. Eight octagonal kiosks symbolize the eight pearl pavilions of the Moslem paradise. The similarity is striking between the garden-design woven into this rug 16 SPANISH AND PORTUGUESE GARDENS and the plan outlined in an eighteenth-century water- color drawing showing Muhammed Shah riding in a Persian garden. Although the plan is symmetrical and the spacing of the pointed cypresses is fairly regular, the other trees scattered among the shrubs and flowers ap- pear to have just happened to grow where they are. The imposing gateway and the colonnade in front of the pavilion, may unconsciously reflect Egyptian influence. The Persian poets and painters, beginning in the thir- teenth century, depict the beauties of the flowery or- chards and various other kinds of gardens, and show that they were used for manifold purposes. Kings gave audi- ences and feasts there upon especial occasions; guests slept there in their gaily colored tents or on platforms raised to catch every whiff of air on hot nights; and there prayers of thanksgiving were offered by the women of the family when the men had won a victory in battle. Cer- tain pools and fountains were reserved for the frequent ablutions required by the Moslem religion. Wherever people wished to sit down, the ground was spread with rugs. Some enclosures were especially intended to be seen by moonlight and in them white flowers predomi- nated. A poem by Sadi in the Gulistan, translated by E. B. Earwick, is full of subtle suggestion: — “One night I was walking at a late hour with a friend in a flower-garden. The spot was blithe and pleasing, and the trees intertwined there charmingly. You would have said that fragments of enamel were sprinkled on ors HUMAY IN A CHINESE GARDEN AT NIGHT THE ORIENTAL BACKGROUND 19 the ground, and that the necklace of the Pleiades was suspended from the vines that grew there. A garden where the murmuring rill was heard; While from the trees sang each melodious bird; That, with the many-colored tulip bright, These with their various fruits the eye delight. The whispering breeze beneath the branches’ shade, Of bending flowers a motley carpet made. In the morning, when the inclination to return prevailed over our wish to stay, I saw that he had gathered his lap full of roses, and fragrant herbs, and hyacinths and b) sweet basil... .’ Towards the close of the fifteenth century there was a renaissance of art both in Persia and India. This was one of the wonderfully stirring periods of history. Almost pe ya cornea ae = aie ‘ $ sane hare : pc A PERSIAN TERRACE 20 SPANISH AND PORTUGUESE GARDENS at the same time Columbus discovered America, Vasco da Gama revealed the sea-route to India, and the Catholic Kings ousted the Moors from their last stronghold in Spain, while a boy named Zehireddin Mohammed, usu- ally known by his nickname, Babur, received the news of his accession to the little kingdom of Farghana in the Neatiast. The Indian gardens were modelled after the earlier ones of Persia, and, like them, were rectangular enclo- sures protected from outside observation by high walls and entered through imposing gateways, one in the cen- tre of each side. Small octagonal pavilions often marked the corners, and various summer-houses and seats were placed in prominent positions. On the main axes were streams of water running through channels lined with stone or with tiles of turquoise-blue and edged with a brick or stone coping. Borders of spring flowers and shrubs, accented by cypresses, were reflected in the water and broke the monotony of the walls. The more elaborate parterres, like the borders on each side of the long pool in front of the Taj Mahal, were enriched by being laid out in geometrical designs outlined with nar- row marble flagging. Sometimes there were a series of such gardens linked together by a stream of water run- ning down the centre and placed on eight terraces to represent the eight heavens of the Moslem paradise. During the reigns of the Great Mughals, from the sixteenth to the eighteenth centuries, these paradises THE ORIENTAL BACKGROUND 21 reached the acme of perfection. Perhaps the spacious formal gardens that they loved to create were the most precious contributions of the Mughal rulers to Indian art. [he most famous were those created by Jahangar Shah for his Persian wife on the shores of two lovely lakes in the Vale of Kashmir and the far-famed Taj Mahal at Agra. Nothing more enchanting than these terraced Kashmir gardens is imaginable. Their interest centred in the beautiful and varied treatment of the water which flowed down the middle of the garden and tumbled in cascades from one level to another. Mrs. Villiers Stuart, in her remarkable book, ‘‘The Gardens of the Great Mughals,” has given detailed descriptions of many of these pleasure-grounds. Babur, or The Tiger, became renowned as the con- queror of many Eastern countries. At the close of his reign he founded the Indian Empire and was the first of the celebrated line of rulers known as the Great Mughals. Besides being successful as a soldier, he won distinction as a poet, a patron of the arts, especially of architecture, and was renowned as a “Prince of Gardeners.” His memoirs dwell upon his fondness for fine scenery, for rippling streams and perfumed flowers. On a campaign in a strange country, between battles he would have lists made of the different varieties of plants, and select sites suitable for gardens, where the aspects of nature were inspiring and cool streams of water flowed rapidly. Near Ush he remarked upon the perfection of the 22 SPANISH AND PORTUGUESE GARDENS violets and wrote that the roses and tulips bloomed in unusual profusion. Not far from there he was impressed by the luxuriant pomegranates and apricots. Blossom- ing fruit-trees, grouped near slender swaying cypresses, with the sward beneath them powdered by starry flowers, made a spring-time picture that Persian and Indian artists have painted over and over again. The early pleasure-grounds of India had been laid out in the naturalistic style like the Buddhist landscape gardens still existing in China. Babur was a pioneer in introducing symmetrical plans, canals dividing the ground into quarters, and numerous terraces. He loved to spend his leisure hours enthroned on the edge of a waterfall or, lying on silken cushions in a marble pavilion beside a crystal pool, looking at a beautiful view, while the fairest maidens danced before him and there were sounds of music in the air. On the side of a red granite cistern he had incised the following lines: “Sweet is the New Year’s coming, sweet the smiling Spring, sweet is the juice of the mellow grape, sweeter far is the voice of Love. O Babur, seize Life’s pleasures which, once departed, can never, alas, return.” 4 Among the ten “‘paradises”” Babur created in Kabul, one that he often mentions, laid out in 1508, was called the “‘Garden of Fidelity.” Four waterways divided the ground into quarters and it was shaded by many orange- and pomegranate-trees. Around a stone reservoir twenty feet square was a plot of clover which he praises as “the ILION PAV A PERSIAN PRINCE IN A GARDEN- a THE ORIENTAL BACKGROUND 25 very eye of beauty.” Other “‘paradises,” with numerous pavilions, fountains and cascades, were near Agra. His favorite was the Bagh-i-Khilan in Kabul, with a beauti- ful view over barren, rocky hunting-grounds towards mountain-peaks perpetually clad with snow. When the judas-trees were covered with their rosy blossoms, he declared that he could not imagine a more lovely spot on earth. And here, after he had with touching solemnity laid down his life that his son Humayun might live, his body was laid in its final resting-place. The tombs of the Great Mughals were often placed in pavilions surrounded by gardens that they had enjoyed in their lifetimes, or that were designed to perpetuate their memory. The classic example is, of course, the Taj Mahal at Agra, with its exquisitely proportioned dome and minarets, its long pools of water reflecting tall cy- presses and bordered by chains of interlocking star- shaped beds outlined by marble flagging, erected by the Shah Jahan in memory of his beloved Persian wife. There are others, less well-preserved to-day, that must have been very beautiful before they fell into decay. In Kashmir, on the shore of the Dal Lake, the Mughals — built two gardens that are still flourishing. The more famous of these is the Shalimar Bagh laid out on several terraces and containing some very interesting architec- tural features made of black marble, always a charming contrast to mirrors of water and brilliantly colored flow- ers. A second one is well-named the ‘‘Garden of Glad- 26 SPANISH AND PORTUGUESE GARDENS ness,” for it is the gayest of all, with terraces aglow with color and a succession of pools with jets of water spark- ling in the sunshine. Glimmerings of the spiritual significance of these gar- dens can best be obtained by studying the writings of the great Persian poets. The poems of Omar Khayyam are too familiar for quotation, but his thirteenth-century contemporary Sadi 1s equally inspiring, when he speaks of the Creator, saying, — ‘““He biddeth His chamberlain, the morning breeze, spread out the emerald carpet of the earth, and com- mandeth His nurses, the vernal clouds, tom fostemam earth’s cradle the daughters of the grass, and clotheth the trees with a garment of leaves, and at the approach of Spring crowneth the young branches with wreaths of blossoms... .” Another Persian poet who wrote in the fourteenth century, no doubt appealed to the cultivated Moors in Spain as well as to his fellow-countrymen. His name was Hafiz and the following lines suggest his love of beauty: ‘Gather treasures for thyself from the colors and the odors of the spring-tide, for the autumn and the winter follow fast upon their heels.” | “Ts there aught more precious than the beauty of the garden and the presence of the spring?”’ Oia Rael], MOORISH INFLUENCE IN ANDALUSIA IT is amazing to learn that perhaps thirty thousand ears ago there were artists living among the cave-dwellers of that part of the Eastern Hemisphere now called Southern France and Spain, where are still produced most of the leaders in the world of art to-day. The paintings and the sculpture that these primitive people executed so long ago are the earliest-known enduring expressions of a love of beauty, though, as Schiller wrote, it might be said that art came into existence with the first weaving of a garland of flowers. | Even after the dawn of history, millenniums later, very little is known about the Iberian Peninsula before the Roman Conquest. Under the governorship of Julius Cesar, in the middle of the first century B.c., however, it became part of the Roman Empire and received many of the gifts of civilization. Ruined temples, aqueducts, and bridges dating from the first two centuries of the Christian Era are still extant at Mérida, Segovia, and Alcantara among other places, but there are few traces of the sumptuous villas and the fine gardens that must have been built at the same time. Much destruction was wrought by the hordes of Vandals who swept over the country as the Empire disintegrated, and for several 28 SPANISH AND PORTUGUESE GARDENS succeeding centuries there was little security for life or property. After defeating the Vandals and the enfeebled Romans, the Visigoths established their kingdom in most of Spain. The Visigoths had some culture and adopted wise laws, but their kings were poor administrators who readily resorted to violence and murder. Bitter theological disputes divided the Christian Church into opposing camps. Corruption and ceaseless turmoil un- dermined the kingdom at its foundations until, before the close of the eighth century, its decadence was pain- fully evident. At this time Christianity might seem to have proved a failure. During the first glorious century after the death of Christ, his disciples had so interpreted his teach- ings as to bring honor to his name, but their successors soon fell from grace. Christendom increased in size, but not in wisdom or holiness. The Byzantine Empire be- came notorious for appalling corruption. In Constan- tinople the beautiful cathedral of Saint Sophia was desecrated by a depraved priesthood, free-fighting took place in the holiest shrines of Jerusalem, and horrible crimes were common all over the Near East. Then in 632 there was born in Arabia one believed by many of his fellow-men to be a Messenger of God. His name was Mohammed, and, denouncing idolatry, he urged a renewal of belief in one God and conversion to Islam, meaning the religion of peace. His followers carried his message far afield in Asia and Africa, but MOORISH INFLUENCE IN ANDALUSIA 29 sometimes departed from peaceful methods. During their stay in Egypt and Persia, they acquired the know- ledge of art and architecture to which they soon gave expression on the Iberian Peninsula. Contrary to the usual supposition, the Arabs did not invade Spain with any desire to spread their religion by means of the sword. They came at the invitation of Count Julian, a Christian Greek and an officer in the Visigothic army who had suffered a grave injury at the hands of the Visigothic king. No doubt, the Spanish Jews, victims of Christian persecution, welcomed the invasion. The Moorish army was headed by Musa, a veteran Arab general, but he was aided by a motley crew including Berbers, Jews, Goths, and Byzantine apostates, slaves, and mercenaries. Following a decisive victory over King Roderick and his army at Guadalete in Southern Andalusia, the conquest of the rest of the Iberian Peninsula was an easy matter, since the Visi- goths failed to offer any effective resistance. After the conquest, Moorish rule, lasting in some parts of the country nearly eight hundred years, may not have been an unmitigated blessing though it brought about many improvements. Christian and Jewish subjects were free to practice their own particular religions and to live under the protection of their own laws, besides sharing in the benefits of many Moorish innovations. The early Emirs, with the help of Persian architects, erected fine buildings in astonishing numbers, and fostered both z0. SPANISH AND«POR TUGUESE GARDENS agriculture and horticulture partly through the introduc- tion of a marvellous system of irrigation. Seville, Cor- dova, and Granada became the capitals of different prin- cipalities and centres of learning. Not only the mosques, but the churches, as well as the palaces and pleasure- grounds, designed in a new style derived both from Gothic and Persian sources, became celebrated far and wide. The first Emir of Cordova was a descendant of the Prophet through the Ommayad line, and was the sole member of his family to escape alive from Abbasside tyranny. In 755, as Abd-ar-Rahman I, he established an independent Caliphate at Cordova, and it became the capital of Andalusia. His passion for building added much to the beauty of the city. Mosques, baths, and palaces sprang up almost overnight. A massive aqueduct brought pure streams from the mountains; while wheels on the bank raised water from the river. His favorite palace recalled the beloved home of his grandfather in Damascus. Trees and plants were imported from his native land to adorn the gardens connected with the new palace and to help make him forget that he was in exile. Among these was a palm, to which he addressed a poem beginning, “‘ You, O Palm, are like me a stranger in this western land, far from your home and separated from friends and relatives.” The great palm-forest of Elche, in Valencia, where over a hundred thousand trees flourish with their roots well watered, owes its existence to the Moors and their knowledge of irrigation. MOORISH INFLUENCE IN ANDALUSIA 31 Garzon MOORISH FOUNTAIN, COURT OF CATHEDRAL, SEVILLE At Cordova, the mosque begun by Abd-ar-Rahman I is the noblest architectural monument of the Spanish Arabs and the first to show that, although they had not forgotten what they had learned in Persia, they were capable of developing a style of their own. The Court of the Ablutions, now known as the Patio de los Naranjos, adjoining this mosque is the oldest enclosed garden in Spain and perhaps anywhere in Europe. It is entered by the horseshoe arch of the Puerta del Perdon, and its good proportions, four hundred feet long by two hun- dred wide, immediately produce an agreeable impression. Palms and orange-trees planted in regular rows cast 32 SPANISH AND PORTUGUESE GARDENS pleasant shadows and trickling fountains make a de- licilous murmur. Every tree has a hollow around the base of its trunk and each connects with stone gutters that carry streams of water from one to another. Originally the mosque opened directly into the court with no partition wall, like the temple of Solomon and the ancient Persian audience halls, and also the fountains were disposed differently. Still, much of the early charm has survived, although the forest of columns is no longer visible from the patio, flowers fail to fringe the arcades, and throngs of white-robed worshippers do not pause to perform their ablutions before entering the sacred edifice. Later Ommayad Caliphs added fountains in the Court of the Ablutions, increased the size of the mosque, and stimulated the building of palatial residences elsewhere. Intimate gardens, crossed by paths of different-colored pebbles laid in pretty patterns and embellished by marble fountains and vegetation of increasing variety, grew common. The Moorish rulers welcomed many distin- guished foreigners as their guests. Among them was the famous scholar and musician Ziryab, from Bagdad, who described in detail a list of plants and their uses. Moslem power in Spain reached its height in the time of Abd-ar-Rahman III, an excellent ruler and a great lover of beauty. The whole country became like a garden. At Seville were unrivalled olive-groves and the banks of the Guadalquivir were bright with flowers, MOORISH INFLUENCE IN ANDALUSIA 33 while the environs of other cities were clothed with cypresses, fruit-trees, and ornamental plants. Romantic names were given to some of the suburbs of Cordova, such as “The Vale of Paradise,’ ‘The Garden of Wonders,” and ‘‘The Path of Roses,’ suggesting the beauties there. Fifty thousand palaces are said to have existed then. The finest of all was the magnificent villa of Az-Zahra beneath the sombre Sierra Morena, a few miles outside the city. It was named after a favorite of the Emir called the Blossom. A dark mountain circling behind the white walls caused her to exclaim to him, “See, O Master, how beautiful this girl looks in the.arms of yonder Ethiopian.” Distinguished architects from Constantinople made the plans which were carried out under the super- vision of Byzantine and perhaps Egyptian foremen. Ten thousand workmen are said to have toiled for twenty- five years to complete this suburb, which was nearly as short-lived as the city built by Akhenaten at E]-Amarneh. The multiplicity of elaborate details described by Arabic writers as ornamenting the pleasure-grounds is bewilder- ing. A marble terrace overhung the matchless gardens. Every plant described by the learned botanists flourished in the collection there, besides many flowers valued more for their fragrance than for their color. Hedges of clipped laurel, myrtle, or box, shaded the walks paved with mosaics, and there were seats protected from the sun under vine-covered arbors and pavilions. The study of 34 SPANISH AND PORTUGUESE GARDENS hydraulics was a favorite pursuit, and the engineers displayed extraordinary ability here in the distribution of the water, which not only served for irrigation, but played in innumerable fountains, ran in rivulets through channels furrowed in marble balustrades beside stair- ways, and fed an artificial lake. No Moslem religious scruples prevented the use of a Byzantine fountain- basin decorated with human figures and another of Syrian design made of green marble with jewelled ani- mals and birds cast in gold. A central pavilion large enough to hold a number of people was the most impressive architectural feature. Its walls were of translucent stone, and a dome of the same material rested upon pillars of variegated marble and transparent rock-crystal, while the rest of the roof was covered with tiles made of pure gold and silver. To enhance the dazzling effect, the sun’s rays were con- centrated in a porphyry basin filled with quicksilver placed beneath the dome. Here were enacted many of the historic scenes that made Abd-ar-Rahman’s reign famous. On one of these occasions, attired as Caliph in his white robes of state, seated on a throne blazing with jewels, and surrounded by glittering courtiers, he gave audience to the awe-struck Kings of Leon and Navarre come to supplicate his favor. Another time, ambassadors from the Byzantine Emperor stood there literally dumb with amazement. Curiously enough, the mother of Abd-ar-Rahman, who MOORISH INFLUENCE IN ANDALUSIA 35 had great influence over him, was not a member of his race or religion, but a Christian descendant of the Visi- gothic kings. She had brought him up in Seville, where the Emirs had employed Christian Egyptians as work- men and this apparently led to their subsequent employ- ment at 4z-Zahra, where much of the sculpture showed Egyptian feeling and disregard of Moslem tenets. This can be seen in some of the statuary, well-heads, and fountain-basins preserved in the museums of Cordova and Madrid. Fifty capitals of the columns are in the 4/- cazar and its gardens at Seville. Probably most of the remainder of the three thousand, described by the Arab historians as being no two of them alike, are still buried under the ruins of the lost city. At times Seville rivalled Cordova, but less 1s known about the gardens there preceding those of the Alcazar, which will be described in a later chapter. The Gothic cathedral has completely wiped out the great mosque, apart from the Giralda tower. But the Patio de los Naranjos adjoining the cathedral, which was formerly the forecourt of the mosque, has been altered but little and still contains a curious Moorish fountain-basin of interesting design. Toledo, formerly the chief city of the Visigoths, later became the capital of one of the many Moorish princi- palities and a centre of culture. In its environs, now so largely wild and desolate, were many splendid royal residences furnished with unique attractions that have 26 OPANISHUAND PORTUGUESESGAR DENS disappeared almost entirely. [wo of these villas were especially interesting. One, named the ‘Mansion of the Hours,’ now called the Palacio de Galiana, on the bank of the Tagus, near the present railway station, has not been wholly de- stroyed. Supposedly built by King Galafré for his daughter, afterward the wife of Charlemagne, its walls were covered with brilliantly colored mosaics and gilded stucco-work, and the rarest marbles added to the daz- zling effect. Exquisitely sculptured fountains refreshed the air. In the largest of the courtyards was one of those curious hydraulic contrivances which the Arabs delighted to devise for the bewilderment of all beholders. This was the invention of the celebrated astronomer Al-Zarkil, and consisted of two reservoirs of water cun- ningly regulated to correspond exactly to the changing phases of the moon. In the lovely garden here Charle- magne first caught sight of his future bride; but all these glories have passed away. A shady grove in the second of these royal villas half- concealed a gorgeous pavilion erected in the centre of an artificial lake. It could be approached only through a subterranean passage. Glass of many colors filigreed with golden arabesques, covered the sides and the dome above, while the floor was inlaid with mosaics. Hither, in the season described by Sadi, “‘when the fierce heat dried up the moisture of the mouth and the scorching the Emir b) wind consumed the marrow of the bones,’ MOORISH INFLUENCE IN ANDALUSIA 37 would repair to take a siesta. After he was luxuriously ensconced on silken cushions, the water would be turned on until the dome was completely enveloped with spray and shone with the iridescence of a rainbow. In the Province of Granada also the Moors had accomplished wonders. ‘The agricultural system, intro- duced there from Mesopotamia, had turned the vast plain into a succession of luxuriant vineyards and orchards, copiously irrigated by water brought down in aqueducts from the mountains. After the reconquest of the rest of Spain by the Christians, many of the Moslems irom Otncr parts of the country sought refuge here. Towards the close of Moorish domination, the city of Granada was considered the richest in Spain from an intellectual, as well as a material, standpoint. The hills above the town, with their beautiful views of the Vega and the encircling ranges of snow-mountains, were chosen by the Moors as sites for palaces and villas. Fortunately, although so many of the glories of the past have completely vanished, the palace of the dlhambra and the villa of the Generalife still remain connecting links between the civilizations of Moslem and Christian Spain. Injured as they have been by lack of proper care, by indiscriminate praise, and by crude imitations, even in their present state they retain an extraordinary charm. Their walls protect a series of unroofed enclosures, where it is possible to study typical garden-designs, including methods of employing water both for use and ornament, 38 SPANISH AND PORTUGUESE GARDENS of applying many kinds of polychrome tiles to different surfaces, and of paving paths and courtyards with gray and white pebbles to form highly decorative designs. Within these patios the general effect from certain as- pects is little altered, while outside, the marvellous back- ground, formed by the snow-capped peaks of the Sierra Nevada rising above the vast stretches of the Vega, remains in all its primeval beauty untouched by man and untarnished by time. Generally royal palaces are on a large scale in a grandiose style intended to overawe the humble and unaccustomed visitor. The diminutive proportions of these Moorish villas and their fairylike appearance are, therefore, a pleasant surprise. Navegero, the Venetian traveller who visited Granada in 1526, enthusiastically described both residences in detail as they appeared in the time of Charles V. Evidently they were intended to be homelike rather than impressive. The clear-cut decoration escapes being gaudy, notwithstanding the brilliant color combinations used in the tiles and the stucco-work, because it is handled with an exquisite refinement that must be seen to be appreciated. In the patios the method of conducting the water through open marble channels, as in Persia and India, so that it may answer both useful and ornamental purposes, particu- larly impressed me. It is also a relief to see no hard-and- fast plans, no attempt at mathematical precision. The spontaneity of the Middle Ages strikes the keynote, and balance replaces symmetry. Linares LOGGIA AND PATIO DE ACEQUIA, GENERALIFE # = es. Pee) 7 ‘ - ye. it ih exon i WMOORISH INFLUENCE IN ANDALUSIA 41 As the gardens of the Generalife are the oldest in Granada, let us first visit this country residence or ““paradise’’ of the Moorish kings, before trying to unravel the more complicated mysteries of the Palace of the Alhambra. In Arabic Generalife means “lofty garden” and, enthroned high up on the slopes of the Cerro del Sol, it deserves its name. An old inscription shows that it was restored in 1319 by King Ismail soon after he seized the throne from his accomplished uncle Al-Nazar, and so it must have been built at an earlier date. Al-Nazar, like Alphonso X of Castile the most interesting of the medieval Spanish kings, was devoted to the study of astronomy and an excellent mathematician. Since he happened to be staying at the Generalife when the plot against him came to a head, he escaped with his life, though he lost his throne. At the time of the Christian reconquest of Granada, the Generalife villa was given to a Moor who had helped the Catholic Kings, and it has only recently become the property of the Spanish Government. The buildings contain so few rooms that they seem rather more like pavilions intended for a day’s recreation, than for permanent abodes. It is the series of patios and terraces with their box-edged beds, the living waters, and fragrant flowers that must always have been the chief attractions. 7 The approach up a footpath lined on each side by stately cypresses is very impressive, but it leads to an un- pretentious side of the building. Upon entering, we find 42 SPANISH AND PORTUGUESE GARDENS ourselves in a loggia looking into a delightful patio framed by slender marble columns, with a similar loggia at the opposite end. On one side is a marble colonnade PATH TO THE GENERALIFE with a little mosque, turned into a chapel, and opposite is a white wall. Down the centre a stream flows through a wide canal paved with marble and overarched by num- berless jets of water sparkling in the sunshine. Box-edged — borders filled with a medley of fragrant flowers are re- flected in the stream. This court takes its name, Patio de la Acequia, from the aqueduct, which no doubt served for the pious ablutions of the Moorish princes. Linares GENERALIFE b) PATIOMDE LAVACEQUIA MOORISH INFLUENCE IN ANDALUSIA 45 Hidden between the further building and the hillside is the charming Patio de los Cipreses, guarded on three sides by high walls and on the fourth by a loggia ad- joining the modest palace. Not improbably this spot may have formed part of the harim. Curiously enough, © as Mr. Bottomley has discovered, the plan embodies the principles of dynamic symmetry. A narrow, oblong pen- insula of ground, divided into three sections, accented at the ends by oleanders and in the middle by a fountain, oc- cupies the central space. It is nearly surrounded by a canal ten feet wide, into which play merry little spouts of water. A clipped green hedge separates the canal from a path characteristically paved with pebbles laid in a simple pattern. Towering up towards the sky is a gnarled cypress said to be at least six hundred years old, and called ‘‘the Sultana.”’ Thereby hangs a tale that helps us to picture some of the romantic incidents that took place there centuries ago. Under this ancient tree, King Abul-Hassan’s wife, Zoraya, was said to have clandestinely met her lover, one of the Abencerrages. When informed that she was sus- pected of having committed this crime, she was told that she would be burnt alive if she could not secure four knights ready to fight in defence of her honor within thirty days. But on the morning of the final day the lovely Zoraya was in despair, for she was still without a champion. Then Don Juan de Chacon, Lord of Carta- gena (whom she had implored to come to her rescue), ap- 46 SPANISH AND PORTUGUESE GARDENS peared upon the scene with three other Christian knights. They fought against her four accusers and slew them all. Before the last one expired, he admitted with his dying breath that he and his fellow-conspirators had invented the damning charges and that Zoraya was innocent. However, most people have heard only the first part of this story, and persistently believe that the ancient cypress was the trysting-place of guilty lovers. Descending through a passageway under the building near the Patio de los Cipreses, we shall emerge upon one of the most enchanting little hanging gardens I have ever seen. It is actually about forty feet square, though the sides are not exactly parallel, but it looks smaller because of lofty structures that hem it in on every side. Reyes PATIO DE LOS CIPRESES, GENERALIFE MOORISH INFLUENCE IN ANDALUSIA 47 On the outer edge the wall is pierced by five open arch- ways dividing the view of the picturesque Albaicin Hill into panels. In each of the embrasures is a masonry seat built into the thickness of the walls, for wherever there was a fine prospect the Moors wished to have a place to rest in comfort. Formerly the Albaicin was cov- ered with the finest Moorish residences; now its sides are riddled with cave-dwellings and frequented by gyp- sies. [he box-edged parterre is subdivided by eight paths radiating from a round central fountain giving this little terrace its name —the Patio del Fuente Rotundo. The water stairway connecting the ground above the Patio de los Cipreses with the upper apex of the terraced triangle has been admired for centuries. It rises through a shady fringe of trees on the western boundary, and is interestingly broken at intervals by ramps and circular platforms. Water runs down tiled gutters in the top of the abutting parapets and spurts up in small round fountains accenting the landings. On the east side of the triangle a more commonplace staircase, arched over by vines and with broad landings paved with pebbles, also leads up to the Mzrador. Perched at the top of this airy tower we can enjoy a marvellous view of the snow-mountains and the Vega with the Alhambra Hill in the middle distance. Directly below are box-edged parterres ornamenting four different terraces. No two are laid out in the same way and none are strictly symmetrical or formal. All the walls are 48 SPANISH AND PORTUGUESE GARDENS whitewashed, and the highest one is masked by a row of tall laurels and cypresses that 1s very effective. Flower- pots are lined up on the tops of the walls and add a touch of color. MIRADOR, GENERALIFE GARDENS There is a lack of premeditation about the whole pleasaunce that adds much to its charm. The self- conscious peacock slowly unfolding its tail commands our admiration, but does not give us the keen delight evoked by seeing a delicately hued butterfly casually hovering over a flower. An element of surprise is in- troduced everywhere. Gardens, instead of being an- nounced by impressive entrances, turn up in the most MOORISH INFLUENCE IN ANDALUSIA 49 unexpected places. No attempt is made to extend long vistas or to arrive anywhere by logical sequences — and yet this little jewel has a charm which impressed the Moorish historians and made the Venetian traveller Navegero exclaim, early in the sixteenth century, that it was the most beautiful thing he had seen in the course of his journey through Spain. From the Generalife the walls and towers of the Alhambra seem only a short distance away, though separated by an abrupt ravine. Formerly a bridge spanned the ravine, and a secret passage made it easy for the kings to go from one estate to the other un- observed. Now it is necessary to zigzag around past the Washington Irving Hotel and through the Alameda, planted with elms by the Duke of Wellington, and the resort of many nightingales. No one ever visits the enclosure on the Alhambra Hill, surrounded by battlemented walls strengthened by twenty-three towers, without being armed with a guide- book, so I shall not attempt to give a categorical descrip- tion of what is to be seen there. It 1s only in connection with the Moorish palace that there are gardens ante- dating the occupation of Ferdinand and Isabella. Some of the courtyards there, however, also belong to a later period. The part we first enter is called the Palacio de Comares, and was probably built by Yusuf I as a summer- residence. It encloses the Patio de la Alberca, or de los 50 SPANISH AND PORTUGUESE GARDENS Arrayanes, named from the pool down the centre and the clipped myrtle hedges on each side. This is the largest of the courtyards and perhaps the most beautiful. At each end is a cool loggia with slender alabaster columns, while orange-trees shade the centre and are reflected in the water. Here the Moorish princes per- formed their ablutions before going to prayers in their private mosque. Rising above the north end of the courtyard is the battlemented tower of Comares, where especially important personages were imprisoned from time to time. The adjacent Patio de los Leones is named after the twelve rather impossible-looking lions backing up to the fountain in the centre. Here is a case where religious scruples did not prevent Moslems from representing animals, but it does not prove that they could do so very successfully. The fountain-basins belong to an early period, but the central spout is modern. Four open runnels carry the water to the fountain and divide the plot into quarters. The ground, now an arid waste of gravel, was formerly planted with flowers and fruit- trees. Six orange-trees cast a pleasant shade when Philip le Beau was there in 1502. Simple and effective are the eight small basins, placed on the outer margin, intended to catch delicate sprays of water. The airy pavilion with its many slender alabaster columns projecting into the enclosure 1s one of the most perfect pieces of Moorish architecture. Linares PATIO DE LOS ARRAYANES MOORISH INFLUENCE IN ANDALUSIA 53 Two smaller courts, known as the Patio de Daraxa and the Patio de los Cipreses, are not so Oriental in appearance, yet are none the less extremely attractive. The first of them formed part of the Aarim. It is placed in a curiously lopsided enclosure, and there is a pretty PATIO DE DARAXA, ALHAMBRA ajimez, as this characteristic twin-arched window is called, in the wall. The ground is laid out with flower- beds, cypresses, and.a fountain with a Moorish basin. Whatever alterations Charles V may have made here, he did little harm. Much smaller is the Patio de los Cipreses, sometimes known as the Patio de la Reja. It, 54 SPANISH AND PORTUGUESE GARDENS Linares THE MESQUITA OF EL PARTAL too, has a fountain and feathery old cypresses to give it charm and mystery. Perhaps this little spot appeals to some of us as particularly livable because less foreign to Western traditions, although archeologists despise it as dating only to the seventeenth century and devote their attention to the forlorn ruin of a Moorish parterre that is being excavated outside the Mexuar, near by. Beyond the eastern wall, not far from the palace, is the little mosque of E/ Partal. The simple lines, the door- way finished in a horseshoe arch, and the twin windows of this Mesquita make it more interesting than some of the more ambitious structures. Near it are two marble lions spouting into a pool. The gardens of the Cuarto Real de Santo Domingo are also associated with the ALHAMBRA 2) PATIO DE LOS CIPRESES MOORISH INFLUENCE IN ANDALUSIA — 57 Moors, who are supposed to have used the large pool at the Alcazar de Genil for sham naval fights, while the ad- jacent building sheltered the spectators. The pleasure-grounds of the Alcazar at Seville com- bine both Renaissance and Moorish architecture, so they will be described in a later chapter. In other parts of Spain are vestiges of Moorish gardens, but generally too incomplete to be of interest except to archeologists. The bosky terraces and patios at the Generalife and the Alhambra are the most delightful interpretations in Spain of the Moorish love for open-air living-rooms. Chief among their characteristics are the small scale, the freedom of expression, and the varied use of water. As paradise is described in the Koran, so do they include “shadows long extended, near running water, in the midst of fruit-trees.”’ In the Palace of the 4/hambra, on the wall of the “‘Hall of the Two Sisters” are inscribed these significant verses: “T am the garden, and every morning am [| revealed In new beauty. Observe how I am adorned and you will reap the benefit of a commentary on decoration. How many delightful prospects I enfold! Prospects in which the enlightened mind finds the fulfilment of every desire THE PATIO AT EL RAXA GOA Pag eebiT ON THE ISLAND OF MAJORCA Durinc the age of chivalry the little island of Majorca led an interesting life, and the glory of those days has never been forgotten there. After the Vandals had seized it and the other Balearic Islands from the Romans in the fifth century and were in their turn driven out by the Visigoths, the Moors established their ascendancy and brought comparative peace and plenty for about four and a half centuries. Then, in 1232, King Jayme of Aragon sailed with a small army from Barcelona and conquered the Moors, leaving the islands upon his death to one of his sons as a separate kingdom. With the mar- THE RECTORY OF SAN LORENZO, MAJORCA P . ’ A Ay 7 ay ; - nt bed f Ke - a wens riba ; Z ’ he ' am i s : ) ie 7 a s : Pu Une ; =e] a j pen oy fs ' _ ae, ae e! » yt aad at sy it, } 4 9 a 1 ‘ 20% , ", vy : ; : : . i ‘ he 7 : Fi ie a d A ' - 4) Wey ' wi i aad ea Me j a | ; p \ : % ‘ ‘ z nM 7 ‘ . _ ; é ; yt, ee ; eee os . i / : o- m i ay . " ‘+ ; 1 .. ar . or gry d Ps 4 . a. 5 ae A : a, : 7 ; J 7 - =. | 5 F We : 7 t : : i ‘ = Dy, e% eS i 5 . “ 9 / - BE: - , . i P . R ' E Z 7 . ys i ‘ ¢ - ae - - . ‘ f d \ . i | , i , 5 = r % ‘ td - . ‘ i > i i ; = : * ’ i * . q * 4 . 1 -# s ; ‘. ~/ i . F » 5 <% + f Py < | ae — i ‘ . 4 [ . 4 ¥ r. ¢ : ‘ ¥ ‘ % »* ne : hd 4 ee ‘ h ON THE ISLAND OF MAJORCA 61 riage of Ferdinand and Isabella, it became part of Spain, but continued to retain its privileges and to preserve Its individuality. Under Spanish rule it has fortunately been almost unknown to history; even Baedeker omitted to mention its existence until within the last decade. Now, however, tourists are beginning to go there in large numbers, and before long its out-of-the-world atmo- sphere may be lost forever. Reminders of the long Moorish occupation are still to be discovered throughout Majorca. The Moors erected the watch-towers that crown the hills and rocky crags along the coast, they planted the ancient olive-trees, and constructed some of the country-seats with clusters of farm-buildings known by the Arabic name alqueria. Even the men’s baggy Turkish trousers and the veils worn by the women until recently were remnants of Moorish fashions. The Aragonese and the Moors, who ventured to remain, intermarried to some extent and lived side by side on friendly terms. Among the knights whom King Jayme the Conqutsta- dor brought with him from Aragon to subdue the Moors were twenty-five or thirty who were rewarded by being given large Majorcan estates, formerly belonging to the Moors. Many of their descendants still hold this pro- perty and continue to be among the ruling class. Sureda, Zaforteza, and Fortuny are ever names to conjure with all over the island. On their alquerias are the most interest- ing country-houses and gardens. None of these old resi- 62 SPANISH AND PORTUGUESE GARDENS dences betray a trace of architectural pretentiousness; probably the owner and the master-builder constructed them without expert assistance and their great charm 1s their unaffected simplicity. Nature has provided conditions exceptionally favor- able for horticulture and its architectural accessories. The rocky hillsides are easily quarried, and supply differ- ent kinds of limestone and marble admirable in color and texture for fountains, stairways, and walls. Mountain- brooks furnish a plentiful water-supply. In the wonderful climate, milder in winter than that of the French Riviera, almost all vegetation seems to grow luxuriantly. When the almond-trees bloom in February, their dreamlike beauty is indescribable. Nothing could be more beautiful than the soft pink clouds of blossoms contrasting with the gray mountain-peaks that rise above them in the back- ground. In Palma are several patios worth visiting, some of them adjoining the ancient houses of the Majorcan knights. Next the Cathedral on the water-front is the Archbishop’s palace, with a garden especially interesting because of its associations with Raimondo Lullo, the famous martyr. Here he was overwhelmed by a celestial vision, which led him to renounce the flesh and the devil and to begin a new life by pilgrimages to Montserrat and Santiago. The cloisters of the monastery outside the church of San Francisco are attractive; the garth is divided into quarters by flagged walks and planted with THE ARCHBISHOPS GARDEN, PALMA son a ary, ee 4 b ie a bp Se Trie io, oa ar ve’ ’) 4 ea or es PP eiat Mea vf : te 6 ee ae bil’. “a TAT . "4 : J har. > as) - . ; SL aoe * ri 74 : 7 ‘ e f ' aed , o Per - ; et ; ~f? ' : a i] - 5 a a ro 7 7 f s re A \ d é 5 . % a} a iker . mei , 7A ' nr oe _ a. fe ry =) “\ ’ et ee gan * 5 / p i Ad 6 ~ | “ars : hh i en 4 ' y . ‘ f i ry, « \ a 4 in ly thy : : ‘ diy Th . ’ : cs © " \ . . - * 2 : ‘ . r - . ON THE ISLAND OF MAJORCA 6s * Se ee co A STAIRWAY AT BENDINAT trees and flowers. King Jayme II founded the monastery to please his son, who became a Franciscan monk. In the church lie the remains of Raimondo Lullo beneath a marble effigy. Within walking distance of the city and easily reached by tramway is the wonderful fifteenth-century circular castle of Bellver which no one should fail to visit. Not far from there is Bendinat, where the Conquistador gave thanks for a welcome meal after his first victory, saying, ** Havem ben dinat,” meaning, “I have dined well.” The gardens at Bendinat are comparatively modern, but very well kept up and worth seeing for the sake of noting the different kinds of plants growing there. Below Bellver on a hillside sloping down to the shore of the Mediterranean is the pretty seaside resort of Ter- 66 SPANISH AND PORTUGUESE GARDENS reno. [hough not many of the houses are old, the soft pinks, blues, and greens of their stucco walls produce a picturesque effect. Gardens surround the dwellings, and a number of the charming little dooryards to be seen from the road would repay study. In winter many Eng- lish people and a few Americans live there. A tram-line running frequently through the town brings it within easy reach of Palma. Many good roads radiate from this ancient capital to different parts of the island. An automobile can take a traveller from there to almost any point and back again on the same day. More time would be required to visit the town of Pollensa with an old Moorish castle adjacent, far away at the north overlooking a beautiful bay. Some of the artists living here have gardens well worth seeing. It would be interesting to explore Son Heretat, Son An- tich, Son Berga, and several other places mentioned by the Archduke Ludwig Salvator, to see if the terraces and pergolas he described are still there. Everywhere I went I had glimpses of flower-beds and many quaint architec- tural features. It was a pleasure to see such delightful results accomplished with so little apparent effort. The larger country-houses, ornamented with ajimez or twin windows divided by slender marble columns like those in the Palace of the Alhambra, are usually built around courtyards not necessarily rectangular and almost invariably centring upon a well-head of limestone or marble. Each garden is a law unto itself, and may be ON THE ISLAND OF MAJORCA 67 sequestered in a spot difficult to locate, but generally it is placed on terraces near the house, which is preferably on a hillside commanding an extensive view. There is a great variety of pergolas and ornamental well-heads. Clear streams of water rise above fountain-basins, tumble below in cascades, and lie stored in large reservoirs that mirror the azure sky and the enchanting scenery. One of the old country-seats, where the charm of Moorish influence still pervades the atmosphere, is E/ Raxa. It lies about seven miles from Palma on the in- teresting road to Soller and occupies the site of a Moorish alqueria. Other farms belonging to distinguished Mos- lems were in this neighborhood. After the defeat of the Moors, in the redistribution of their lands, £/ Raxa was given 1n 1234 to the sacristan of the Cathedral at Gerona, as the Archbishop there had assisted the Conquistador by furnishing thirty mounted men-at-arms for his expedi- tion to Majorca. Later this estate was inherited by the family of Cardinal Despuig, who added to the buildings in the seventeenth century. Eventually the Cardinal’s fine collection of classic sculpture and other relics, many of them exhumed at his villa near Albano, was installed here. The rambling house, evidently enlarged from time to time, is spacious and substantially built, but belongs to no one, particular style. In the centre is a simple patio shaded by a large elm and furnished with a char- acteristic well. On the south side of the house a pleasant and rather commonplace parterre covers a broad ter- 68 SPANISH AND PORTUGUESE GARDENS race overlooking the valley, clothed with groves of gnarled olive-trees, some of them so ancient that they are believed to have been planted by the Moors. An old labyrinth is on another terrace near the house. The great attraction of El Raxa, however, lies in the series of terraced gardens north of the house, clinging by means of retaining walls to a steep hillside. Since these terraces are eight in number, corresponding to the eight paradises in the Koran that inspired similar series of platforms in Persia, it may not seem too far-fetched to suggest that they were first laid out by the Moors and much later embellished with some of the Cardinal’s Italian spoils. A beautifully proportioned stairway of soft gray stone, mottled by orange lichens, leads from the level on which the house stands, far up to a walled recess surmounted by columns and a statue. Below them are stone benches and a fountain. In the background is a grove of Aleppo pines whose ancestors may have been brought by the Arabian settlers. Rivulets run through open gutters to irrigate the flower-beds and supply the fountains. At the posts ending the retaining-walls on each side of the stairway, streams gush from leonine masks and fall into small basins only to overflow into larger ones below and be carried away in tiny canals. Quaint stone statues, alternating with vases of flowers and crouching lions, stand on these posts and are very effective. In contrast with the stone-work are the orange- and THE SUMMIT OF THE STAIRWAY, EL RAXA - ON THE ISLAND OF MAJORCA 71 lemon-trees, oleanders and cypresses, that fill the ter- races almost to the exclusion of any flowering plants. Yet geraniums climb over the retaining-walls, and here and there are deep blue iris, clumps of pink stock, and THE TOPMOST TERRACE, EL RAXA yellow ixia. Gray and green are the predominant colors. Dark shadows lie under the trees, and sunlight only filters through the leafy branches. The cool, mysterious effect is somehow suggestive of fairyland. >What struck me especially about the architecture and 72 SPANISH AND PORTUGUESE GARDENS sculpture was its unusually small scale. The terraces are only twelve or thirteen feet wide, the statues are hardly more than half life-size, and the fountain-basins diminu- tive, but all in perfect proportion. Part of the charm comes from the apparent lack of premeditation in the different effects and the centuries of time that have rounded off all the corners and given the stone-work the mellow look that comes only with age. There 1s no line of demarcation between the terraces I have described and the surrounding ground, which has been left almost entirely to nature. From the uppermost level a wide path skirts the hillside in both directions. To the right it leads towards a point where there is a wonderful view over the rich plain planted with olives and almonds as far as Palma and the sea. On one side of this path is a parapet covered with potted plants, while on the other a continuous row of stone benches follows the line of the bank and makes it possible to sit down anywhere at pleasure. On the left the path con- tinues through groves of pines past a reservoir that looks large until farther along another 1s reached many times its size. [This miniature lake is approached by an orna- mental flight of steps ending in a stone platform, near the water, with a table and benches conveniently placed there. A sharp declivity falls below the outer edge of the lake, and in the background rises a dark, rocky mountain. Still another beautiful view can be obtained by following a new path up to the summit of the hill where there is a VXVU 1a SUIOANASAY AOUVT AHL ON THE ISLAND OF MAJORCA 78 Trujol THE LARGE RESERVOIR, EL RAXA little summer-house, built about seventy-five years ago. Not far from E/ Raxa is Valldemosa, with its ancient Carthusian monastery. It lies on a hillside overlooking a lovely valley frowned upon by sombre mountain peaks. The Arab rulers, who always rejoiced to contemplate striking scenery, had their summer-residence here. After the conquest of the Moors, King Sancho built a castle on this site in order to engage in hawking and other field sports. Later the religious zeal of King Martin led him, in 1399, to grant it to the Carthusians for a monastery, and the spacious apartments were devoted to the use of monks. They increased the number of the buildings, in the course of time, and dwelt there until the suppression 76 SPANISH AND PORTUGUESE GARDENS of the order early in the nineteenth century, when the buildings passed into private hands. Now the tenants are chiefly artists. Each so-called ‘“‘cell” 1s in reality one of a block of twelve little houses and chapels. Every monk had also his own garden. It is worth while to visit them to see how much can be made of a tiny plot of ground. In two of these dwellings George Sand and Chopin spent a few miserable, stormy weeks during the winter of 1838, and he wrote his Preludes there. Her letters from Majorca are not flattering to the inhabitants, but her descriptions of the landscape and of the monastery depict them vividly as they exist to-day. Of her garden, only twenty feet square, she writes: “‘As for the parterre planted with pomegranates, lemons, and oranges, surrounded by paved walks, shaded as well as the tank by a fragrant arbor; it is like a pretty room made of flowers and green- ery. Here the monk could pace in moist weather with- out wetting his feet, and refresh the soil with water from the tank when the sun was hot, inhale the perfume of the orange-trees, whose tufted branches raised beneath his eyes a canopy shining with flowers and fruit, and con- — template in perfect peace the landscape at the same time austere and gracious, melancholy and magnificent... in fine cultivate to please his eyes rare and precious flowers, gather to quench his thirst the most delicious fruit, listen to the sublime sound of the ocean, regard the splendor of summer nights under a superb sky, and wor- ON THE ISLAND OF MAJORCA a7 ship the Eternal in the most beautiful temple that was ever offered to man in the bosom of nature.”’ Two cloister-garths in the monastery are interesting. One, at the end of the older part of the building, is sur- rounded by a Gothic arcade connecting it with the rooms that used to be occupied by the holy Prior. Very shady it is, planted chiefly with ferns, and looks green and rest- ful. Some members of the distinguished Sureda family now live here. The second, an eighteenth-century court, is described in Chapter VI, among other smaller gardens and patios. Late one afternoon, on the way back from Miramar or V alldemosa to Palma, I climbed a high hill by automobile and found a substantial manor-house called Sa Coma. Some picturesque terraces here were laid out in no particular relation to the house. In one of them was what I had learned in Barcelona to call a glorteta, a sort of little temple made of cypresses to look like the pa- vilions that often crown wells in the centre of monas- tic cloisters. Tall cypresses also enclosed most of this terrace, with their tops clipped in ornamental shapes. Darkness prevented my exploring these grounds very thoroughly, but I imagine that other interesting spots probably exist there. Above the steep cliffs on the seacoast a few miles from Valldemosa \ies Miramar, the extensive country-seat of the late Austrian Archduke Ludwig Salvator. Near two of his residences, which are still occupied by his heirs, 78-- SPANISH AND PORTUGUESE GARD EMS are small, romantic gardens. One of these buildings con- tains a very interesting collection of old Majorcan furni- ture, pottery, and tiles that are frequently shown to visitors. The associations of this locality with Raimondo Lullo, who taught Arabic ina college built on the hillside with the sanction of Pope John XXI, and the beauti- ful views of the wild mountain-tops and the steep rocky cliffs rising from the sea, are the chief reasons for going there. At several vantage-points the Archduke erected masonry platforms surrounded by low parapets, closely resembling Persian roof-terraces. The miniature marble temple near the water was also built at his insti- gation. Another alqueria, where a few curious vestiges of archi- tecture still attest to its Moorish origin, is called Alfabia, and is near the town of Bunola. After the Conquest it was apportioned to the celebrated Count of Roussillon, uncle of the Conqueror, and one of the bravest of the knights who aided the expeditionary force. He gave it to Juan Bennasser, the son of the Moor Benhabet, the former owner, whom King Jayme describes in his *‘ Chron- icle’’ as having supplied him with food at a critical time during the siege of Palma. ‘“‘He was an angel of God,” writes Don Jayme. ‘‘No one need be surprised if We so describe him even if he was a Saracen, for he relieved us from such great distress that We consider him an angel and to an angel alone can We compare him.” The entrance to the patio at d/fabia is through an im- A PERGOLA AT ALFABIA ON THE ISLAND OF MAJORCA SI posing archway with an interestingly ornamented Moor- ish ceiling. At the rear of the house is a garden that has been allowed to grow wild, but has not lost its charm. Its shady, winding walks suggest the narrow Moorish streets ENTRANCE TO PATIO, ALFABIA ts curved to avoid continuous exposure to the sun. From the patio, with its central fountain, another archway leads through a passage under the house to a small terrace and up some steps to a path connecting the house with a fine avenue of lime-trees ending at a high stucco facade, 82, SPANISH“AND PORTUGUESE GARDENS with a wall-fountain in the centre and doors on each side. Upon entering, a window in the wall at the right opens upon a large reservoir. It is a surprise to find no building of any size behind the facade, nor are there any flower- FOUNTAIN, ALFABIA gardens, though possibly there may once have been a parterre, in the field where only vegetables are grown now. However, there still exists a long and very beautiful pergola with thirty-two octagonal stone columns in the Moorish style, supporting a coved roof overrun by vines. ON THE ISLAND OF MAJORCA 83 At the ends of the pergola are little pavilions furnished with stone tables, and between the columns are stone jars. When the water is turned on, it spurts from holes in the middle of the tables, and from the mouths of the Jars, showering the chequered pebble pavement while taking the unwary visitor by surprise. PSLERGOLA AT LA GRAN|TA DE FORTOUNY Northwest of Palma, not far from Esporlas, is per- haps the most beautiful country-house to be found on the island, known as La Granja de Fortuny. It forms asquare slightly irregular in shape around a large patio. On the side facing down the valley an open gallery, with an arcade of marble columns supporting the roof, 1s strik- ingly picturesque. At the division of the land after the Conquest, it fell to Count Sarry, who lent it to be used 84. SPANISH AND PORTUGUESE GARDENS A PERGOLA OVER A WELL AT CANET for a while as a Cistercian convent. Behind the house is a small garden laid out towards the end of the eighteenth century in the so-called Romantic style. The paths are serpentine and the beds very irregular in shape, the ap- parent object being to avoid the use of any straight lines. At the back of this garden ts a high cliff forming a rock- garden and ingeniously scaled by a chain of paths and stairways. Above is a pergola and a quaint little bath- house. | Below the road, as it approaches the villa, is a long per- gola, with a slightly arched roof made of wooden rafters covered with brushwood, and ending in a small pavilion. On the side towards the road it is protected by a wall about four feet high, but on the opposite side the square ON THE ISLAND OF MAJORCA Se A GROUP OF ARCHITECTURAL FEATURES AT CANET posts rest on a low parapet that is covered with a long line of potted plants of many different kinds. Amaryllis, lav- ender, dusty-miller, geraniums in variety, chrysanthe- mums, and many others jostle each other with no regard for rhyme or reason. An ancient yew tree stands at the end near the steps. In the same direction as Esporlas is an old place, named Canet, celebrated at the time of the Conquest on account of a valuable spring. After the Christians had pitched one of their camps beside this mountain-brook in order to make sure of a supply of good water during the long siege of Palma, they discovered that a wily Moslem named Fateh-Billah and some of his followers were trying to divert the stream near its source. The Count of Roussil- 86 SPANISH AND PORTUGUESE GARDENS lon and his comrade Bernard de Santa Eugenia de Torella surprised the Moors in making this attempt, and defeated them so thoroughly that the besiegers never suffered from further interference from outside during the siege. King Jayme rewarded Torella by making him the first governor of Majorca and by giving him this property, which has remained in the hands of his family ever since then. Two high gateposts near the road mark the entrance, and from it a broad grass path ascends a steep incline to a spacious mansion. The hillside is clothed with beau- tiful pines, and at the left, halfway up to the house, is a very quaint little parterre with beds partly edged with box and partly with euonymus. A screen of cypresses rises on one side leaving lower enclosing hedges for the remainder. From the terrace in front of the house is an extensive view. Below at the left lies a large walled garden. At the right beyond the duck-pond is a group of those simple architectural features that are often found in Majorca in the most unexpected and secluded places. On a stone platform stands a well-head, and near it, against a vine-covered wail, are a bench and table also of gray stone. In the distance beautiful hills hide the horizon. Clabaver lisse IY THE CLOISTER-GARTH To enjoy the cloisters opening from so many of the Spanish churches and monasteries, it is not necessary to have any knowledge of archeology or much information concerning successive styles of architecture. Spanish arch- itects have never been bound by hard-and-fast rules, and they have not hesitated to borrow beautiful ideas from widely differing sources and to introduce them when- ever and however they pleased. The unity and purity of style usually considered essential by critics, and carried to such perfection in Italy and France, was neither de- sired nor achieved by those who erected the most char- acteristic buildings in Spain. Annoying and puzzling as this confusion is to art historians and archeologists, it is somewhat of a relief to find a country where one’s pleasure is not dependent upon the weight of one’s in- tellectual baggage. Certain influences did predominate from time to time, of course. During the rule of the Visigoths there was a style which they probably brought with them as a re- sult of their former intercourse with Persia, Armenia, and the Byzantine Empire; this was modified by contact with the Moors after their occupation of the Iberian Peninsula. Later French and Flemish Gothic besides Italian Renais- 88 SPANISH AND PORTUGUESE GARDENS sance had their innings, but were changed enough to be in harmony with Spanish traditions. So, while a church or monastery may have been hundreds of years in the mak- ing, and any number of architects may have had a hand in developing it upon very different lines, the general effect is usually altogether delightful. Heretics, like Augustus Saint-Gaudens, who seldom willingly entered a cathedral in France, wax enthusiastic about the churches they have discovered on the lesser-known side of the Pyrenees. The manner of treating the columns and arches form- ing an arcade around the outside of the cloisters helps to determine the style of a building and the period when it was erected. Reduced to their simplest elements, the round arch distinguishes the Romanesque, the horseshoe arch is characteristic of the Moorish, and the pointed arch marks the Gothic style. The simplicity of the early Gothic, as perhaps originally brought from the Near East and reintroduced by the Cistercians from France in the twelfth century, later developed into the florid style created by Flemish architects, ending in the Plat- eresque, with its ornamentation suggestive of gold- smiths’ work. Moorish influence had its effect long after the Reconquest and reappears in many different forms. When. the Italian Renaissance revived an interest in classic Roman and Greek art, its different phases were reflected in Spain, sometimes with the severe simplicity of the Escorial and sometimes in the most ornate mani- festations of the Baroque, as in the Cartuja at Granada. CLOISTERS, VALLDEMOSA, PAINTED BY S. RUSINOL ed . ‘al ee * “ee tee } Z a : fe - , , 1 bs ‘ ‘ 1 THE CLOISTER-GARTH gI A pilgrimage to Montserrat is a fitting preliminary to visiting the monastic cloisters and attempting to enter into the lives of the religious devotees who made them MONTSERRAT, PAINTED BY S. RUSINOL their homes. No words can describe this strange solitary mountain rising high above an undulating plateau. Its jagged peaks, suffused with the soft rich colors seen in the Grand Canyon, have always filled men with awe and become associated in their minds with some deep mys- 92 SPANISH AND PORTUGUESE GARDENS tery. Legends relate that these serrated peaks, from which it takes its name, were rent asunder at the time of the crucifixion, and that somewhere on its slopes was erected the castle in which was guarded the Holy Grail. The Monasterio del Montserrat was built to enshrine an image of the Madonna supposed to have been carved by Saint Luke, then brought by Saint Peter to Barcelona early in the first century, and afterward hidden from the Moors in a cave on the mountainside. Nuestra Senora de Montserrat is the patron saint of Catalonia and thou- sands of pilgrims worship at her shrine. Here came Rai- mondo Lullo when he had resolved to abandon the gay life of a courtier in Palma and devote himself to the service of God, and here Saint Ignatius of Loyola in the chapel of the great Benedictine abbey kept vigil ali night at the Lady altar before laying aside his sword and taking the solemn vows that eventually led to his becoming the founder of the Society of Jesus. Only fragments of the early monastery remain, but there is still an old cypress walk leading to the Mirador of the monks with a bench overlooking the marvellously dramatic landscape; above are volcanic mountain-crests half-clothed with the soft, shimmering foliage of wild olives; below stretches an un- dulating plain far away to the snow-capped Apennines — a rare manifestation of nature that brings men nearer to God and attunes them to the Infinite. Stories, seemingly incredible, kept alive for centuries by unverified traditions, have been curiously substan- THE CLOISTER-GARTH 93 tiated by recent investigators. Actually there is reason to believe that the Apostles Saint Peter and Saint James the Greater visited Spain and made converts to Chris- tianity there about the year 33 of our era. It is also prob- able, after Saint James died a martyr’s death in Judza, that several of his Spanish disciples brought back his body for burial in their native country. The discovery of his remains in the ninth century undoubtedly led to a great religious revival that strengthened the monastic orders and inspired the Christians to fight with such in- tense ardor, under the Saint’s ghostly leadership, that eventually they completely routed the Moslems. At Santiago de Campostela Saint James’s relics now lie buried in the Cathedral, which is the finest example of the early Romanesque style in Spain. The cloisters there, as well as those in the Hospital Real, founded by the Catholic Kings and designed by Enrique de Egas in the Plateresque style, are very interesting. Certain monastic orders became powerful and then gave place to others in Spain as elsewhere. The first to flourish were the Benedictines. Their founder, Saint Benedict, discouraged the flagellations and manifesta- tions of asceticism, carried to such extremes by the early Christian hermits like Saint Anthony and practiced to- day in some parts of the Levant. That even the hermits sometimes enjoyed tending plants, is shown in an old illumination where one of them stands nearest to heaven among all the different men of religion, mounting the 94 SPANISH AND PORTUGUESE GARDENS Ladder to Perfection, but is held back by his fondness for his garden. In his own words Saint Benedict strove to establish ‘“‘a school for the service of the Lord.” His motto might have been Laborare est orare, and the kind of work upon which he laid great emphasis, and to which his followers devoted even more time than to prayer, was agriculture, including horticulture. Thus, within the walls of the Benedictine monasteries were large gardens cultivated by the monks in common, and often smaller plots assigned to the Abbot and to the chief almoner of the community. Here flowers, despised by many primitive Christians as Pagan emblems, were now grown to deck the altars in the churches. The rose, the lily, and the iris were held in high esteem and had sym- bolic significance. At Subiaco, near one of the hated Nero’s artificial lakes, is the cave where Saint Benedict spent years in solitude and prayer. Close by, stands the monastery of Saint Scholastica which he founded. Here is still preserved a little garden filled with roses said to be those in whose beauty he delighted and with whose thorns he used to mortify his flesh when struggling to drive away thoughts of the beautiful temptress who sometimes haunted his day-dreams. The plan of the ancient monastery of Saint Gall, in Switzerland, familiar to Charlemagne, still exists, and supplies us with much valuable information as to the arrangement of a great religious establishment belong- ing to the Benedictines in the ninth century. This was THE CLOISTER-GARTH 95 the prevalent type of plan adopted by their Order in other countries, and, although it underwent certain modifications, it always remained essentially the same. The cultivated grounds within the walled enclosure consisted of four divisions: the cloister-garth, the physic- garden, the vegetable-garden, and a combination of orchard and burial-ground. The cloister-garth was a square, planted with grass and shrubs, and divided by two intersecting paths into four equal quarters. In the centre was a savina supplying water for drinking and washing purposes. These cloisters were south of the church and surrounded by the other more important communal buildings. In general appearance the monastic cloisters bear a strong resemblance to the Oriental court, the Greek peri- style, and the Roman atrium, but one marked differ- ence is that in classic courtyards the columns stand on the ground, while in the cloisters they rest on a parapet. The reason for placing them south of the church was in order that, unshadowed by its lofty walls, the monks might have the full benefit of the sun as they paced up and down the corridor reciting their prayers, or sat on the benches either studying religious books or wrapped in contemplation. But it is recorded that gossiping in the corners of cloisters often gave occasion for doing penance. Symbolically the cloister represented in a moral sense the contemplation into which the soul withdrew itself and hid, after being separated from carnal thoughts, and 96 SPANISH AND PORTUGUESE GARDENS where it reflected upon the only true blessings — those of heaven. The four enclosing walls symbolized con- tempt for one’s self, contempt for the world, love of one’s neighbor, and love of God. The grass plot was sometimes called ‘‘paradise,” signifying to the monks the increase of their virtues. The walls of the cloister were usually painted with frescoes representing scenes from the Old and New Testa- ments like those in the Monasterio Real at Pedralbes and ornamenting the cloisters of Leon Cathedral. Unique features in the cloisters of the cathedral at Burgos, which are unusually varied and full of interest, are the paintings on the upper part of the walls distinctly showing Moorish influence. There is also much beautiful carving on the capitals of the columns and on the abaci above them. Sometimes the subjects chosen were more humorous than religious, as can be seen in the funny little stories illus- trated above the columns in the cloisters of the cathedral of Tarragona. The doorways also furnished opportuni- ties for elaborate carving and fine wrought-iron -work. When the cloisters were used as burial-places for mem- bers of the royal family and other persons of unusual dis- tinction, their tombs were often beautiful as well as interesting on account of their association. After each Barbarian invasion it was the clergy who tried to redeem what was left of civilization. In the early monasteries gardens were a necessity, not only to supply the monks with vegetables and herbs for food and medi- THE CLOISTER-GARTH 97 cine, but with flowers which, in the words of one of the Merovingian kings, gave pleasure through their beauty and fragrance besides serving to ornament the churches on feast-days. Vineyards and orchards were also com- monly cultivated by the monks. Another necessity was a fish-pond, or at least a tank where fish could be kept alive, and which might also serve for ducks and swans. During the latter half of the sixth and seventh centu- ries, after the Visigoths had expelled the Vandals and established themselves as the rulers of Spain in place of the Pagan representatives of the Roman Empire, Chris- tianity spread through the chief cities. Churches and monasteries were erected in many of the prosperous towns, such as Toledo, Granada, Cordova, and Mérida, but none of them exist to-day except in a very fragmen- tary condition. Far away in the north, at Oviedo in the former kingdom of Asturias never wholly conquered by the Moors, are three churches dating from the ninth century that are among the most ancient still extant. Two other churches not far from Oviedo, San Miguel de Linio and Santa Cristina, have certain features of Oriental origin, the most curious being tribunes behind the altar, probably screened with lattice-work like the rooms set apart for female worshippers opening into the Moslem mosques and intended to seclude the women who took part in the services. The black veils still so commonly worn by Spanish women are a relic of those many centuries, when, like their Moslem sisters, they 98 SPANISH AND PORTUGUESE GARDENS never appeared in public without having their faces con- cealed. That there were monasteries is known, because some of the abbots took part in the Councils of Toledo, but little can be told about them except that they did not belong to the Benedictine Order, which 1s not recorded as existing in Spain before the ninth century. In Catalonia, the northeastern province, where the Moors were not allowed to stay long, are also some of the most ancient churches and monasteries. Among the oldest cloisters there are those connected with the Bene- dictine church of San Pedro de los Galligans at Gerona, with its quaint minaret belfry like those rising above the Great Mosque of Damascus. The columns and arches, surrounding the four-square garth well planted with trees and flowers, cause it to be considered one of the best examples of the Romanesque style. It 1s now oc- cupied by the provincial Archeological Museum. The cloisters of the Gerona Cathedral, too, are worth seeing as being of the Romanesque period, and there are others in the town of considerable interest. Simpler than any of these, but very attractive, is the court of the Monas- tery at Banolas, in this same district. For a time Mistress of the Mediterranean as Venice was Queen of the Adriatic during part of the Middle Ages, Barcelona has always been the richest city in Cata- lonia and the custodian of many fine buildings. The oldest church is San Pedro de las Puellas, but its cloisters were destroyed long ago. Luckily, however, those belong- Mas MONASTERY, BANOLAS CLOISTERS, « wt Pa . nee vat es a te é — Neal ; ° s J jviln . oL . 5 Oe oats a ¥ ot , » : na : a . ‘ , ’ al , cm . * f" 1 a * ‘ b4 1