Giralda: Difference between revisions

Coordinates: 37°23′10.3″N 5°59′32.7″W / 37.386194°N 5.992417°W / 37.386194; -5.992417
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The '''Giralda''' ({{lang-es|La Giralda}} {{IPA-es|la xiˈɾalda|}}) is the [[bell tower]] of [[Seville Cathedral]] in [[Seville]], Spain.<ref>{{cite book|title=Seville|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=b1f20FfMiogC&q=seville|isbn = 9781903471869|last1 = Symington|first1 = Andy|year = 2003}}</ref> It was built as the [[minaret]] for the Great Mosque of Seville in [[al-Andalus]], Moorish Spain, during the reign of the [[Almohad]] dynasty, with a [[Renaissance]]-style top added by the Catholics after the expulsion of the Muslims from the area. The Giralda was registered in 1987 as a [[World Heritage Site]] by [[UNESCO]], along with the [[Alcazar of Seville|Alcázar]] and the [[General Archive of the Indies]]. The tower is {{convert|104.1|m|ft|abbr=on}} in height and remains one of the most important symbols of the city, as it has been since the [[Middle Ages]].
The '''Giralda''' ({{lang-es|La Giralda}} {{IPA-es|la xiˈɾalda|}}) is the [[bell tower]] of [[Seville Cathedral]] in [[Seville]], Spain.<ref>{{cite book|title=Seville|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=b1f20FfMiogC&q=seville|isbn = 9781903471869|last1 = Symington|first1 = Andy|year = 2003}}</ref> It was built as the [[minaret]] for the Great Mosque of Seville in [[al-Andalus]], Moorish Spain, during the reign of the [[Almohad]] dynasty, with a [[Renaissance]]-style [[Belfry (architecture)|belfry]] added by the Catholics after the expulsion of the Muslims from the area. The Giralda was registered in 1987 as a [[World Heritage Site]] by [[UNESCO]], along with the [[Alcazar of Seville|Alcázar]] and the [[General Archive of the Indies]]. The tower is {{convert|104.1|m|ft|abbr=on}} in height and remains one of the most important symbols of the city, as it has been since the [[Middle Ages]].


==Origin==
==Origin==
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=== Building of the Minaret ===
=== Building of the Minaret ===
Upon returning to al-Andalus in 1184 for a new military campaign, Aby Ya'qub Yusuf ordered the construction of the minaret. However, construction halted that same year with the death of the architect and, a month and a half later, the caliph, who died while commanding the [[Siege of Santarém (1184)|Siege of Santarém]].<ref name=":1" /> His son, [[Abu Yusuf Yaqub al-Mansur]], ordered construction on the minaret to continue upon his accession in 1184, but the work stalled again soon after and did not restart until 1188.<ref name=":1" /><ref name=":0" /> Ahmad Ibn Baso had begun the base of the tower in cut stone and his work was continued by a Maghrebi [[Berbers|Berber]] architect named 'Ali al-Ghumari, who was responsible for building the main body of the minaret in brick, and completed by [[Emirate of Sicily|Sicilian]] architect Abu Layth Al-Siqilli, who built the small secondary shaft or lantern at the top of the tower.<ref name=":24">{{Cite book|last=|first=|title=The Grove Encyclopedia of Islamic Art and Architecture|publisher=Oxford University Press|year=2009|isbn=9780195309911|editor-last=M. Bloom|editor-first=Jonathan|location=|pages=|chapter=Seville|editor-last2=S. Blair|editor-first2=Sheila}}</ref><ref name=":4" /><ref name=":0" /><ref name=":14">{{Cite book|last=Salmon|first=Xavier|title=Maroc Almoravide et Almohade: Architecture et décors au temps des conquérants, 1055-1269|publisher=LienArt|year=2018|isbn=|location=Paris|pages=230}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|title=The Near West : Medieval North Africa, Latin Europe and the Mediterranean in the Second Axial Age|last=Fromherz|first=Allen James|authorlink1=Allen James Fromherz|isbn=9780748642946|location=Edinburgh|oclc=950901630|year = 2016}}</ref> The minaret was built using both local bricks and recycled marble from old Umayyad monuments.<ref name=":1" /> On 10 March 1198, the tower was completed with the addition of four precious metal spheres (either gold or bronze) at the tower's peak to commemorate al-Mansur's victory over [[Alfonso VIII of Castile]], which had taken place four years prior.<ref>Corfis, Ivy A. (2010). ''Al-Andalus, Sepharad and Medieval Iberia : Cultural Contact and Diffusion''. Leiden, Netherlands: Brill. p. 14. {{ISBN|978-90-47-44154-0}}.</ref><ref name=":0" />
Upon returning to al-Andalus in 1184 for a new military campaign, Aby Ya'qub Yusuf ordered the construction of the minaret. However, construction halted that same year with the death of the architect and, a month and a half later, the caliph, who died while commanding the [[Siege of Santarém (1184)|Siege of Santarém]].<ref name=":1" /> His son, [[Abu Yusuf Yaqub al-Mansur]], ordered construction on the minaret to continue upon his accession in 1184, but the work stalled again soon after and did not restart until 1188.<ref name=":1" /><ref name=":0" /> Ahmad Ibn Baso had begun the base of the tower in cut stone and his work was continued by a Maghrebi [[Berbers|Berber]] architect named 'Ali al-Ghumari, who was responsible for building the main body of the minaret in brick, and completed by [[Emirate of Sicily|Sicilian]] architect Abu Layth Al-Siqilli, who built the small secondary shaft at the top of the tower.<ref name=":24">{{Cite book|last=|first=|title=The Grove Encyclopedia of Islamic Art and Architecture|publisher=Oxford University Press|year=2009|isbn=9780195309911|editor-last=M. Bloom|editor-first=Jonathan|location=|pages=|chapter=Seville|editor-last2=S. Blair|editor-first2=Sheila}}</ref><ref name=":4" /><ref name=":0" /><ref name=":14">{{Cite book|last=Salmon|first=Xavier|title=Maroc Almoravide et Almohade: Architecture et décors au temps des conquérants, 1055-1269|publisher=LienArt|year=2018|isbn=|location=Paris|pages=226-240}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|title=The Near West : Medieval North Africa, Latin Europe and the Mediterranean in the Second Axial Age|last=Fromherz|first=Allen James|authorlink1=Allen James Fromherz|isbn=9780748642946|location=Edinburgh|oclc=950901630|year = 2016}}</ref> The minaret was built using both local bricks and recycled marble from old Umayyad monuments.<ref name=":1" /> On 10 March 1198, the tower was completed with the addition of the [[finial]] (''jāmūr'') of four precious metal spheres (either gold or bronze) at the tower's peak to commemorate al-Mansur's victory over [[Alfonso VIII of Castile]], which had taken place four years prior.<ref>Corfis, Ivy A. (2010). ''Al-Andalus, Sepharad and Medieval Iberia : Cultural Contact and Diffusion''. Leiden, Netherlands: Brill. p. 14. {{ISBN|978-90-47-44154-0}}.</ref><ref name=":0" />


== Structure and decoration ==
== Structure and decoration ==
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=== The minaret ===
=== The minaret ===
The minaret of the mosque still stands as the Giralda. The base at street level is a square of 13.6 m on the side and which sits on a solid foundation which is a bit wider, 15~16 m and about 5 m deep. The foundation is built with solid, rectangular stones, some taken and reused from the Roman wall nearby.<ref>https://labelleseville.com/tours-seville/Informes_de_la_Construcci%C3%B3n_Vol_49_452.pdf | PDF INFORMES PUBLICO GIRALDA</ref> The tower contains a series of ramps winding around the perimeter of several vaulted chambers at the tower's core.<ref name=":3">{{Cite book|title=The mosque : history, architectural development & regional diversity|date=2002|publisher=Thames & Hudson|others=Frishman, Martin., Khan, Hasan-Uddin., Al-Asad, Mohammad.|isbn=0500283451|location=London|oclc=630140824}}</ref> These ramps were designed with enough width and height to accommodate "beasts of burden, people, and the custodians," according to one chronicler from the era.<ref name=":0" /> The decorated facades and windows on the tower are stepped to match the ramps in order to maximize light to the chambers inside.<ref name=":3" /> This exterior brick decoration was mainly done by 'Ali al-Ghumari, a Berber craftsman who also did repair work on the interior.<ref name=":0" />
The minaret of the mosque still stands as the Giralda. The base at street level is a square of 13.6 m on the side and which sits on a solid foundation which is a bit wider, 15~16 m and about 5 m deep.<ref name=":5" /><ref name=":42">{{Cite book|last=Casamar Pérez|first=Manuel|url=https://www.metmuseum.org/art/metpublications/Al_Andalus_The_Art_of_Islamic_Spain|title=Al-Andalus: The Art of Islamic Spain|publisher=The Metropolitan Museum of Art|year=1992|isbn=0870996371|editor-last=Dodds|editor-first=Jerrilynn D.|location=New York|pages=75-83|chapter=The Almoravids and Almohads: An Introduction}}</ref> The foundation is built with solid, rectangular stones, some taken and reused from the Roman wall nearby.<ref name=":5">https://labelleseville.com/tours-seville/Informes_de_la_Construcci%C3%B3n_Vol_49_452.pdf | PDF INFORMES PUBLICO GIRALDA</ref> The tower consists of two sections: the main shaft and a much smaller second shaft, superimposed on top of it, which is enveloped today by the Renaissance-era belfry. The main shaft is 50.51 meters tall and the second shaft is 14.39 meters tall and has a square base measuring 6.83 meters.<ref name=":42" /> The tower contains a series of 35 ramps winding around the perimeter of seven vaulted chambers at the tower's core.<ref name=":3">{{Cite book|title=The mosque : history, architectural development & regional diversity|date=2002|publisher=Thames & Hudson|others=Frishman, Martin., Khan, Hasan-Uddin., Al-Asad, Mohammad.|isbn=0500283451|location=London|oclc=630140824}}</ref><ref name=":14" /> These ramps were designed with enough width and height to accommodate "beasts of burden, people, and the custodians," according to one chronicler from the era.<ref name=":0" />


The decoration on the facades of the tower is divided into three equal vertical zones.<ref name=":4" /> The middle zone is occupied by the windows that provide light to the interior ramp passage. These windows vary in form from single [[Horseshoe arch|horseshoe-arch]] openings to double-arched openings with [[Multifoil arch|polylobed (multifoil)]] profiles and a central marble column. They are generally framed by an ornate [[blind arch]] with marble columns on the sides and [[arabesque]] carvings in the [[Spandrel|spandrels]]. The two other vertical zones of the facades feature large panels of ''[[sebka]]'' motifs, each of which springs from a [[blind arcade]] of polylobed arches supported on marble columns. The top of the main shaft is decorated by another blind arcade forming a horizontal band of intersecting polylobed arches.<ref name=":4" /><ref name=":14" /> The marble columns used throughout these areas feature [[Spolia|spoliated]] Umayyad-era [[Capital (architecture)|capitals]] from the 9th-10th centuries in the style of [[Madinat al-Zahra]]. [[Leopoldo Torres Balbás]] counted 92 such capitals reused in the tower.<ref name=":1" /> The facades of the tower did contain some plaster embellishment, but they were removed during a modern restoration.<ref name=":3" /> The top edge of the tower's main shaft was originally crowned by stepped or sawtooth-shaped merlons, as was common with other contemporary minarets in the region.<ref name=":4" /> The small secondary shaft or lantern at the top of the minaret (which is now enveloped by the [[Renaissance]] additions) also features ''sebka'' and blind arch decoration.<ref name=":14" /><gallery widths="150" heights="150">
The decorated facades and windows on the tower are stepped to match the ramps in order to maximize light to the chambers inside.<ref name=":3" /> This exterior brick decoration was mainly done by 'Ali al-Ghumari, who also did repair work on the mosque.<ref name=":0" /> The decoration of the façades is divided into three equal vertical zones.<ref name=":4" /> The middle zone is occupied by the windows that provide light to the interior ramp passage. These windows vary in form from single [[Horseshoe arch|horseshoe-arch]] openings to double-arched openings with [[Multifoil arch|polylobed (multifoil)]] profiles and a central marble column. They are generally framed by an ornate [[blind arch]] with marble columns on the sides and [[arabesque]] carvings in the [[Spandrel|spandrels]]. The two other vertical zones of the facades feature large panels of ''[[sebka]]'' motifs, each of which springs from a [[blind arcade]] of polylobed arches supported on marble columns. The top of the main shaft is decorated by another blind arcade forming a horizontal band of intersecting polylobed arches.<ref name=":4" /><ref name=":14" /> The marble columns used throughout these areas feature [[Spolia|spoliated]] Umayyad-era [[Capital (architecture)|capitals]] from the 9th-10th centuries in the style of [[Madinat al-Zahra]]. [[Leopoldo Torres Balbás]] counted 92 such capitals reused in the tower.<ref name=":1" /> The facades of the tower did contain some plaster embellishment, but they were removed during a modern restoration.<ref name=":3" /> The top edge of the tower's main shaft was originally crowned by stepped or sawtooth-shaped merlons, as was common with other contemporary minarets in the region.<ref name=":4" /> The small secondary shaft at the top of the minaret also features ''sebka'' and blind arch decoration, though this is only visible from inside the belfry today.<ref name=":14" /><gallery widths="150" heights="150">
File:Giralda IMG 7500.jpg|Ramp passage inside the tower
File:Giralda IMG 7500.jpg|Ramp passage inside the tower
File:Giralda DSCF3774.jpg|Almohad-era decoration on the east façade of the tower
File:Giralda DSCF3774.jpg|Almohad-era decoration on the east façade of the tower
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After Seville was [[Siege of Seville|taken by the Christians]] in 1248 during the [[Reconquista]], the city's mosque was symbolically converted into a cathedral. This involved changing the [[Orientation of churches|liturgical orientation]], closing and screening off exits and archways, and creating several small family chapels. The former mosque was not well-maintained by any of the groups inhabiting their own sections of the building during this period, and most of the records from the 13th and early 14th centuries describe its neglect, damage, and consequent destruction to make way for a new cathedral.<ref name=":2" />
After Seville was [[Siege of Seville|taken by the Christians]] in 1248 during the [[Reconquista]], the city's mosque was symbolically converted into a cathedral. This involved changing the [[Orientation of churches|liturgical orientation]], closing and screening off exits and archways, and creating several small family chapels. The former mosque was not well-maintained by any of the groups inhabiting their own sections of the building during this period, and most of the records from the 13th and early 14th centuries describe its neglect, damage, and consequent destruction to make way for a new cathedral.<ref name=":2" />


This structure was badly damaged in a [[1356 Basel earthquake|1356 earthquake]], and by 1433 the city began building the current cathedral. Local stone to build with was scarce, and there were few skilled stonemasons in the area, so timber and stone had to be shipped from overseas, and like its earlier incarnation, the construction of the cathedral brought together artisans from all over its respective empire, this time as far away as Germany and the Netherlands. Construction took 73 years and was completed in 1506.<ref name=":2" />
This structure was badly damaged in a [[1356 Basel earthquake|1356 earthquake]], and by 1433 the city began building the current cathedral. Local stone to build with was scarce, and there were few skilled stonemasons in the area, so timber and stone had to be shipped from overseas, and like its earlier incarnation, the construction of the cathedral brought together artisans from all over its respective empire, this time as far away as Germany and the Netherlands. Construction took 73 years and was completed in 1506.<ref name=":2" /> Today, the cathedral stands as one of the largest churches in the world and an example of the [[Gothic architecture|Gothic]] and [[Baroque]] architectural styles.


=== Addition to tower ===
=== Additions to the tower ===
{{Unreferenced section|date=October 2021}}[[File:Variaciones giralda.jpg|thumb|The three historical stages of the Giralda (illustration by Alejandro Guichot y Sierra): on the left is the original [[Almohad Caliphate|Almohad]] minaret circa 1198, on the right is how it looked as a Christian bell tower circa 1400, and in the middle is its current appearance after 1568.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Hoosein|first=Nausheen|title=Triumphant Towers and Sites of Spolia in Almohad Spain and Morocco: The Case of the Sevillian Minaret|publisher=MA Thesis, The University of Texas at Dallas|year=2019|pages=77}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=The three main elevations of the tower of Seville - Guichot, Alejandro|url=https://artsandculture.google.com/asset/the-three-main-elevations-of-the-tower-of-seville-guichot-alejandro/5QE-FodVvQ7C6g|access-date=2021-04-04|website=Google Arts & Culture|language=en}}</ref>]]
[[File:Variaciones giralda.jpg|thumb|The three historical stages of the Giralda (illustration by Alejandro Guichot y Sierra): on the left is the original [[Almohad Caliphate|Almohad]] minaret circa 1198, on the right is how it looked as a Christian bell tower circa 1400, and in the middle is its current appearance after 1568.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Hoosein|first=Nausheen|title=Triumphant Towers and Sites of Spolia in Almohad Spain and Morocco: The Case of the Sevillian Minaret|publisher=MA Thesis, The University of Texas at Dallas|year=2019|pages=77}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=The three main elevations of the tower of Seville - Guichot, Alejandro|url=https://artsandculture.google.com/asset/the-three-main-elevations-of-the-tower-of-seville-guichot-alejandro/5QE-FodVvQ7C6g|access-date=2021-04-04|website=Google Arts & Culture|language=en}}</ref>]]
When the mosque was converted into a cathedral, the minaret was reused as a bell tower. The metal spheres that originally topped the tower fell during the 1356 earthquake, and the spheres were replaced in 1400 with a cross and bell.<ref name=":6">{{Cite book|last=Navarro Rivas|first=Juan Pablo|url=https://books.google.ca/books?id=vb9vciGX7esC&newbks=1&newbks_redir=0&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false|title=Seville 360º|last2=Ramírez Idígoras|first2=Consuelo|publisher=Maratania|year=2005|isbn=849322748X|pages=40-44|language=Spanish and English}}</ref> The first public [[striking clock]] in Spain was added here around the same time.<ref name=":6" /><ref>{{Cite book|last=Burke|first=Ulick Ralph|url=https://books.google.ca/books?id=1S1b11j6HqYC&pg=PA13&dq=first+public+clock+spain&hl=en&newbks=1&newbks_redir=0&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwj8kLXIutzzAhXxhOAKHVbjBrYQ6AF6BAgKEAI#v=onepage&q=first%20public%20clock%20spain&f=false|title=A History of Spain from the Earliest Times to the Death of Ferdinand the Catholic|publisher=Longmans, Green and Company|year=1895|pages=13|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|last=Grossman|first=Henryk|url=https://books.google.ca/books?id=PgmbZIybuRoC&pg=PA196&dq=first+public+clock+spain&hl=en&newbks=1&newbks_redir=0&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwj8kLXIutzzAhXxhOAKHVbjBrYQ6AF6BAgHEAI#v=onepage&q=first%20public%20clock%20spain&f=false|title=The Social and Economic Roots of the Scientific Revolution: Texts by Boris Hessen and Henryk Grossmann|publisher=Springer Science & Business Media|year=2009|isbn=978-1-4020-9604-4|editor-last=Freudenthal|editor-first=Gideon|pages=196|chapter=Descartes and the Social Origins of the Mechanistic Concept of the World|editor-last2=McLaughlin|editor-first2=Peter}}</ref>
Today, the Giralda stands as one of the largest churches in the world and an example of the [[Gothic architecture|Gothic]] and [[Baroque]] architectural styles. The metal spheres that originally topped the tower fell during the earthquake, and the spheres were replaced with a cross and bell. The new cathedral incorporated the tower as a bell tower and eventually built it higher during the Renaissance under architect [[Hernán Ruiz the Younger]], who was commissioned to work on the tower in 1568. This newer section of the tower contains a large inscription of Seville's motto, [[NO8DO#Motto|NO8DO]], spoken ''No me ha dejado'', meaning "[Seville] has not abandoned me." [[Alfonso X of Castile]] gave the motto to the city when it continued to support his rule during an insurrection. Covering the top of the tower is the "Lily section" which surrounds the enclosure with the bell. The statue stands 4 m (13&nbsp;feet) in height &ndash; 7&nbsp;m (23&nbsp;ft) with the pedestal &ndash; and sit on top of the tower from its installation in 1568.


In the 16th century [[Hernán Ruiz the Younger]], who was commissioned to work on cathedral, constructed a new Renaissance-style belfry extension at the top of the tower, which houses the bells today. The new belfry was constructed between 1458 and 1568.<ref name=":24" /><ref name=":6" /> It brings the height of the tower to 96 meters.<ref name=":7">{{Cite journal|last=Solís|first=Mario|last2=Domínguez|first2=José|last3=Pérez|first3=Lorenzo|date=2012|title=Structural Analysis of La Giralda's 16th-Century Sculpture/Weather Vane|journal=International Journal of Architectural Heritage|volume=6|pages=147–171}}</ref> It consists of several sections or tiers. The lower section has a square layout with the same width as the main shaft of the tower. It consists of a [[Roof lantern|lantern]]-like structure with 5 openings on either side in which the bells are hung. The space above these openings features for [[Oculus|oculi]] in addition to a central arch. The top edge of this section is crowned with decorative stone "urns" popularly known as "''carambolas''".<ref name=":6" /> The upper section is narrower and consists of two square sections topped by two round sections of diminishing size. Black tiles are used alongside sculptural details for decoration throughout the belfry. The top of the square sections also features the inscription "TURRIS FORTISSIMA NOMEN DNI PROBERBI8", a reference to a passage of the 18th [[Book of Proverbs|Proverb]]: "The name of the Lord is a fortified tower."<ref name=":6" />
=== Present-day dimensions ===

{{Unreferenced section|date=October 2021}}
==== The ''Giraldillo'' ====
The part which corresponds to the original Moorish minaret is about 51 m high. With the Christian additions it is now 98.5 m high and taking into account the wind vane it is 104 m high. The weather vane (''giralda''), which gives its name to the building, is over 4 m tall, 7 m including the base. The tower has a ramp with 35 segments wide and tall enough to allow a person to ride on horseback to the top of the Moorish tower. The Christian addition has a final stair with 17 steps leading up to the bells.
The finishing touch added to the summit of the belfry in 1568 is the rotating sculpture known as the ''Giraldillo'' ([[weather vane]]), from which the name "Giralda" is derived.<ref name=":14" /> It was designed by [[Luis de Vargas]], a model was made by [[Juan Bautista Vázquez the Elder|Juan Bautista Vásquez "el Viejo"]] and then it was cast in bronze by Bartolomé Morel.<ref name=":6" /> The sculpture, in the form of a woman carrying a flag pole, is probably inspired by the image of [[Athena|Pallas Athena]], adapting it to a symbol of Christian faith.<ref name=":7" /><ref name=":6" /> It is 4 meters tall and approximately 4 meters wide, weighing 1,500 kilograms.<ref name=":7" /> As it is made of cast bronze sheets, the interior is mostly empty and it is held together with the help of several vertical and horizontal bars. These internal supports rest on a vertical metal axis which is inserted into the sculpture itself up to around breast height and which is anchored below to the summit of the tower. The sculpture thus rotates around this axis like a weather vane.<ref name=":7" />

The ''Giraldillo'' has been damaged and worn over time. Repairs were historically difficult due to its weight and its hard-to-reach location. During the [[1755 Lisbon earthquake]] it suffered damage but repairs were not performed until 1770, when it was completely disassembled and its internal support system replaced.<ref name=":7" /> In the 1980 and 1981 it was partially repaired again, which allowed modern scholars and scientists to study it directly for the first time. It was determined then that the sculpture was in poor condition and needed further restoration. This process began in 1999, when the ''Giraldillo'' was removed and brought to the Andalusian Historical Heritage Institute (''Instituto Andaluz de Patrimonio Histórico'') for restoration, while a replica was put in its place.<ref name=":7" /> The restored sculpture was reinstalled in 2005 along with instrumentation designed to monitor its condition in the future.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Solís|first=Mario|last2=Romero|first2=A.|last3=Galvín|first3=P.|date=2010|title=Monitoring the Mechanical Behavior of the Weathervane Sculpture Mounted Atop Seville Cathedral’s Giralda Tower|journal=Structural health monitoring|volume=9|issue=1|pages=41-57}}</ref>


== Buildings inspired by the Giralda ==
== Buildings inspired by the Giralda ==

Revision as of 22:54, 21 October 2021

For other uses, see La Giralda (disambiguation).
Giralda
UNESCO World Heritage Site
La Giralda
LocationSeville, Spain
Part ofSeville Cathedral
CriteriaCultural: (i), (ii), (iii), (vi)
Reference383bis-001
Inscription1987 (11th Session)
Extensions2010
Coordinates37°23′10.3″N 5°59′32.7″W / 37.386194°N 5.992417°W / 37.386194; -5.992417
Giralda is located in Seville
Giralda
Location of Giralda in Seville
Giralda is located in Spain
Giralda
Giralda (Spain)

The Giralda (Spanish: La Giralda [la xiˈɾalda]) is the bell tower of Seville Cathedral in Seville, Spain.[1] It was built as the minaret for the Great Mosque of Seville in al-Andalus, Moorish Spain, during the reign of the Almohad dynasty, with a Renaissance-style belfry added by the Catholics after the expulsion of the Muslims from the area. The Giralda was registered in 1987 as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO, along with the Alcázar and the General Archive of the Indies. The tower is 104.1 m (342 ft) in height and remains one of the most important symbols of the city, as it has been since the Middle Ages.

Origin

Initial construction

The mosque was built to replace the Umayyad mosque of 'Addabas, since the congregation had grown larger than the modest prayer hall could accommodate.[2][3] It was commissioned in 1171 by caliph Abu Ya'qub Yusuf.[2] Sevillian architect Ahmad Ibn Baso, who had led other construction projects for the caliph, was in charge of designing the mosque.[4][2] Construction was slowed down by the redirection of an existing city sewer that needed to be moved to accommodate the broad foundation for the building, an engineering obstacle that slowed progress by four years.[2]

From the beginning, craftsmen from all over Al-Andalus and the Maghreb were enlisted in the mosque's planning, construction, and decoration, and the caliph himself was highly invested in the process and was said to have visited the site daily.[2][3] By 1176, the mosque was complete, save for the minaret; however, Friday prayer was not held there until 1182.[2]

Building of the Minaret

Upon returning to al-Andalus in 1184 for a new military campaign, Aby Ya'qub Yusuf ordered the construction of the minaret. However, construction halted that same year with the death of the architect and, a month and a half later, the caliph, who died while commanding the Siege of Santarém.[3] His son, Abu Yusuf Yaqub al-Mansur, ordered construction on the minaret to continue upon his accession in 1184, but the work stalled again soon after and did not restart until 1188.[3][2] Ahmad Ibn Baso had begun the base of the tower in cut stone and his work was continued by a Maghrebi Berber architect named 'Ali al-Ghumari, who was responsible for building the main body of the minaret in brick, and completed by Sicilian architect Abu Layth Al-Siqilli, who built the small secondary shaft at the top of the tower.[5][4][2][6][7] The minaret was built using both local bricks and recycled marble from old Umayyad monuments.[3] On 10 March 1198, the tower was completed with the addition of the finial (jāmūr) of four precious metal spheres (either gold or bronze) at the tower's peak to commemorate al-Mansur's victory over Alfonso VIII of Castile, which had taken place four years prior.[8][2]

Structure and decoration

The mosque

Original door knockers of the Puerta del Perdón (northern gate), on display inside the Giralda today

Before its partial destruction in a 1356 earthquake, the mosque was comparable in size to the great mosque of Cordoba and its walls faced the cardinal directions with mathematical preciseness.[9][2] It had a rectangular floor plan measuring approximately 113 by 135 meters.[4] The prayer hall was symmetrical and airy, with a still-extant courtyard, the Patio de los Naranjos, or "Courtyard of Orange Trees."[9] Its interior had a stucco-carved dome over the mihrab, as well as several matching carvings over the arched doorways.[2] The minbar was decorated in a Cordoban style, constructed from expensive wood and embellished with sandalwood, ivory, ebony, gold, and silver.[2] The main northern entrance to the courtyard, the present-day Puerta del Perdón, contains a bronze-plated door with geometric decoration and floral knockers.[10] The current knockers in place are replicas of the originals which are on display inside the Giralda tower.[11]

The minaret

The minaret of the mosque still stands as the Giralda. The base at street level is a square of 13.6 m on the side and which sits on a solid foundation which is a bit wider, 15~16 m and about 5 m deep.[12][13] The foundation is built with solid, rectangular stones, some taken and reused from the Roman wall nearby.[12] The tower consists of two sections: the main shaft and a much smaller second shaft, superimposed on top of it, which is enveloped today by the Renaissance-era belfry. The main shaft is 50.51 meters tall and the second shaft is 14.39 meters tall and has a square base measuring 6.83 meters.[13] The tower contains a series of 35 ramps winding around the perimeter of seven vaulted chambers at the tower's core.[10][6] These ramps were designed with enough width and height to accommodate "beasts of burden, people, and the custodians," according to one chronicler from the era.[2]

The decorated facades and windows on the tower are stepped to match the ramps in order to maximize light to the chambers inside.[10] This exterior brick decoration was mainly done by 'Ali al-Ghumari, who also did repair work on the mosque.[2] The decoration of the façades is divided into three equal vertical zones.[4] The middle zone is occupied by the windows that provide light to the interior ramp passage. These windows vary in form from single horseshoe-arch openings to double-arched openings with polylobed (multifoil) profiles and a central marble column. They are generally framed by an ornate blind arch with marble columns on the sides and arabesque carvings in the spandrels. The two other vertical zones of the facades feature large panels of sebka motifs, each of which springs from a blind arcade of polylobed arches supported on marble columns. The top of the main shaft is decorated by another blind arcade forming a horizontal band of intersecting polylobed arches.[4][6] The marble columns used throughout these areas feature spoliated Umayyad-era capitals from the 9th-10th centuries in the style of Madinat al-Zahra. Leopoldo Torres Balbás counted 92 such capitals reused in the tower.[3] The facades of the tower did contain some plaster embellishment, but they were removed during a modern restoration.[10] The top edge of the tower's main shaft was originally crowned by stepped or sawtooth-shaped merlons, as was common with other contemporary minarets in the region.[4] The small secondary shaft at the top of the minaret also features sebka and blind arch decoration, though this is only visible from inside the belfry today.[6]

  • Ramp passage inside the tower
    Ramp passage inside the tower
  • Almohad-era decoration on the east façade of the tower
    Almohad-era decoration on the east façade of the tower
  • Almohad decoration on the secondary shaft at the top of the tower (inside the belfry today)
    Almohad decoration on the secondary shaft at the top of the tower (inside the belfry today)
  • Umayyad-era capital (9th-10th century) re-used in one of the windows of the tower
    Umayyad-era capital (9th-10th century) re-used in one of the windows of the tower

Post-Al-Andalus

View of the 16th-century at the top of the tower

Conversion to cathedral

After Seville was taken by the Christians in 1248 during the Reconquista, the city's mosque was symbolically converted into a cathedral. This involved changing the liturgical orientation, closing and screening off exits and archways, and creating several small family chapels. The former mosque was not well-maintained by any of the groups inhabiting their own sections of the building during this period, and most of the records from the 13th and early 14th centuries describe its neglect, damage, and consequent destruction to make way for a new cathedral.[9]

This structure was badly damaged in a 1356 earthquake, and by 1433 the city began building the current cathedral. Local stone to build with was scarce, and there were few skilled stonemasons in the area, so timber and stone had to be shipped from overseas, and like its earlier incarnation, the construction of the cathedral brought together artisans from all over its respective empire, this time as far away as Germany and the Netherlands. Construction took 73 years and was completed in 1506.[9] Today, the cathedral stands as one of the largest churches in the world and an example of the Gothic and Baroque architectural styles.

Additions to the tower

The three historical stages of the Giralda (illustration by Alejandro Guichot y Sierra): on the left is the original Almohad minaret circa 1198, on the right is how it looked as a Christian bell tower circa 1400, and in the middle is its current appearance after 1568.[14][15]

When the mosque was converted into a cathedral, the minaret was reused as a bell tower. The metal spheres that originally topped the tower fell during the 1356 earthquake, and the spheres were replaced in 1400 with a cross and bell.[16] The first public striking clock in Spain was added here around the same time.[16][17][18]

In the 16th century Hernán Ruiz the Younger, who was commissioned to work on cathedral, constructed a new Renaissance-style belfry extension at the top of the tower, which houses the bells today. The new belfry was constructed between 1458 and 1568.[5][16] It brings the height of the tower to 96 meters.[19] It consists of several sections or tiers. The lower section has a square layout with the same width as the main shaft of the tower. It consists of a lantern-like structure with 5 openings on either side in which the bells are hung. The space above these openings features for oculi in addition to a central arch. The top edge of this section is crowned with decorative stone "urns" popularly known as "carambolas".[16] The upper section is narrower and consists of two square sections topped by two round sections of diminishing size. Black tiles are used alongside sculptural details for decoration throughout the belfry. The top of the square sections also features the inscription "TURRIS FORTISSIMA NOMEN DNI PROBERBI8", a reference to a passage of the 18th Proverb: "The name of the Lord is a fortified tower."[16]

The Giraldillo

The finishing touch added to the summit of the belfry in 1568 is the rotating sculpture known as the Giraldillo (weather vane), from which the name "Giralda" is derived.[6] It was designed by Luis de Vargas, a model was made by Juan Bautista Vásquez "el Viejo" and then it was cast in bronze by Bartolomé Morel.[16] The sculpture, in the form of a woman carrying a flag pole, is probably inspired by the image of Pallas Athena, adapting it to a symbol of Christian faith.[19][16] It is 4 meters tall and approximately 4 meters wide, weighing 1,500 kilograms.[19] As it is made of cast bronze sheets, the interior is mostly empty and it is held together with the help of several vertical and horizontal bars. These internal supports rest on a vertical metal axis which is inserted into the sculpture itself up to around breast height and which is anchored below to the summit of the tower. The sculpture thus rotates around this axis like a weather vane.[19]

The Giraldillo has been damaged and worn over time. Repairs were historically difficult due to its weight and its hard-to-reach location. During the 1755 Lisbon earthquake it suffered damage but repairs were not performed until 1770, when it was completely disassembled and its internal support system replaced.[19] In the 1980 and 1981 it was partially repaired again, which allowed modern scholars and scientists to study it directly for the first time. It was determined then that the sculpture was in poor condition and needed further restoration. This process began in 1999, when the Giraldillo was removed and brought to the Andalusian Historical Heritage Institute (Instituto Andaluz de Patrimonio Histórico) for restoration, while a replica was put in its place.[19] The restored sculpture was reinstalled in 2005 along with instrumentation designed to monitor its condition in the future.[20]

Buildings inspired by the Giralda

Replica of the Giralda, in Kansas City, Missouri, twinned with Seville.

Many towers have borrowed from the Giralda's design throughout history. Several church towers in the province of Seville also bear a resemblance to the tower, and may have been inspired by the Giralda. These towers, most notably those in Lebrija and Carmona, are popularly known as Giraldillas.

Numerous replicas of the Giralda have been built in the United States, mostly between 1890 and 1937:

The building has also inspired buildings outside the US and Spain, such as:

References

  1. ^ Symington, Andy (2003). Seville. ISBN 9781903471869.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n K., Bennison, Amira (2016). The Almoravid and Almohad empires. Edinburgh. pp. 316–320. ISBN 9780748646814. OCLC 957145068.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  3. ^ a b c d e f Rosser-Owen, Mariam (27 March 2014). "Andalusi Spolia in Medieval Morocco: 'Architectural Politics, Political Architecture'". Medieval Encounters. 20 (2): 152–198. doi:10.1163/15700674-12342164.
  4. ^ a b c d e f Bloom, Jonathan M. (2020). Architecture of the Islamic West: North Africa and the Iberian Peninsula, 700-1800. Yale University Press. pp. 130–133. ISBN 9780300218701.
  5. ^ a b M. Bloom, Jonathan; S. Blair, Sheila, eds. (2009). "Seville". The Grove Encyclopedia of Islamic Art and Architecture. Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780195309911.
  6. ^ a b c d e Salmon, Xavier (2018). Maroc Almoravide et Almohade: Architecture et décors au temps des conquérants, 1055-1269. Paris: LienArt. pp. 226–240.
  7. ^ Fromherz, Allen James (2016). The Near West : Medieval North Africa, Latin Europe and the Mediterranean in the Second Axial Age. Edinburgh. ISBN 9780748642946. OCLC 950901630.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  8. ^ Corfis, Ivy A. (2010). Al-Andalus, Sepharad and Medieval Iberia : Cultural Contact and Diffusion. Leiden, Netherlands: Brill. p. 14. ISBN 978-90-47-44154-0.
  9. ^ a b c d Ruiz, Begoña Alonso; Martín, Alfonso Jiménez (2012). "A Fifteenth-Century Plan of the Cathedral of Seville". Architectural History. 55: 57–77. doi:10.1017/S0066622X00000058. JSTOR 43489715.
  10. ^ a b c d The mosque : history, architectural development & regional diversity. Frishman, Martin., Khan, Hasan-Uddin., Al-Asad, Mohammad. London: Thames & Hudson. 2002. ISBN 0500283451. OCLC 630140824.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
  11. ^ Jiménez Martín, Alfonso (2017). "La puerta principal de la aljama almohade de Išbīliya". Al-Qantara. 38 (2): 287–332.
  12. ^ a b https://labelleseville.com/tours-seville/Informes_de_la_Construcci%C3%B3n_Vol_49_452.pdf | PDF INFORMES PUBLICO GIRALDA
  13. ^ a b Casamar Pérez, Manuel (1992). "The Almoravids and Almohads: An Introduction". In Dodds, Jerrilynn D. (ed.). Al-Andalus: The Art of Islamic Spain. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art. pp. 75–83. ISBN 0870996371.
  14. ^ Hoosein, Nausheen (2019). Triumphant Towers and Sites of Spolia in Almohad Spain and Morocco: The Case of the Sevillian Minaret. MA Thesis, The University of Texas at Dallas. p. 77.
  15. ^ "The three main elevations of the tower of Seville - Guichot, Alejandro". Google Arts & Culture. Retrieved 2021-04-04.
  16. ^ a b c d e f g Navarro Rivas, Juan Pablo; Ramírez Idígoras, Consuelo (2005). Seville 360º (in Spanish and English). Maratania. pp. 40–44. ISBN 849322748X.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: unrecognized language (link)
  17. ^ Burke, Ulick Ralph (1895). A History of Spain from the Earliest Times to the Death of Ferdinand the Catholic. Longmans, Green and Company. p. 13.
  18. ^ Grossman, Henryk (2009). "Descartes and the Social Origins of the Mechanistic Concept of the World". In Freudenthal, Gideon; McLaughlin, Peter (eds.). The Social and Economic Roots of the Scientific Revolution: Texts by Boris Hessen and Henryk Grossmann. Springer Science & Business Media. p. 196. ISBN 978-1-4020-9604-4.
  19. ^ a b c d e f Solís, Mario; Domínguez, José; Pérez, Lorenzo (2012). "Structural Analysis of La Giralda's 16th-Century Sculpture/Weather Vane". International Journal of Architectural Heritage. 6: 147–171.
  20. ^ Solís, Mario; Romero, A.; Galvín, P. (2010). "Monitoring the Mechanical Behavior of the Weathervane Sculpture Mounted Atop Seville Cathedral's Giralda Tower". Structural health monitoring. 9 (1): 41–57.

Other photos

  • View from the bottom.
    View from the bottom.
  • Giralda by night.
    Giralda by night.
  • The statue of the Giraldillo.
    The statue of the Giraldillo.
  • The Giralda at its various stages of construction: Almohad (left), Medieval Christian (right), and Renaissance (center).
    The Giralda at its various stages of construction: Almohad (left), Medieval Christian (right), and Renaissance (center).
  • Fountain in front of the Giralda.
    Fountain in front of the Giralda.
  • Giralda as seen from Patio de Banderas.
    Giralda as seen from Patio de Banderas.
  • Giralda seen from Patio de los Naranjos.
    Giralda seen from Patio de los Naranjos.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Giralda.
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