Frieze of Palace of San Francisco

Opening hours: Every Saturday in February, at 12 noon.
Location: Room V, Museum of the Alhambra, Palace of Charles V.
The Patronato de la Alhambra y Generalife presents the epigraphic frieze of the Bath of the Palace of San Francisco in the Alhambra as piece of the month in the Museum of the Alhambra. Every Saturday in February, from 12:00 on, the archaeologist Paula Sánchez will reveal details and specialties of this type of ornamentation. Special emphasis is placed on the concept of frieze, which is one of the main types of architectural ceramics used in al-Andalus for covering and ornamentation of walls.
Also is offered an analysis of the discovery of the frieze fragments from the Nasrid period, on display at present in the Room V of the Museum of the Alhambra. This event was documented in the archaeological excavations made in the Bath of the Palace of San Francisco in the Alhambra.
The explanation basically involves the description of the morphological and typological characteristics and the techniques of the two items, with a special emphasis on the definition of the so-called inlay technique. This technique reaches a high grade of perfection in the Nasrid world, where it had a highly decorative value.
Also the use of these elements in the covering of the buildings is analyzed, since their function is to protect the walls, as well as being decorative surfaces and supports for the transmission of specific political and ideological messages. From this point of view, this frieze, found in a palace, is an excellent example.
Furthermore, other pieces belonging to the same frieze are mentioned, found recently in the Bath of the same palace. In short, these friezes with similar chronology and design help to investigate the role of these elements and techniques within the Alhambra decorative program.