Puerta de Birrambla

City Gate in Granada

Puerta De Birrambla, Alhambra 1 — CC BY-SA 3.0 / Kolforn

Puerta De Birrambla, Alhambra 2 — CC BY-SA 2.0 / Harvey Barrison

Puerta De Birrambla, Alhambra 3 — CC BY-SA 3.0 / Luis Alfonso Escudero

The Puerta de Birrambla or Gate of the Rambla is a moorish gate located in the Alhambra Complex, in Granada, Spain. Moved from its original location it is poetic set as a ruin, evoking past-times in the imaginations of passers-by since the start of the 20th century.

History of the Puerta de Birrambla

The gate was constructed in the 11th or 12th century and probably inspired the design of many of the gates of the Alhambra, such as the 14th-century Puerta de la Justicia.

It had been located at the face of the wall of the Medina de Granada until the last quarter of the 19th century. It was removed from its location in the medina between 1873 and 1884 and taken apart piece by piece, and relocated to the Archaeological Museum of Granada, until 1933 when conservation architect of the Alhambra, Leopoldo Torres Balbás decided to reconstruct it and place it in its original form. It is now in the Paseo de las Alamedas of the Alhambra.

Where does Puerta de Birrambla get its name?

It has also been known as the Puerta de Bibrambla as it was the only entrance to Plaza de Bib-Rambla. Its Arabic name was Bab al-Ramla.

It is also called Arco de las Orejas or Gate of the Ears, is linked to the Andalusian tradition of taking the ears (and other body parts) of executed criminals and hanging them for display!

The name Gate of the Sandland appeared during Moorish era because the sand lands of the nearby Darro River were the site of horse races. It was also known as the Puerta de los cuchillos or Gate of the Knives, which may be related to the placement of confiscated knives.

The Puerta de Birrambla appears in our Complete Guide to Visiting Granada!

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