 |
Business | Industries | Finance | Tax |
| Index: > A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z |
|
|||||
Qutub Minar is one of the most visited tourist attractions in Delhi.
The Qutub Minar is 72.5 metres high and has 379 steps to get to the top. The diameter of the base is 14.3 metres while the top floor measures 2.7 metres in diameter. Qutub Minar is the highest stone tower as well as one of the finest Islamic structures ever raised in India. The Qutub Minar is made of fluted red sandstone and is covered with intricate carvings and verses from the holy Qur'an. There is however a controversy regarding the naming of the tower. Many historians believe that the Qutub Minar was not named after the first Turkish sultan, Qutb-ud-din Aibak but in honour of Khwaja Qutb-ud-din , a saint from Baghdad who came to live in India and who was greatly venerated by Iltutmish.
In the compounds of Qutub Minar, there are many other interesting buildings and structures, including the Quwwat-ul-Islam mosque. The Quwwat-ul-Islam mosque was the first mosque to be built in India. It was built by Qutub-ud-din aibak using parts of 27 Jain and Hindu temples and both Indian and Islamic features are present. The Qutub Minar incidentally is itself built on the ruins of Lal Kot , the Red Citadel in the city of Dhillika , the capital of the Rajput Tomars and the Chauhans , the last Hindu rulers of Delhi. Unfortunately, the mosque is in ruins today but one can see indigenous corbelled arches, floral motifs as well as Islamic practices such as squinches (setting arches diagonally to a square to support a dome), calligraphyCalligraphy (from Greek καλλι calli "beauty" + γραφος graphos "writing") is the art of decorative writing. A particular style of calligraphy is described as a hand''. Calligraphy at every p and geometric patterns. Later monuments include the Ala-I-DarwazaThe Ala-I-Darwaza is a magnificent gateway in the compound, containing many Islamic buildings built by the Slave dynasty and the Khilji dynasty around 12th and 13th century AD near Delhi. Other important buildings there include Qutub Minar and Quwwat-ul-I and the Alai Minar built by Ala-ud-din Khilji (1296-1316).
To the west of the Quwwat-ul-Islam mosque, the tomb of Iltutmish is situated which was built by the monarch in 1235. This building was definitely a departure from the norm for the Hindus who cremated their dead and to whom the concept of building huge mausoleumsA mausoleum is a large and impressive tomb, usually constructed for a deceased leader. The word came from the Mausoleum of Maussollos, the tomb of King Mausolus, the Persian satrap of Caria, whose large tomb was one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient Wor was new.
Close to the mosque is one of Delhi's most curious structures the Iron pillarThe iron pillar of Delhi, in the Indian Capital City, standing in the compound of many Islamic buildings has been one of the metallurgical curiousities. History The pillarover seven metres high and weighing more than six tonneswas erected by Kumara Gupta. Dating back to 4th century A.D., the pillar bears an inscription which states that it was erected as a flagstaff in honour of the Hindu god, VishnuVishnu is an aspect of God, or Brahman, whom Hindus pray to. He is the second God of the Trimurti (also called the Hindu Trinity), along with Brahma and Shiva. Known as the Preserver he is most famously identified with his avatars, or incarnations of God,, and in the memory of the Gupta King Chandragupta IIThe period of prominence of the Gupta dynasty is very often referred to as the Golden Age of India. It was under the rule of Samudragupta's son, Chandragupta II (very often referred to as Vikramaditya or Chandragupta Vikramaditya spanning 375-413/15 AD, t(375-413). How the pillar moved to its present location remains a mystery. The pillar also highlights ancient India's achievements in metallurgy. The pillar is made of 98 per cent wrought ironWrought iron is a very pure form of commercial iron, having a very small carbon content. It is tough, malleable, ductile and can be easily welded. However, it is too soft to make blades from; steel, with a carbon content between wrought and the high-carbo and has stood 1,600 years without rusting or decomposing.
| Politics | Business | Finance |
 |
 |
 |
|