Eternal India Encyclopedia

Eternal India encyclopedia

ARCHITECTURE

(than the oppressively fortified form). In addition there was the garden art. This was very much of Persian origin, brought to India by Babur who after his first victory at Panipat laid out a garden called Kabul Bagh. Shah Jehan created the Shalimar Bagh at Lahore where the water flows through a series of descending terraces. MUGHAL ARCHITECTURE It has been already explained that the Mughal style of archi- tecture typifies the most important final manifestation of Islamic art and one of extraordinary brilliance. It was an imperial movement affected only moderately by local influences as it displayed uni- formity in its architectural character and structural principles. The main factors were primarily the wealth and power of the empire, the aesthetic nature of the Mughal rulers themselves and the imperial patronage rising to the greatest heights stimulated by the personal interest of the ruler. The Mughal phase resolves into two phases, an earlier one in which the buildings were constructed of red sand- stone during the reign of Akbar and a later phase when white marble was largely used to suit the more luxurious taste of Shah Jahan. Babur, the first Mughal emperor, relates in his "Memoirs" a considerable amount of building activity in the form of ornamental gardens and mosques, such as the Jami Masjid at Sambhal, near Delhi and Kabul Bagh at Panipat, with however no distinctive character. Humayun's style was more influenced by the Persian style, which is found in his mausoleum, Humayun's Tomb at Delhi (1564) built by Begum Sahiba who had as her architect Mirak Mirza Ghiyas of Persian origin. It is outstanding as a landmark in the development of the Mughal style. The innovation consists of a surrounding park like an enclosure around the main building (as in the Lodi tombs) with the tomb isolated in the centre. In the middle of each of the four sides of the enclosure an imposing gateway was in- troduced, with the entrance gateway on the west. The tomb, square in plan, each face consisting of a central rectangular front containing an arched recess and flanked by a wing each relieved by a small arched alcove. Above this rises the marble dome to 140 feet with a cluster of pillared kiosks with cupola roofs. The structural relation of the plan to the design of both the exterior and interior is logical and the principles of good building have been observed throughout. At the same time that Humayun's tomb was being erected at Delhi, the reigning emperor, Akbar, began his capital city at Agra. His building was chiefly executed in red sandstone, readily available, with insertions of white marble for purposes of emphasis. Within the fortified wall at Agra (on the river Jumna) were two gateways, with the Delhi Gate being a commendable achievement. Within the fortress was the Jahangiri Mahal, a complex arrangement of compartments (probably the residence of the heir apparent) and exemplifies a state of transition between the Hindu type of palace (as in the Man Mandir at Gwalior) and the domestic requirements of a Muslim ruler in the sixteenth century. Among the palace fortresses built by Akbar were those at Lahore and Allahabad. However, the most ambitious architectural project of Akbar's reign was at Fatehpur Sikhri, the conception and creation of an entirely new capital city, on a specially selected site, 27 miles from Agra. Here was a great complex of palatial, residential, official and religious buildings, so designed and executed as to form one of the most spectacular structural productions in the whole of India. Surrounded by a bastioned wall, about two miles long by one mile this city was never intended to be of any strategic purpose, but purely a ceremonial capital. However the life of Fatehpur Sikhri was an extremely short one. But its numerous palaces and

pavilions are elegant and rich, such as the Diwan-i-Am or. Hall of Public Audience, the great mosque or Jami Masjid. The mosque is among the largest in the country. The fine sweep of the quadrangle leading up to the main interior facade produces an effect of dignity and spaciousness. The Mughal decoration, inlaid ornamentation and diversity of patterns are unsurpassed. Some 25 years after the completion of this mosque, Akbar erected the Buland Darwaza, an imposing structure of altogether about 176 ft. in height. Near the mosque is the notable structure, the tomb of Salim Chisti, with a complete change in aesthetic values. It is built in marble, delicate, polished and exquisite. Among its distinct features are the pillars in the porch with Makara Torana found in the Hindu temple art. Structurally these supports have little value, they are almost entirely decorative and produce an effect more fantastic than beautiful. Among the secular buildings, the largest and most important are the palaces such as that of Jodh Bai and the houses of Miriam, the Sultana and Birbal, all four representatives of the regal residential type of structure. Jodh Bai's palace discloses in its scheme a predominant Hindu element. There is a private chapel for devotions. Hindu decorations are seen in its ornamental niches, lotus designs and brackets with other interesting details such as applications of blue glaze tiles to roofs and cupolas. It is evident that the construction of this palace was entrusted to a party of artisans from Gujarat. Of the administrative buildings, the Diwan- i-Khas or Hall of Private Audience was conceived in an unusual manner. Externally it is rectangular in plan and in two stories having a flat roof. But its interior arrangement is unique as here one seems to be in closer touch with the personality of Akbar. The principal architectural feature is a large pillar occupying a central position with its massive expanding capital supporting a circular stone platform from which stone bridges radiate along each diagonal of the hall to connect-with hanging galleries which surround the super portion. The idea was that the emperor would sit enthroned on the central platform while listening to arguments from representatives of the different religious communities gathered there, the arrangement signifying what has been termed his "dominion over the four quarters." The period of the rule of Jahangir in architecture was relatively uneventful as compared to painting. However he built his father's tomb, at Sikandra near Agra (completed in 1613), which was a departure from the conventional domed structure. The tomb building takes the shape of a low truncated pyramid, built up in three stories. The crowning feature of one is composed in white marble. Another outstanding architectural production of the later years of Jahangir's rule was his own mausoleum at Shadera near Lahore. An important building, which may be regarded as the connecting link between the style of Jahangir and Shah Jahan was the tomb at Agra of Itmad-ud- Daulah, the father of Jahangir's queen, Nur Mahal, by whom it was built in 1626. This small and elegant structure is a new interpreta- tion of the building art, aiming at exquisite finish. It comprises central structure with broad octagonal towers in the form of minars and a small pavilion above the roof. The embellishment has been subordinated to the architectural effects and most of the surface is directly coloured by inlaid stones. Hitherto the inlaid work had been of the kind known as opus sectile, a marble intarsia of various colours, but, from now on the inlaid work took the form called pietra dura in which hard and rare stones such as lapis lazuli, jasper, topaz, and the like were embedded in the marble in graceful folia- tions.