https://www.egina.com/27276 Like a fossilized dream from 1001 nights: The impressive Moorish Alhambra palace in Granada is the subject of this coin featuring Tiffany glass art. 'Alhambra' can be translated to mean 'red Castle' and refers to the impressive structure atop a hill in the Spanish city of Granada. The name goes back to Muhammad Ibn Yusuf Nasr. In 1238, he established the reign of the Nasrids from Medina in Granada. In the 14th century, the Arab poet Ibn Zamrak described the Alhambra as follows: 'Blessed is the eye that sees this garden of beauty'. The castle became the residence of all Nasrid rulers. After a long siege in 1492, the last of them, Muhammad XII (Boabdil), surrendered the fortress to the Kings of Spain, Isabella and Ferdinand. 1492 was a new era in many ways. Christopher Columbus discovered America, and the Kings of Spain issued the Alhambra Decree, with which they expelled all Jews from their territory. Thereafter, the palace slowly lost its importance. It became ruinous under the Bourbons, and the Napoleonic soldiers blew up parts of the structure during their retreat. Finally, in the 19th century, Alhambra was rediscovered by artists and tourists and included in the list of UNESCO World Heritage sites in 1984. Its almost wasteful splendor, countless playful ornaments and nearly floating architecture with stucco elements never fail to amaze visitors. The unique interaction of light and shadow as well as the element of water characterize this unique example of Moorish architecture. The coin takes up these characteristics through its masterly use of micro carvings in high relief. Combined with the yellow Tiffany glass, a work of art that has lifted the award-winning series to new artistic highlights was created. The coin depicts the lion court (patio de los Leones), a central area of the Alhambra. This gorgeous Tiffany coin will leave you no choice but to agree with Ibn Zamrak. One side of the coin features a detailed view of the lion court (patio de los Leones) of the Nasrid Alhambra palace in Granada that is true to the style of the series, as well as the lion fountain right below the yellow Tiffany glass insert. The other side features a detailed view of a clad wall richly decorated with stucco ornaments with two window like parts in the middle. The left 'window' has the glass insert, the right shows the lion court with the lion fountain in front of it. Tiffany Art - what's special about this coin: In 2004, the first Tiffany Art coin was presented, breaking completely new ground in the field of numismatics. It was the first time Tiffany glass art was combined into a masterpiece of a coin through elaborate technical manufacturing, which featured famous architectural icons with very fine details. Tiffany glass was created by American Art Nouveau artist Louis Comfort Tiffany (1848-1933). In the 1870s, he succeeded in producing a semi opaque glass with metallic effects by adding certain substances. Tiffany's lamp shades and glass windows became famous all over the world and achieve record prices at auctions today. When it comes to Tiffany Art coins, even cropping the glass insert is a great technical challenge. Each coin is unique, because each glass inlay is unique. The Tiffany Art coins reflect the major periods of art history: Renaissance, neo-classical, Venetian Gothic or Rococo. Even experts will love these coins due to their extremely detailed embossing.

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