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Historical Construction Of A Landmark In 1199, Qutub-ud-Din raised the Qutub
Minar either as a victory tower or as a minaret to the adjacent mosque. From a
base of 14.32m it tapers to 2.75m at a height of 72.5m and a valid reason why
it took two decades to complete this monument. Its a red sandstone tower
covered with beautiful and striking carvings and is inscribed with verses from
the holy Quran.
Qutub Minar is still the highest stone tower in India as well as one of the
finest Islamic structures ever raised and Delhi's recognised landmark. The
sultan's successor and son-in-law, Iltutmish, completed it. In 1303, Ala-ud-Din
established the second city of Delhi, called Siri, of which nothing remains but
the embattlements. He also had dug a vast reservoir, Hauz Khas, to supply water
to his city. Contemporary historians describe the Delhi of that time as being
the "envy of Baghdad, the rival of Cairo and equal to Constantinople". For the
sake of convenience, tourists visiting the Qutub Complex could also see the
Tomb of Adham Khan and Zafar Mahal in Mehrauli and the Tomb of Jamali-Kamali
behind the Qutub Minar. These however, belong to a later date. The Damage &
Restoration From the Nagari and Persian inscriptions on the minar, it appears
that it was damaged twice by lightning, in 1326 and 1368.
The first damage occurred during Muhammed Tughluq's reign (1325-51), and was
repaired by him apparently in 1332. The second damage was attended by Feroze
Tughluq (1351-88). Later in 1503, Sikandar Lodi (1489-1517) also carried out
some restoration in the upper storeys. Originally the minar had only four
storeys, faced with red and buff sandstone. The uppermost storey, which was
damaged in 1368 during Feroze Tughluq's reign, was replaced by him by two
storeys,
making free use of marble but leaving the lower
portion of the fourth storey built with sandstone in
its original condition. The original three storeys are
each laid on a different plan, the lowest with
alternate angular and circular flutings, the second
with round ones and the third with angular ones only,
with the same alignment of flutings, however, being
carried through them all. Its projecting balconies
with stalactite pendentive type of brackets and
inscriptional decorative bands on different storeys
heighten its decorative effect. It has a diameter of
14.32 m at the base and about 2.75 m on the top. With
a height of 72.5 m and 379 steps, it is the highest
stone tower in India and a perfect example of minar
known to exist anywhere. |
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The Legend Of The Qutub There exists a tradition that
the Qutub-Minar was built by Prithviraj, the last
Chauhan king of Delhi, for enabling his daughter to
behold the sacred river Yamuna, from its top as part
of her daily worship. A Landmark In Islamic
Architecture The Minar's entire architecture, however,
bespeaks an Islamic origin, with two of its prototypes
in brick still existing at Ghazni, although Hindu
craftsmen were certainly employed for its
construction, as is evident also from certain 'Devanagari'
inscriptions on its surface. Sometimes sculptured
stones from temples have been found utilised in it.
Originally, it was surmounted by a cupola, which fell
down during an earthquake and was replaced early in
the 19th century with a new cupola in the late Mughal
style, by one Major Smith. It looked, however, so
incongruous that it was brought down in 1848, and may
now be seen on the lawns to the south east of the
minar. A Complex Of Astounding Monuments Quwwatu'l-Islam
Masjid Just adjacent to the tower is the mosque of
Quwwatu'l-Islam Masjid, which can become a bewildering
experience for those who are not familiar with its
history. It was supposed to have been built using the
materials and masonry of the remains of Hindu Temples
and architecture. On one hand there is the beautiful,
exceptional Islamic handwriting and brocaded designs.
Then there are pillars with clearly pre-Islamic Hindu
motifs. The reason is that the pillars were taken from
the 27 temples of Qila Rai Pithora, the city of the
Rajput king Prithviraj Chauhan. This in fact has been
recorded by Qutub-ud-Din in his inscriptions, who call
it the Jami Masjid (Friday Mosque) in his
inscriptions. The mosque was started in 1192 by
Qutub-ud-din Aibak, the first ruler of the Slave
Dynasty and was finished four years later.
The Iron Pillar In the courtyard of the Quwwatu'l-Islam
mosque stands the famous iron pillar, which bears a
Sanskrit inscription in Gupta script,
palaeographically assignable to the 4th century, a
date which is also confirmed by the peculiar style of
its 'Amalaka'-capital. The inscription records that
the pillar was set up as a standard or dhvaja of god
Vishnu on the hill known as 'Vishnupada', in the
memory of a mighty king, named 'Chandra', who is now
regarded as identical with Chandragupta II (375-413)
of the imperial Gupta dynasty. A deep hole on the top
of the pillar indicates that an additional member,
perhaps an image of 'Garuda', was fitted into it to
answer to its description as a standard of Vishnu. The
pillar has been brought here evidently from somewhere,
else, as no other relics of the 4th century are found
at the site. There is a strong bardic tradition that
it was brought here - wherefrom, nobody knows - by
Anangpal, the Tomar king who is credited with the
founding of Delhi. |
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