Aljafería Palace

About this place

Built in the 11th century for Zaragoza's Muslim rulers, this fortified palace preserves rare architecture from the taifa kingdoms. Later Christian rulers adapted the complex. Its decorative arches and carved surfaces offer a close view of the artistic sophistication of medieval Islamic courts. The palace was associated with the Banu Hud dynasty, whose court flourished during the period of independent Muslim kingdoms. Later alterations did not entirely erase that earlier identity. The surviving ornament allows visitors to compare this 11th-century courtly world with the later Nasrid architecture of Granada's Alhambra.