Thursday, December 5, 2013

Last flicker in the lamp of Mughal architecture




V C Pandey in his book “Environment, Security and Tourism Development in South Asia” calls Safdarjung Tomb as the “last flicker in the lamp of Mughal Architecture”


Very close to Lodi gardens in Delhi you can find Safdarjung Tomb. This is the tomb of Mirza Muqim Abul-Mansur Khan, built by his son –Nawab Shauja-ud-daula in 1753 to house the remains of his father. Like Humayun’s tomb this is also  a garden tomb. In fact it is the last tomb to be erected with a garden.


Since this place is not popular and very few people appreciate its importance there was hardly anyone when I visited. So I could shoot this monument without any difficulty of someone walking between my camera and my object! As this is also under Archeological Survey of India (ASI) it is maintained very well and photography is allowed.

By the way, I have to say something about ASI. I am not a big (even small for that matter!) fan of any Indian government department. But one BIG exception is ASI. I have visited many monuments/temples in India which are maintained by ASI. Uniformly they are all very well maintained. We must give it to them for their good work! 





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