Tag Archives: Villa Zorayda

Villa Zorayda: The Moorish building that inspired St. Augustine today

 didn’t set out to start a revolution in 1883 with the construction of his winter home at 83 King Street in St. Augustine. , named for a princess in ’s novel, Tales of the Alhambra, was the first residence built in the Moorish Revival style based on the architecture of the Alhambra in Granada, Spain. Many structures built in early St. Augustine architecture were lost to fire and weather, prompting the architect to explore a new method of construction using a blend concrete and crushed coquina shells made from shell fragments and quartz sand found in deposits around the city. …

Read More »