The gate of the pomegranates

Around 1536 the solemn Alhambra Gate of the Pomegranates was built. It was the work of Pedro Machuca, the architect responsible for the Palace of Charles V, which like the gate, was made of bolstered cut stone bonding.

The tympanum has an Imperial coat of arms, with allegorical figures of Peace and Abundance, topped by three pomegranates after which the gate is named.

The Renaissance gate replaced an earlier one that was Muslim, the remains of which can be seen on the right. Behind the gate is the Alhambra Wood, with a road and two side trails; the one on the right leads to the Crimson Towers, the Manuel de Falla Auditorium, and the Martyrs’ Walled Villa; the trail on the left, once known as “The Paved Slope”, starts at the marble Cross, dating back to 1641, and leads to the south side of the Alhambra wall, where its various access points are located.