307
In its outer profile, the zellij tiles in all the tile-work should fit
into each other exactly but the inner edges should, on the other
hand, stay separate to allow them to be lodged into the grout -al-
ways applied on the back- which serves as a unifying element.
The inclined surface of these edges can be achieved by using
molds or mechanical cuts but the traditional procedure implies
the use of a picola hatchet, not only achieving the sought after
incline, but also a sharp surface favorable for applying mortar. In
cases like these the procedure performed by the master builder is
known as
“escafilado”
(trimming). Unfortunately, this trait, just
as with the thickness of the pieces, is essential for us to be able
to determine the group that a master builder belonged to which
created the tile covering, only being identifiable when the plinth
is disassembled although sometimes can be partially appreciated
if a piece has fallen off and can be examined, or with those that
are adjoined.
3.2.2. MOLDED ZELLIJ TILES
As well as the aforementioned traditional cutting method and
trimming with a picola hatchet, there is another procedure which
gives the zellij tiles their final formwith the help of molds and plas-
ter whilst the paste is still fresh. The resulting zellij tiles, after being
biscuit fired in the first firing, are covered with glazing and then
undergo a second firing. In this firing, the glazing reaches a state
of semi-liquid fusion, expands and tends to get thicker along the
edges, something which can be seen in the cooked piece with the
naked eye and with extra clarity if grazing lighting is used. This
manufacturing process increased the ceramicist´s workload and
lessened that of the master builder (Fig. 6 a y 6 b).
However, this realization by itself does not allow the work to
be dated with certainty as, according to what we have observed,
molds were used during at least two of the time periods. In fact,
according to available documentation, it could have been used
by two artists who worked for the Alcázar in very different time
periods: Fernán Martínez Guijarro, at the end of the 15th century
and Manuel Soto y Tello, at the end of the 19th century. The dif-
ferentiation between the products of one or the other should be
kept in mind for a more precise future analysis than the simple
observation of its surface, like for example the thickness of the
zellij tiles, the composition of the pastes or the range of glazing
colors. We often detect this procedure —to which we can refer to
as “fake tile-work"— in the crenellated bands in the plinth block
necking, in the pieces of motifs in zigzag of some plinth blocks
and in some curved-sided zellij tiles, in the Salón de Embajadores,
or rather, in those pieces which present more arduous cuts. It is,
nevertheless, indicative in determining that this molding system
was not used in the tile-work of the three spaces which we con-
sider to be the oldest, dating from the 14th century, the Sala de
Audiencias and the Patio de las Doncellas.
3.2.3 “CUERDA SECA HENDIDA” TILES
In the Sala de Sevillanos, a room flanking the Sala de Embajadores,
plinths are made up of very simple tile-work that combines hex-
agonal and triangular pieces, however one of its designs is not
made of zellij tiles, strictly speaking, but rather of tiles made using
the
“cuerda seca hendida”
technique. These are rhomboidal-shape
tiles within which the hexagons and triangles are marked, drawn
and colored so that they appear to mimic the aforementioned zel-
lij tiles. There are four hexagons and eight triangles in each tile
(Fig. 7). From a certain distance, the difference between these and
the originals is hardly perceptible, however up close you can see
not only the cracks and brush strokes of this peculiar procedure
but also signs of tear from the stilts used during the firing process,
quite common in these types of tiles
24
. Because of this technicality
and other evidence available, we can safely assume that it is quite
possible that these pieces were created in the first half of the 16th
century when, instead of having to complete the complicated task
of cutting zellij tiles, a simpler and cheaper method for making
imitations became more popular in more than one of the city´s
workshops. They were probably made for a special order as this is
the only place where these pieces have been found with the same
design.
3.3 Plinth and zellij tile measurements
the systematic measurements of both the zellij tiles and the parts
of a plinth and the different heights of the latter are aspects worth
noting and should be given due consideration. It is particularly
interesting to note the size given to the polygonal zellij tiles and
the braids that envelop them. The smaller the size of these parts,
the more difficult they are to make, the longer it takes the master
builder to work, the more delicate the tile covering and also the
more expensive the whole process becomes.
In the Mudéjar Palace there are different sized
“estrellería”
and
“lac-
ería”
tiles. I have not made calculations of the number of pieces per
square meter, which would be a very useful and indicative quanti-
fiable piece of information, I have merely verified that the
“lacería”
tiles are made up of straps of three different thicknesses. The thin-
nest (10mm), which coincide with the smallest zellij tiles, are found
in the Patio de las Doncellas and the Sala de Audencias. The next,
with a medium thickness of 15mm, are found in the Dormitorio
del Rey don Pedro, the Sala de Carlos V, the Dormitorio de Reyes
Moros, the Patio de las Muñecas and the Sala del Techo de Felipe
II. The thickest (20 mm) is that used in the three successive rooms
of the ¨
Infantes
¨. Here we do not consider the modern tile-work
which, in any case, corresponds to the medium thickness. The
majority of the
“estrellería”
tiles are used in the secondary rooms
or halls, like the twin rooms Salas de Sevillanos and Toledanos or
those equally symmetrical to the Pasos Perdidos and the Techo de
los Reyes Católicos, whose design style we have observed in the
very same Alcázar, in the Alhambra and in various painted murals
dating from the 1500s, and which does not strictly correspond to
the
“lacería”
nor
“estrellería”
styles
25
.
A curious fact related with the size of the zellij tiles appears to
be associated with the tile-work we consider to be from the 14th
century. There are various symbols or stars found on the plinth
blocks in the Patio de las Doncellas and on the windowsill in the
Sala de Audiencias, each one being made up of 32 minuscule zel-
lij tiles (Fig. 8). We have also noticed that on the plinth blocks
of said patio, there are three small animal figures embedded in
other zellij tiles, all details of questionable interpretation but
technically quite virtuous in that the artisan seems to have put
his skills to the test (Fig. 9). It is possible that these “modest dis-
plays” were a way of signing the work at a time when such an
act of self-recognition would not have been considered favorably.
This is not observed, however, in other parts, not even in those
which, literally imitating the original designs, are considered to
have been manufactured industrially, something which would
have facilitated this process.
