In far south Delhi, near a place called Mehrauli - they say Delhi has been built seven times, as seven different cities, and Mehrauli is one of the older ones - is the Qutub Minar Complex. This is a compound that hosts a number of mosques, tombs, gardens, and Minars (or tall towers, i.e. minarets). Qutub Minar is the largest of such towers in all of India. It is over 200 feet tall, and was built as a monument to the Victory of the first Muslim king over the residing Hindu kingdoms of that time. It was built around 1,200 AD.
I visited this site with the group Delhi Heritage Walks with Sohail Hashmi. I first heard Mr Hashmi give a lecture on Delhi's ancient system of large public wells. This was when I was staying at the India Habitat Centre for my first month in India. The lecture was fascinating (I have a deep fondness for water, after all). And I found Sohail to be a very interesting and descriptive and passionate speaker. So when I heard of his heritage walks, I was very keen to join.
I had to arrive by 7am to South South Delhi. So I had my colleague help me yesterday to book a taxi -- I currently do not drive in Delhi, and I hope I never do! I'd be destroyed instantly in Delhi's particularly intense traffic. I used a taxi booking service on my smart-phone, and was pleased that it arrived on time and ready to go. But, as it was Sunday morning and early, the ride that I thought would take 40 minutes, only took 12! So I was very early. This worked to my advantage though, because I had given the cab driver all of my small change, and I (stupidly) only had a 1,000 Rupee note to pay for my 250 Rupee entrance ticket to Qutub Minar. The guy behind the ticket counter was not at all helpful or sympathetic to my plight, and since it was so early, there were not many people buying tickets. And, the 250 Rupee price is for foreigners. Indian citizens pay only 10 Rupees... so it was going to take a long time to make change to break my 1,000.
Fortunately, a small group of locals who were also going for the heritage walk were able to help me out, and I got my ticket with no further problem.
So, I attended the walk... which lasted about 2.5 hours. It was really interesting to hear Sohail explain the history and small anecdotes of the place. The red sandstone blocks came to life through his narration. There was a good group of 20+ eager history enthusiasts, and we all listened carefully to tales of how the stone-masons chiseled their names on the insides of the blocks (to make sure they got paid), of how sun-dials were installed in various locations, of the new architectual features, and building techniques that were brought from Persia to India with this Mughal invasion. Of archways, and vaulted cielings. Of tombs and pillars and columns. And of this mysterious Iron Pilar that sits just outside the main mosque in the centre of the compound. This pillar is composed of 98% pure iron and is incredibly tall -- these two features suggest advanced technology far ahead of what was expected or otherwise known at the time.
It is a really interesting, beautiful, and peaceful place on a summer morning. I took a lot of photos of the buildings and the craftsmanship. Have a look at the online photo album below.
I visited this site with the group Delhi Heritage Walks with Sohail Hashmi. I first heard Mr Hashmi give a lecture on Delhi's ancient system of large public wells. This was when I was staying at the India Habitat Centre for my first month in India. The lecture was fascinating (I have a deep fondness for water, after all). And I found Sohail to be a very interesting and descriptive and passionate speaker. So when I heard of his heritage walks, I was very keen to join.
I had to arrive by 7am to South South Delhi. So I had my colleague help me yesterday to book a taxi -- I currently do not drive in Delhi, and I hope I never do! I'd be destroyed instantly in Delhi's particularly intense traffic. I used a taxi booking service on my smart-phone, and was pleased that it arrived on time and ready to go. But, as it was Sunday morning and early, the ride that I thought would take 40 minutes, only took 12! So I was very early. This worked to my advantage though, because I had given the cab driver all of my small change, and I (stupidly) only had a 1,000 Rupee note to pay for my 250 Rupee entrance ticket to Qutub Minar. The guy behind the ticket counter was not at all helpful or sympathetic to my plight, and since it was so early, there were not many people buying tickets. And, the 250 Rupee price is for foreigners. Indian citizens pay only 10 Rupees... so it was going to take a long time to make change to break my 1,000.
Fortunately, a small group of locals who were also going for the heritage walk were able to help me out, and I got my ticket with no further problem.
So, I attended the walk... which lasted about 2.5 hours. It was really interesting to hear Sohail explain the history and small anecdotes of the place. The red sandstone blocks came to life through his narration. There was a good group of 20+ eager history enthusiasts, and we all listened carefully to tales of how the stone-masons chiseled their names on the insides of the blocks (to make sure they got paid), of how sun-dials were installed in various locations, of the new architectual features, and building techniques that were brought from Persia to India with this Mughal invasion. Of archways, and vaulted cielings. Of tombs and pillars and columns. And of this mysterious Iron Pilar that sits just outside the main mosque in the centre of the compound. This pillar is composed of 98% pure iron and is incredibly tall -- these two features suggest advanced technology far ahead of what was expected or otherwise known at the time.
It is a really interesting, beautiful, and peaceful place on a summer morning. I took a lot of photos of the buildings and the craftsmanship. Have a look at the online photo album below.
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