The Court of the Main Canal (Patio de la Acequia or Irrigation Ditch), Generalife next to the Alhambra, Granada, Spain. Watercolours on 300 gsm Arches cotton paper. 21cm high by 29.7cm wide by 0.1cm deep. The Patio of the Irrigation Ditch (Patio de la Acequia) of Generalife is 48.70 meters long and 12.80 wide and is the most important part of the Generalife, although the appearance of its buildings and gardens has changed since the Arab period. A channel that carries the water from the irrigation ditch of the Alhambra divides it lengthways. The channel is surrounded by several little jets and has a stone basin at each of its ends. Generalife occupies the slopes of the Hill of the Sun (Cerro del Sol), from which there is a complete view over the Alhambra and the city of Granada and the valleys of the rivers Genil and Darro. It was built in the 13th century and it was redecorated by the king Abu I-Walid Isma’il (1313-1324), as it is explained by an inscription that dates from 1319. This means that the Generalife was built before the Comares Palace of the Alhambra. In spite of it being beside the Alhambra and the close relationship between the two complexes, it is considered to be outside the city.
