Thursday March 5 was another sunny day, though cooler- a high of about 16C. We headed out to the Palacio De Los Olvidados (Palace of the Forgotten), a Sephardic Cultural Space, where we had reserved tickets for an English tour at 1:00 p.m. The Cultural Space opened in January 2014. Its creation is linked to the discovery of a medieval synagogue in nearby Ubeda by a property developer, Crespo Lopez. The
Sinagoga del Aqua (synagogue of Water) opened in 2010 in Ubeda and Lopez thought there should be a space in Granada that dealt with Sephardic history in that city. The Cultural Space is housed in old aristocratic house on the edge of the Albaicin. We found the space as we were finishing our tour of the Albaicin on Tuesday.
The main floor has a stage for cultural events, and a small gift shop. The guide gave us an overview of the history of the Cultural Space and Jews in southern Spain and then lead us on a tour of the upper floor, explaining each artifact. Our guide told us that the house dates back to the 16th century and is believed have belonged to a "converso" (a converted Jew) as, among other indicia, the coats of arms on the building were destroyed.
The upper floor has six small rooms with incredible artifacts from the collection of Crespo Lopez. The rooms are thematic addressing The Converted Jews ( los conversos), Symbology (how the Jews had to prove they were Christian and hidden symbols of Judaism); Liturgy (very old Torah scrolls and other artifacts of religious practice); Daily Life; The Great Forgotten ( a room with the names and artifacts from well-respected Jews from Granada in the 10th and 11th century); and the final room- The Inquisition, which had an old chair and desk dating back to the inquisition, among other artifacts.
After the tour, we were given a small glass of sweet wine and some sephardic cookies. It was an extremely well-done museum, with priceless artifacts outlining the history of the Jews of Granada. It is not yet referenced in the guidebooks we had, so we were fortunate to have found it.
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| Entrance to the Palacio de los Olvidados |
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Downstairs room that also has a stage
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The guide told us that the history of Jews in the Granada area goes back to around 800 B.C. and that many settled in the area in 500 B.C. and 70 A.D. after the destruction of the Temples in Jerusalem. Initially the Romans got on with the Jewish population, as there was a separate Jewish quarter. However once the Visigoths came, there were pogroms and forced conversions. In 711 A.D. the Arabs attacked the Visigoths, and the Jews saw them as heroes. Our guide told us that Jews helped the Arabs with information about the Visigoths and helped speed up their successful conquest of southern Spain. The 9th-11th centuries saw the flourishing of both Muslim and Jewish life in southern Spain. There were many Jewish doctors and intellectuals in this period and the two communities lived side by side.
This all changed in 1492 with the defeat of the Moors. In 1492, the Edict of Expulsion of the Jews was passed, and Jews had four months to leave or convert. Many took their keys and some left relatives who had converted to look out for their properties. Approximately 200,000 Jews fled the country. Unfortunately, the Inquisition lasted from 1478-1834 (almost 400 years).
The guide pointed out this old copy of a Porlagra-- an identity document that one had to carry during the Inquisition to prove that one was a Christian. There were a number of subterfuges one could employ to get one- e.g. paying a noble to say that one was related and thus able to trace one's line to four generations of Christians.
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| Porlagra |
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| Document with Jewish star (written towards end of Inquisition) |
There was a menorah dating back to the 15th or 16th century, with an insert of a piece representing the heart of Mary, that could be removed. If the Inquisitor came, the piece could be put back in. There was a complete chess set dating back to 1450.
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| Menorah with Christian symbol in the middle |
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| Complete chess set from 1450 |
One of the oldest artifacts was a perfume bottle with Jewish symbols dating back to the 4th century.
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| Perfume bottle from the 4th century |
There was another old document with a signature of a hand--a symbol used by both Muslims and Jews.
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| Old document with Jewish Star |
There was a stone in the museum that had a hidden Jewish star in the middle of the engraving.
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Jewish star in the engraving
The room of the Great Forgotten, had names etched on a wall of famous Jews from Granada. One was a well respected translator, who spoke Arabic; one was a poet. Samuel ibn Hanaguid was one of the great poets of Andalusia who lived from 993-1056. He was born in Cordoba but settled in Granada and was the first Jew who received the honorary title of Nagid (Prince). He was known as Ismail Ibn Nagrela in Arab circles and spoke both Hebrew and Arabic.
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In the middle of the wall was a framed copy of a speech by King Juan Carlos in 1992, in which he encouraged Sephardic Jews from Spain to return. Apparently, a law is being written to give Spanish citizenship to those who can trace their families back to Sephardic Jews from Spain. Sefarad is the Hebrew name for Spain.
The Inquisition room had some incredible artifacts. There was a shield with the symbols of the inquisition- including the cross and the sword. There was a desk and chair of the Inquisition. The desk had a complex set of drawers that could only be opened if one knew the correct order to open them. Important documents were kept in the desk. The Inquisitors could knock on anyone's door at any time and if there were any signs that Jewish ceremonies were being carried out by the conversos, they would be brought before the Inquisitors. There was a picture of Tomas Torquemada (1420-1498), the first Grand Inquisitor. He was the confessor to Isabella I and demanded that the Jews be expelled unless they converted. The Spanish rulers had been briefly reluctant to go that far. However, Torquemada persuaded them to expel the Jews. Most of the Jews expelled from Spain ended up in Constantinople. Our guide told us there are only about 12,000 Jews in Spain today, most in Barcelona and Madrid.
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| Shield of the Inquisition |
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| Chair and desk of the Inquisition |
After that fascinating visit, we went for a bite to eat at Cunini, a seafood restaurant recommended in our guidebook. We sat outside at the tapas bar and I had a glass of white wine and Alano had a beer. The custom in Granada is that with each drink, one receives a free tapa. One never knows what it is going to be. At Cunini, there was a plate of fried squid. We then had some razor clams.
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| Alano with his razor clams |
We then went for a stroll, passing by the main Cathedral in Granada.
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| Main Cathedral in Granada |
We did a bit of food shopping, had a brief stop at the apartment, and then headed out for our second walking tour with Guru tour at 5:00 p.m. This tour was of the cave houses of Sacromonte, the area further up the hill from the Albaicin, where we had toured on Tuesday. We met at Plaza Nueva and started climbing through the Albaicin to Sacromonte. Our tour guide was Elena, a student, who does this as a part-time job.
Elena pointed out a beautiful door and archway in the Albaicin with Christian and Muslim details. In Granada, it is often the older Muslim features that have been modified with Christian symbols.
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| Old door with Christian and Muslim symbols Archway has 1929 written on it. |
Elena showed us the old water storage areas that are scattered throughout the Albaicin. She clarified that these were water storage areas (reservoirs) for the community (not wells). They are now boarded up with the metal grating.
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| Elena at old water storage area |
The views of the Alhambra became clearer as we climbed up the mountain.
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| Alhambra |
We also had amazing views of the Sierra Nevada mountains.
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| The Sierra Nevadas |
We had a better view of the walls that surround the city in part. Parts of these walls were rebuilt.
Elena told us that holes need to be placed in buildings, otherwise the walls can be ruined by rain.
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Holes in walls
We started to get closer to the caves. Elena said that while a few people live here all year around, the caves are mostly occupied during the spring and summer months by people seeking an alternative life style. Most do not have title and people come every year and pick a cave to live in. Some caves have quite elaborate solar panelling and vegetable gardens. This is part of the old gypsy neighbourhood (both in front and behind the wall).
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| Caves
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We passed lots of cactus plants. The people living in the caves have an amazing view of the mountains and the city below.
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| Cactus |
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| A front yard |
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Some folks outside their cave
We continued to climb to the top of the mountain where there is a church, San Miguel Alto, which was formerly a mosque. Lots of people had gathered in front of the church for the view.
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| San Miguel Alto church |
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| Alano at top of mountain |
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| After our long climb |
At the back of the church was a fountain that had very good water. It was called the olive fountain.
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| Olive fountain |
The view from the other side of the wall was countryside, some more isolated caves, and the Sierra Nevadas.
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Countryside behind the wall.
Climbing down the mountain was easier. Alano and I then stopped for some tapas at a restaurant recommended by a man from Nelson, B.C., whom we had met at the Sephardic Cultural Space. He had eaten there and really enjoyed the food. Bodegas Castaneda is frequented by locals and tourists and is a real Granada institution.
Inside of Bodegas Castaneda
Local Vermouth
We ordered two glasses of red wine and were given a wonderful plate of a cold seafood salad as our free tapa. We then had a lovely piece of Spanish tortilla with anchovies and green cooked peppers.
Free tapa- seafood salad
Serving of Spanish omelette with anchovies and cooked green peppers
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At the tapas bar
Our bill came to just over 8 euros. This was supposed to be only a pre dinner treat, but the food was quite filling. We then went back to the apartment for a very light dinner. We have really been pleased with the walking tours, which have taken us to places we would not have gone on our own. Granada is a fascinating mix of cultures. I am posting this on Friday March 6, another day of beautiful sun and a predicted high of 18C.
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