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That first visit I made to the Aljafería Palace in Zaragoza is very far away in time. The name of this construction that belongs to the time of the Taifa kingdoms means the house of Jafar, which comes from the king who ordered it to be built in the 11th century.
It is said of him that he was such a cultured man that he used the famous Torre del Trovador, a bastion that stands out in the entire walled space, as an astronomical observatory.
I remember that the headquarters of the Cortes of Aragon were not yet there, whose parliamentary chamber was inaugurated in 1987, a year after the Prince of Asturias, the current King Felipe VI, laid the first stone.
I had previously read that this monument was considered one of the peaks of Spanish-Muslim art, along with the Alhambra in Granada and the Mosque of Córdoba. Currently, it is considered the best preserved Islamic palace of Mudejar art in Europe.
For me this has been the third visit, on the occasion of a meeting of friends in the Aragonese capital, and it never ceases to impress me. I think it is essential for every tourist who wants to get to know Zaragoza well.
Its founder called it the Palace of Joy and the throne room where he presided over his receptions, the Golden Hall, as witnessed in the following verses from the monarch himself.
Oh Palace of Joy! Oh Golden Hall!
Thanks to you I reached the height of my desires.
And even if I had nothing else in my kingdom, for me you are everything I could ever desire.
From the Islamic Alcázar it became the residence of the Christian kings after the conquest of Zaragoza by Alfonso I the Battler and later it was transformed into a 16th century fortress, a prison during the Inquisition or a military barracks.
Currently, as I noted at the beginning, it is the headquarters of the Cortes of Aragon. Despite not being able to do a guided tour, because the groups were already made up, it was very easy, through the QR code, to understand the different strata and stages that have passed through the building.
The most impressive, for my taste, are the first rooms with the gardens and the Arab-style arches, whose structure denotes an appearance of solemnity. I can't stop imagining the Golden Room, a name that comes from the resulting color due to the reflection of the sun in the water of the pool located in front of its entrance. Now it is covered with wood.
Next, the small private mosque, which serves as an anteroom to the Oratory. Inside it houses a mihrab whose niche is oriented in the direction of Mecca, as is the case in all mosques except that of Córdoba.
The palace hardly changed until the 14th century when it was renovated by Pedro IV the Ceremonious, who expanded the rooms of Islamic origin that were still in use. He created larger rooms, as well as bedrooms and dining rooms. From this period, the rich Mudejar roofs stand out.
Throughout the visit, the carved and polychrome wood supported by thick beams never ceased to impress me. I must confess that the imposing Throne Room of the following monarchs who occupied the Aljafería, the Catholic Monarchs, who carried out a great transformation of this palace, is an example of the ornamental profusion that can be seen here.
The octagons on the ceiling stand out with a large central rosette and large hanging pine cones, all accompanied by a plant theme and the royal emblem of the yoke and arrows.
I have no doubt that it is one of the rooms that most impresses those who visit the Aljafería, since it is a true jewel of this Zaragoza palace and gives a glimpse of the greatness and power of Isabel and Ferdinand.
There is another type of decoration that does not go unnoticed and that is the number of shields with dragons that are hidden there. One of the things that explains this fact is the phonetic similarity between these two words: dragon and d'aragón, according to some theories.
The great writer Irene Vallejo, a native of Zaragoza, received the Aragón 2021 award at the Aljafería and in her speech she did not fail to name its builder, also highlighting his talents as a poet. Finally, she alluded to the current moment, describing this construction as the "palace of our democratic convictions."
