Moors' Art of Gardening

y the time Middle Europe was still dismembered and the small feuds exhausted their power through everyday discords, the Moors created a mighty kingdom on the Iberian peninsula. They came there from their native sunny and sandy deserts with the thirst for verdure and water. The Moors were incredibly open-minded and perceptive. They had assimilated the Persian culture and created their own art of gardening in Spain in which they interwove eastern traditions with architectural forms of Greece and Rome and the colorful richness of Byzantine. 

The Moors found Spain as bare as the Arabian subcontinent is today. But Moorish masters applied the Roman building techniques and their water supplying facilities (aqueducts, canals, reservoirs, etc.) in particular and thus succeeded in making use of the snow water in the high mountains of Spain (Sierra Nevada). The country soon turned to a flourishing garden thanks to this irrigation system. The economic conditions improved as well, so the Arabian rulers began intensive building…The Alhambra palace and gardens are considered the most remarkable examples of that period. 

A major characteristic feature of the Moorish gardens in Spain was their strictly limited area. However, this perfectly matched their purpose: not for official receptions, but for relaxation and walks of the family members. That is why the composition is developed on a “social” scale. More space meant only more small yards, not larger constructions. Every yard was entered through a gate, which was rarely placed in the axis of the garden composition. 

This limited space was splendidly planted with cypresses, trimmed box-shrubs, myrtles, eucalyptuses and magnolias. Palms replaced the evergreen species. The vegetation was always fresh in spite of the hot climate, which was due to the lavish irrigation provided by the masterful watering facilities. 

Water played an important role in the decorative design as well. And yet the streams of the fountains were perfectly sized so that almost every drop fell into special shallow pools which transported water to the small cascades with a minimum lost. The bottom and the rims of the pools and the canals were tiled with beautiful enameled ceramics whose colors were amplified by the water. 

The function of flowers was less significant. Grass parterres lined with trimmed box-shrubs created an austere harmony of green shades corresponding to the use of the garden and its compositional simplicity. The colorful effect was achieved mostly through numerous containers arranged around the pools and near the buildings. Sculptural decoration and architectural details were also simplified to an extreme extent. None of the separate elements in the garden had its own value. The pool rims represented low walls of rough masonry. Simple parapets of steel sticks fenced the staircases. Water streams glided down on plain chute tiles, as if accompanying the footfalls of the visitors.

The Moors didn’t seek far perspectives. The composition is perceived gradually through the small, even not situated in their axis arcades. As a matter of fact, the real charm of the Moorish gardens is believed to be hidden exactly in their closeness.