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The Real Alcázar of Seville

The below image is of the Patio de las Doncellas (Courtyard of the Maidens) in the Real Alcázar of Seville in Spain. The Real Alcázar of Seville is a complex of palaces built since the 10th century over several hundred years by different monarchs on the site of a Muslim fortress; the Islamic period’s monarchs to the Christian period’s monarchs, each slowly added their extensions to the palace that is in view today. The word alcázar is derived from the Arabic word al-qasr, which means castle. In 1987, the Real Alcázar of Seville was designated as a UNESCO World Heritage site, along with the Seville Cathedral and the General Archive of the Indies in the same city.

Courtyard of the Maidens in 2025. Image by Von Chua.

Although the Courtyard of the Maidens is one of the key viewpoints within the heart of the Real Alcázar of Seville, until 2004, the reflecting pool and sunken garden with Seville’s famous orange trees that you see here within the area remained hidden under marble coverings laid between 1581 and 1584 (see below an image of the Courtyard of the Maidens covered). The original garden and reflecting pool were said to have been built between 1356 and 1366. It was later discovered between 2002 and 2005 by a team of archaeologists led by Miguel Angel Tabales, then revealed and restored. Apparently, soon after the restoration, due to a movie filming scene needed by movie director Ridley Scott, it was requested it be paved again for the set for the court of the King of Jerusalem in Scott’s movie Kingdom of Heaven.

To see the before and after mapped out in 3D, please use this link:

Courtyard of the Maidens in 1989. Image credit Tim Benton / RIBA Collections.

Legend has it that the sultan of Cordoba demanded 100 virgins every year as a tribute to the court. The name the ‘Courtyard of the Maidens’ was derived from the maidens in the legend which has a sinister lens, even though the courtyard space is meant to evoke feelings of serenity. Overall, the courtyard is designed as a rectangular courtyard surrounded by poly-lobed arches and is said to be one of the most representative decorative motifs of the Almohad dynasty. The symbolism within the design includes things like the symbolism of fertility and life, protection by the Hand of Fatima, geometric compositions, and more. There are rooms arranged in parallel to the long lengths of the promenades in its full length. Bordering the reflecting pool on the left and right are two landscaped areas located one meter beneath the pavement level, planted with Seville’s famous orange trees. Upon close observation, the landscaped areas are purposely designed lower than the ground floor to help ease the harvesting of the fruits when in season. 

King Pedro I was an admirer of Islamic architecture and culture, and had his palace designed in Moorish and Gothic style in the 14th century. He planned a great palace to magnify his presence and power, however, he was not able to see the project through when he was assassinated by his half-brother Enrique II. Based on King Pedro I’s plans, the Courtyard of the Maidens resembles the courtyards seen in Alhambra and Generalife in Granada. As King Pedro I also had a cordial relationship with the Nasrid, they sent master craftsmen such as Arab and Berber artisans to help build and craft the decoration of the Real Alcázar of Seville. The chronology of the constructions at Alhambra and the Real Alcázar of Seville was complicated in chronology, so it has been notoriously difficult for academics to determine the influences and sequences of events that both locations had on each other.

Between the two versions (1989 vs. 2025 seen in the images within this article) of the Courtyard of the Maidens at the Real Alcázar of Seville, the deliberate use of water demonstrates its power when it is intentionally used. In Islam, water was said to be ‘from water every living creature was created’. Therefore, the use of water is also present to symbolise life-giving, purifying and sustaining in Islamic architecture. From a practical point of view, water also provides a cooling effect in hot and dry climates which is dominant in the countries that Islam originates from. Other than that, the use of water within architecture can be directed to emphasize visual axes such as a linear axis seen here. It generates a geometrical projection that breaks the structural horizontal lines of the space. A summary of the important aspects of design using water such as a reflecting pool in Islamic architecture are:

• Form: Linear to mark an axis vs. company to mark a point
• Type: Fountain which is dynamic vs. pool which is static
• Depth: Deep to reflect its surroundings vs. shallow to illuminate the intricately-patterned basic

To this day, the Real Alcázar of Seville remains as the official residence of the King of Spain in Seville. The upper floors are reserved for the royal family’s use. In 1995, Juan Carlos I used the palace for the wedding reception of his eldest daughter, Elena.

Whilst the grandeur at Alhambra’s The Court of the Myrtles presents itself as a more impressive space measuring 23.5 meters by 36.6 meters, the smaller and less touristy Courtyard of the Maidens in the Real Alcázar of Seville measuring 15 meters by 21 meters is worth a visit if you are in the area.