One of Spain's most enduring historical mysteries is close to being solved as experts undertake a project to decipher more than 10,000 Arabic inscriptions adorning the walls and ceilings of the Alhambra palace in Granada.
Researchers armed with digital cameras and 3D laser scanners are for the first time cataloging and translating the intricately carved words that have fascinated centuries of visitors at Spain's most popular tourist attraction.
"There is probably no other place in the world where studying walls, columns and fountains is so similar to turning the pages of a book," said Juan Castilla, of Spain's Higher Council for Scientific Research (CSIC), who heads the team.
Many inscriptions consist of aphorisms, terse sayings embodying a general truth, such as "Be sparse in words and you will go in peace" and "Rejoice in good fortune, because Allah helps you."
What the researchers have found so far is that, contrary to popular belief, verses from the Koran and poetry represent only a tiny minority of the messages in classical Arabic that cover the Alhambra, Europe's finest example of Muslim architecture.
"They do not make up not even 10 percent of what has been studied so far," explained Mr Castilla. Instead the elegant Arabic script contains a large amount of sloganeering, predominantly praise for the Nasrid dynasty who ruled Granada for two and half centuries.
The Nasrid motto - "There is no victor but Allah" - is the most common inscription found so far.
The next most common messages are isolated words like "happiness" and "blessing" that are thought to be expressions of divine wishes for the Muslim rulers of Granada.
Until now there have only been partial studies of what the inscriptions meant, including one ordered by the Catholic monarchs Ferdinand and Isabella who sought to purge Spain of Muslims after the reconquest of Granada in 1492.
"It seems incredible that there is no exhaustive catalogue (of the inscriptions) in the 21st century," said Mr Castilla.
Many of the inscriptions are wrapped around arches and pillars, making them hard to read with the naked eye from ground level.
Further complicating the task is the fact that artisans who did the engraving used an elaborately cursive script, which can be difficult to read. Calligraphy was a major art form in a culture that banned human images.
The researchers hope to have 65 percent of the inscriptions catalogued and translated into Spanish by the end of the year and the entire project finished in 2011.
The inscriptions will be later translated into English and French.
A DVD and book have been published containing the findings in the Alhambra's 14th-century Comares Palace.
The Alhambra, which was listed as a UNESCO world heritage site in 1994, is Spain's most visited landmark receiving 3.1 million visitors in 2008.
According to legend, when the Christian army reconquered bringing an end to seven centuries of Muslim rule in southern Spain, the city's last Arabic ruler burst into tears as he surveyed the Alhambra for the last time before the royal party moved south toward exile.
When his mother approached him she said: "Do not weep like a woman for what you could not defend like a man."
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