The ceilings of the pavilions of the Court of Lions in the Alhambra (Granada, Spain) are masterpieces of the Nasrid woodwork. Made in pinewood by the ‘ataurejado’ technique they display a highly unusual decoration in eleven-sided or hendecagonal rosettes. The geometric explanation of the patterns given in the present paper considers the domes as a near miss polyhedron with eleven-sided faces or as a snub cube. It implies the cupolas of the pavilions can be considered as two early examples of (parts of) those polyhedra.