IMAGE INDIA
Architecture of the Islamic Courts
(Visiting for the first time? Please read the introduction to Image India)
Index of Images:
Delhi Sultanate
The earliest Islamic monuments in India were often built by recycling material from earlier Jain or Hindu monuments. The Adhai-Din-Ka Jhompra of Ajmer which dates from the 12th C was built over the ruins of a Jain monastery/college that used to be a centre of Sanskrit learning during the reign of the Chauhans. However, the Shahi Mosque of Udaypur in Central India was built from original materials.
Hissar and Hansi also have interesting monuments from this period.
Chanderi was first fortified by the Pratihara king in the 11th C but later came under the occupation of the Delhi Sultans and it's Islamic monuments date from that period onwards.
Bengal Sultanate
The Sultans of Bengal built several mosques in the vicinity of their old capitals in Pandua and Gaur (14th-15th C). The grandest of these was the Adina Mosque of Pandua which boasts some very intricate carvings. As elsewhere in the country, decorative elements were freely adapted from older temples, and building materials from vandalized monuments were often reused as in the Eklakhi Mosque.
In the Adina Mosque, some of the decorative motifs appear to have a striking resemblance to those seen in the heavily damaged Kakathiya monuments of Warangal suggesting that artisans from the Telangana region may have been employed in it's construction.
Sharqis of Jaunpur
The Sharqis ruled the central gangetic plain from their capital in Jaunpur during the 14th and 15th century and constructed several imposing mosques with fine jaalis in their capital and in other cities such as Etawah.
Jaunpur's architectural style also had it's impact on later Islamic architecture of the region. Sher Shah Suri's gateways in the Chunar Fort and some of the mosques in the Sasaram region appear to be inspired by the Jaunpur style.
Gujarat Sultanate
Lace-like intiricate carvings highlight the 15th century monuments of the Gujarat Sultanate. Ancient Jain, and Hindu motifs like the Chakra, the Kalpa-Lata or Kalpa-Vriksha, the Purna Kalash, the lotus symbol, and the lamp of knowledge found their way into the grand mosques of Ahmedabad, Champaner, Surat and other Gujarati cities.
Early Mughal
The Maqbara in Baroda is an early Mughal-era tomb and it's more restrained architecture bears little resemblance to the florid style cultivated by Ahmed Shah and his successors who ruled Gujarat prior to the Mughals.
In the small fort of Picchore in Central India, there are the remains of a modest royal pavillion
Sher Shah Suri's Reign
Most of the monuments built during Sher Shah Suri's reign (mid 16th C) are concentrated in the Eastern UP and Bihar region and are much more impressive than anything built during the reign of Babar or Humayun which are relatively staid and stereotypic in comparison. The gateways and jharokhas in the Chunar fort are especially bold and impressive. There is also an interesting monument in Chanderi.
Farooqis of Burhanpur
Before Burhanpur came under Mughal rule, it was ruled by the Farooqi Sultans. The 16th C. Jama Masjid is notable for it's Sanskrit inscriptions above the Mirhab.
The Mughals
During the reigns of Akbar, Jehangir and Shah Jahan, (16th-17th C) Mughal architecture reached it's greatest heights. Although the tombs and forts of the Mughal period are the most renowned, some critics have found Mughal architecture to be excessively formal and remote. Nevertheless, the best of Mughal architecture boasts workmanship of exceptional quality and great brilliance.
Fatehpur Sikri (Birbal's Palace, Chishti's Dargah)
Agra: ( Firuz Khan's Tomb; Tomb of Itmad-Daulah; Taj Mahal)
Ajmer: Jami Masjid (Shah Jehan's White Marble Mosque)
Dholpur: (Tomb of Bibi Zarina, Late Mughal)
The Deccan
Numerous independant kingdoms arose in the Deccan region, the most prominent of which were Bijapur ruled by the Adil Shahis (16th-17th C) and Hyderabad ruled by the Qutb Shahis (late 16th -17th C)
Tonk
Rajasthan is not known for it's Islamic heritage, but the small principality of Tonk (near Jaipur) has some colorful and whimsical mosques and some richly decorated royal Havelis from the 17th-18th C.
The Awadh Legacy
The 18th-19th C architecture of Awadh has it's own characteristic charm and some of it is quite striking. The best examples of the Awadh legacy are to be found in Faizabad and Lucknow.
Post-Mughal Haryana
The Haryana region fell to the British East India Company in the early part of the 19th C. However, rulers loyal to the British were allowed to keep control of their small principalities. The former princely states of Dujana and Farrukhnagar have mosques, havelis and palaces dating from the 18th and the 19th centuries.
For an essay on Islam and it's impact on the Indian subcontinent see this essay from South Asian History: Islam and the sub-continent - appraising it's impact
No comments:
Post a Comment