The Alhambra . to the prophet. And the key of the house of David will Ilay upon his shoulder ; so he shall open, and none shall shut,and he shall shut, and none shall open. (Isaiah xxii. 22.)The key we are told was emblazoned on the standard of theMoslems in opposition to the Christian emblem of the cross,when they subdued Spain or Andalusia. It betokened theconquering power invested in the prophet. He that haththe key of David, he that openeth, and no man shutteth : andshutteth, and no man openeth. (Rev. iii. 7.) 6o THE ALIIAMBRA A (lilTcrcnt c\j)lanation of these emblems, liowever, wasgiven
The Alhambra . to the prophet. And the key of the house of David will Ilay upon his shoulder ; so he shall open, and none shall shut,and he shall shut, and none shall open. (Isaiah xxii. 22.)The key we are told was emblazoned on the standard of theMoslems in opposition to the Christian emblem of the cross,when they subdued Spain or Andalusia. It betokened theconquering power invested in the prophet. He that haththe key of David, he that openeth, and no man shutteth : andshutteth, and no man openeth. (Rev. iii. 7.) 6o THE ALIIAMBRA A (lilTcrcnt c\j)lanation of these emblems, liowever, wasgiven by the legitimate son of the Alhambra, and one morein unison with the notions of the common people, who attachsomething of mystery and magic to everything Moorish, andhave all kinds of superstitions connected with this old Moslemfortress. According to Mateo, it was a tradition handed downfrom the oldest inhabitants, and which he had from his fatherand grandfather, that the hand and key were magical devices. on which the fate of the Alhambra depended. The Moorishking who built it was a great magician, or, as some beHeved,had sold himself to the devil, and had laid the whole fortressunder a magic spell. By this means it had remained standing,for several years, in defiance of storms and earthquakes, whilealmost all other buildings of the Moors had fallen to ruin anddisappeared. This spell, the tradition went on to say, wouldlast until the hand on the outer arch should reach down andgrasp the key, when the whole pile would tumble to pieces,and all the treasures buried beneath it by the Moors wouldbe revealed. Notwithstanding this ominous prediction, we ventured to PALACE OF THE ALHAMBRA 6i pass through the spell-bound gateway, feeling some little as-surance against magic art in the protection of the Virgin, astatue of whom we observed above the portal. After passing through the barbican, we ascended a narrowlane, winding between walls,and came on an open es-planade within the fortr
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