architecture

1. HISTORY OF ARCHITECTURE, ART &
CULTURE-II
B.ARCH SEM 2

2. HISTORY INDIAN ISLAMIC ARCHITECTURE
INTRODUCTION:
THE BASIS OF THE BUILDING ART OF THE TEMPLE ARCHITECTURE WAS
TRABEATE , AS ALL SPACES WERE SPANNED BY MEANS OF BEAMS LAID
HORIZONTALLY AND THE BASIS OF ISLAMIC ARCHITECTURE WAS ARCHATE, AS
THE MOHAMEDAN BUILDERS HAD ADOPTED THE ARCH AS A METHOD OF
BRIDGING A SPACE.
THE STYLE OF ARCHITECTURE DEVELOPED BY MOHAMEDANS WAS NAMED
AS SARACENIC AND LATER WAS TITTLED AS INDO-ISLAMIC.
THE IMPORTANCE OF THIS INDIAN PHASE OF ISLAMIC ARCHITECTURE WILL
BE APPRECIATED WHEN IT IS REALISED THAT INDIA PRODUCED MORE
NOTABLE BUILDINGS THAN ALL OTHER COUNTRIES THAT CAME UNDER THE
INFLUENCE OF ISLAM.
TWO FACTORS WERE LARGELY RSPONSIBLE FOR THE BRILLIANT EXPOSITION
OF THE STYLE:
1. LATE DEVELOPMENT
2. INDEGENOUS CRAFTSMEN

3. MOHAMEDAN ARCHITECTURE IN INDIA IS REPRESENTED BY MANY DIFFERENT
TYPES OF BUILDINGS WITH TWO CONVENTIONAL DIVISIONS:
1. RELIGIOUS
2. SECULAR
RELIGIOUS: MOSQUES & TOMB
SECULAR: BUILDINGS OF MISCELLANEOUS ORDER LIKE
PALACES, FORTS, ETC

4. THE RELIGIOUS STRUCTURE MOSQUE MEANS PLACE OF PROSTRATION AND IS NOT ONLY
THE IMPORTANT BUILDING OF THE FAITH BUT THE KEY NOTE OF THE STYLE ASWELL.

5. For the purposes of study, the architecture thus
produced may be resolved into three main divisions
(I) Delhi Sultanate Style
(2) the Provincial, and
(3) the Mughal style

6. MUGHAL ARCHITECTURE:
1.BABUR(1526-56)
2.HUMAYAN(1531-56)
3.AKBAR(1556-1605)
4.JAHANGIR (1605-27)
5.SHAH JAHAN(1627-58)
6.AURANGAZEB(1658-1707)

7. Features:
•Building art in northern India attained its most sumptuous form.
•Muslim art and architecture reached its peak during the mughal rule.
•A form of the building art emerged expressive of this ruling dynasty

8. DIFFERENT STYLES IF ISLAMIC ARCHES & SQUINCHES

9. DIFFERENT STYLES OF DOMES

10. The Imperial Style of Islamic architecture, as this flourished under the aegis of the
ruling power at the Moslem capital of Delhi, was maintained for a period of over
three and a half centuries.
These examples of Indo-Islamic architecture at the capital of India illustrate every stage
of the development of the style, from the initial conversion of temple materials into
mosques and tombs by the first governors of the twelfth century, to the vast
compositions of the Mughal emperors,.
The earliest appearance of Islamic architecture in India, and referred to as
the Imperial style, may be divided into five phases corresponding to the five
Mohammedan dynasties which prevailed in Hindustan from the twelfth to
the sixteenth centuries. They are designated
(1) Slave (A.D. 1191-1246);
(2) Khalji (1290-1320);
(3) Tughluq (1320-1413)
(4) Sayyid (1414-1444); and
(5) Lodi (1451-1551).
IMPERIAL STYLE

11. • Imperial style of Islamic architecture, as this flourished under the aegis of the ruling
power at the Moslem capital of Delhi, was maintained for a period of over three
and a half centuries.
• Beginning in the last years of the twelfth century ,five Mohammedan dynasties,
one after the other, held sway, with the city of Delhi as the focal point of their
domination and each has left substantial evidences of its architectural proclivities.
• Of this development the Moslem capital contains numerous examples of a most
instructive description, but in addition to these, king to its active existence having
persisted for a much longer period, the city of Delhi and its environs provides a
continuous record of architectural evolution upto the present day
None of the building activities of these rulers affected more materially the
character of the subsequent architecture than those of the first dynasty, known
as the Slave Kings of Delhi.
This name has been given to the earliest Muslim rule in India, as its members
were not of royal blood, but belonged to a system of slavery which at the time
was an accepted practice with the majority of Mohammedans of high rank.
SLAVE DYNASTY

12. • Qutub-uddin himself, and his son-in-law Shams-ud-din Iltutmish, who ruled from
A.D. 1211 to 1236, were the most active patrons of the building art, and their
productions were of the utmost significance in laying the
foundations of the style.
• Rule of the founder of the Slave dynasty, Qutb-uddin Aibak. (dec. 1210) important
building schemes were initiated, prefiguring a notable movement in the sphere of
architectural design and in its methods of construction.
• This ruler's first effort was the creation of the Qutb Mosque in 1195. erected on
the spacious substructure of a Hindu temple. And consisting solely of spoils ravaged
from existing temples in this area.
• Such a compilation had little architectural significance. it was merely an assortment
of pillars and other temple components arranged in columned aisles to produce
the necessary mosque enclosure.
• A few years later, in 1199, it was resolved to project an expansive arched screen
across the western or Mecca side of this enclosure, such a structure being entirely
original work may be regarded as the first example remaining of a definite Islamic
order erected on Indian soil.
Almost contemporary with this building arose one of the most stupendous
architectural achievements ever conceived by the Mohammedans,
the Qutb Minar, a monumental tower to form F of the Qutb Mosque
scheme and of such proportions that it took several years to complete.

14. QUTUB COMPLEX

15. Qutub Mosque ( Quwwatul-Islam Moqsue ):
• This mosque consisted of a courtyard some 141 feet by 105 feet
surrounded by pillared cloisters, three aisles deep, the short pillars
from the temples being placed one above the other in order to
secure the necessary
• Height although an assembly of elegantly carved stonework had
more the character of an archaeological miscellany than a considered work of
architecture.
• first Islamic building in India of dressed stone was at its best mainly a patch work
of older materials, beautiful in detail, as its arcaded aisles were composed of
pillars carved in the most perfect Hindu style, but as a whole a confused and
somewhat incongruous improvisation.
• Briefly, this mosque consisted of a courtyard some 141 feet by 105 feet
surrounded by pillared cloisters, three aisles deep, the short pillars from the
temples being placed one above the other in order to secure the necessary
height. On the west or Mecca side of the courtyard, the arrangement of pillars
was made more spacious and elaborated into a series of bays with Shallow
domed ceilings, to form the sanctuary. And in front of the centre of the
sanctuary was erected the famous Iron Pillar, but deprived of its crowning figure
of Garuda, this remarkable example of indigenous craftsmanship having been
tom from its original setting near Muttra, where it had already stood for over six
hundred years.

16. The Hindu fortress of Qal'a-i-Rai Pithaura, although
recorded as the first of the seven historical cities of
Delhi when captured and occupied by 2otb-ud-din
Aibak, was by no means the important strategic and
political centre that it afterwards became. To this
first Mohammedan governor must be given the credit
for realizing the maxim that "he who holds Delhi
holds India," and he it was who began to elevate it into
the key position of the country. He had already designated
his mosque the 2owwat-Islam, or "Might of
Islam," indicating that he was fully conscious of the
spiritual force it signified, but something even more
spectacular seemed to be required as a concrete symbol
of this ruler's abounding sense of exaltation at his
growing >Ower and of the omnipotence of the 'Faith
that inspIred it. Accordingly in the last year of the
twelfth century, Qutb-ud-din laid the foundations of a
structure, which, when completed, became one of the
most remarkable architectural monuments ever produced.
This was an immense and lofty tower. the
20tb Minar, originally some 238 feet in height, its
primary object being that of proclaiIning to the whole
world the prestige and authprity of Islam

17. None of these however either in size or intention can compete with this
Indian monument which is unique, there is nothing like it in the whole range
of Islamic art. Such a building was made possible by the inspired vision of
Qutb-ud-din Aibak, and realized through the creative genius of the Indian
workmen.
That this Tower of Victory also served an important but supplementary
purpose should be recorded as it formed the minar of the mosque which lay
at its feet, and from its balconies the mezzanine made his call to prayer.
In this it followed an ancient Arabian tradition. Situated at it was outside the
original mosque enclosure, and to the left of the main entrance, it occupies
relatively the same position as the minars in some of the most venerated
mosques of an earlier time.
QUTUB MINAR

18. As completed, the 20th Minar consisted of four stories diminishing as they ascended,
with a projecting balcony dividing each stage.
The three lower stories have remained untouched, but the fourth, or
uppermost storey was composed of a circular kiosk with window openings and a
domical roof crowning the entire structure.
In plan the tower is circular, the base being 46 feet in diameter, and it tapers
to a width of 10 feet at the summit. Each of its four stages is a different pattern in
section, the lowest having stealate, or wedge-shaped flanges alternating with
rounded flutes, the second has circular projections, the third
is star-shaped, while the fourth is simply round.

19. Seen from any point of view the 20tb Minar as a whole is a most impressive
conception, the vivid colour of its reds sandstone, the changing texture of its fluted
stories with their overlay of inscriptional bands, the contrast between the
alternating spaces of plain masonry and rich carving, the shimmer
of the shadows under the balconies, all combine to produce an effect of marked
vitality.
Then the tapering cylindrical appearance was purposely desjgned in
order to give the whole an upward impulse and the
illusion of increased height.
But perhaps its most pronounced quality is that of stability, absolute and
unmutable, its very shape decreasing as it rises on much the same principle as the
pyramid, illustrated as was intended, man's highest endeavour to make his
handiwork timeless.

20. The second great building monarch of the Slave dynasty was Shams-uddin Illtumish,
during whose reign from A. D. 12II to 1236, four important architectural
works are recorded.
They are, (1) the addition of a facade to the Ajmir mosque
(2) extension to Qutb-ud-din's mosque at Old Delhi
(finished in 1229),
(3) the tomb of his son (1231), and
(4) his own tomb, both in Old Delhi.
Of these, the building which makes a notable contribution to the architecture
of the period is the mosque facade at Ajmir, clearly inspired by his predecessor, Qutb-ud-din
whose similar addition to the mosque at Delhi, is in much the same style.
It is fitting that the culmination of the building art during the reign of the Slave King
should be his mausoleum, erected some time before 1235
Situated outside the north-west angle of his mosque extension at Old Delhi, it is a
square, compact structure of forty-two feet side with an entrance doorway on each of its
three sides, the western side being closed to accommodate a series of three milwabs on
its inner face.

21. During the course of the development of the dome in India it will be
shown that various methods at different times were adopted, but the
particular form employed in Illtutmish's tomb was that known as a
"squinch."
The squinch system consists of projecting a small arch, or similar contrivance across the
upper part of the angle of the square hall, thus converting its square shape into an
octagon, which again if necessary, may be transformed in the same manner into a
sixteen sided figure, a convenient base on which the lower circular rim
of the dome may rest without leaving any portions unsupported. In this instance the
squinch takes the form of a small vault, or half dome, with an arch on its outer and
diagonal face.
With the tomb of Illtumish the story of Indo-Islamic
architecture under the Slave dynasty closes, and for a period of some sixty years, with
one exception, no structures of any importance appear to have been produced.
TOMB OF ILLTUMISH

22. AFTER the death of Shams-uddin Iltutmish of the Slave Dynasty in 1234, except
during the short rule of the House of Balban, with the significant appearance of the
true arch, no buildings of any consequence were undertaken until the rise of the
Khaljis in the last years of the thirteenth century.
For nearly three quarters of a century, therefore, at this formative stage of the
building art in India, little progress was made. Then there arose to power this
dynasty of Afghanized Turks from the village of Khalti, near Ghazni, and with the
third of the line, Ala-ud-din Khalji, who ascended the throne of Delhi in , a
advance in the field of architecture took place.
This ruler's most important building project consisted of a scheme to construct an
immense congregational mosque at the Qutb, which was to include within its
perimeter the two mosques already erected by his predecessors, the whole being
concentrically disclosed, but with the largest enclosure extending towards. the
northern end. Within this spacious northern area he proposed to raise a colossal
minar, its proportions double those of the one set up by the Slave Kings a
century before. It must have been obvious to anyone
with vision less

23. This ruler's most important building project consisted of a scheme to construct an
immense congregational mosque at the Qutb, which was to include within its
perimeter the two mosques already erected by his predecessors, the whole being
concentrically disclosed, but with the largest enclosure extending towards. the
northern end.
Within this spacious northern area he proposed to raise a colossal minar, its
proportions double those of the one set up by the Slave Kings a
century before. It must have been obvious to anyone with vision less
KHILJI DYNASTY

24. • Architecture during Khalji dynasty was a lot contoured by Ala-ud-din Khalji.
• He reconstructed the Qutb mosque by his predecessors.
• He extended its northern end and raised a colossal minar.
• The proportion of the minar was double, compared to those of the one set up by the Slave
Kings a century before.
• The main walls of the mosque are still visible; however, most of its parts are present with its
huge core of rubble.
• The architecture of Khalji dynasty was a great composition of creative knowledge which
was completed in an intelligent supervision.

25. • The Qutb Minar and the structural element of the Alai Darwaza echo this truth. Alai
Darwaza was completed in the year 1305.
• This structure is the southern entrance hall to the courtyard, a gateway of Ala- ud-din
Khalji. Some fresh influence was present due to the assistance of the experts and
mature developments were done to the building.
• The Alai Darwaza is a unique building art due to the shape and inventiveness of the
arches, in the method of its walling, in the conception and support system for the
dome and in the design of the surface decoration.
• The Alai Darwaza consists of many indigenous features throughout its design. Its fabric
runs in the Indian manner, sometimes in the FORM of a mere border, at others
comprising considerable parts of the pattern. It is the skilful fusion of the two modes
that has produced in this building such an outstanding work of art. Ala- ud-din Khalji
created four entrances to the Alai Darwaza mosque two of which were to be on the
long eastern side, and one each on the north and south. However, only the southern
entrance was completed comparing to the other unfinished portions. To view the
progress of the work from his royal residence, the Sultan constructed the southern
quarter which was one of the most artistic structural achievements produced under the
Islamic rule. The designs of the three outer faces of Alai Darwaza are similar, each
containing a tall archway over a flight of steps leading to the higher floor of the interior.
• Apart from the Alai Darwaza, the other architectures during Khalji Dynasty were Siri
Fort, the second of the seven cities of Delhi, constructed in 1303 and the Jamaat Khana
Masjid at the tomb of Nizam-ud-din Auliya, a distinguished saint of the period,

26. Siri Fort in Delhi was a great example of Islamic architecture during the Khalji dynasty. It
was built to protect the people from the repeated invasions of the Mongols. Apart from
the palace, Siri Fort had living quarters of Khaljis and several other buildings inside it. The
well-known 1,000-pillar palace of Ala-ud-din Khalji, named Hazar Sutun was also present
inside the Siri Fort, however, the only existing building present inside it is the Hauz Khas.
The architecture of Khalji dynasty came to an end due to the death of its last Sultan
Mubarik.

27. OF the eleven rulers forming the dynasty of the Tughlaqs, which was in power
at Delhi from early a hundred years, three only, judging from the remains of
this period, to have interested themselves in the art of building.
These were
(I) the lounder of the dynasty, Ghiyas-ud-din Tughlaq I
(1320-25),
(2) his son, Mohammed Shah Tughlaq
(1325-51), and
(3) the most proli1ic of all in his building
projects, Firoz Shah Tughlaq (1351-88).
When it is understood that, besides other important architectural
undertakings, each added his own capital city to the two already existing at
Delhi, the amount of building construction represented by these three rulers is
noteworthy

28. The first of the dynasty, Ghiyas-ud-din Tughlaq, and an old man when he came to the
throne, reigned for barely five years.
A soldier more than a statesman, as his works testify, his efforts in the field of
architecture during this limited period were concentrated on the creation of the third
city of Delhi known as Tughlaqabad.
Standing now on the highest point of the rock formation on which it was built and
looking down on the wilderness of ruins, lifeless and desolate, an that
remains of this great enterprise is a haunting scene of savage splendour .
So bare and shapeless are its parts it is difficult to believe Ibn Batutab's
contemporary account that "here were Tugblaq's treasures and palaces, and the great
palace he built of golden bricks, which when the sun rose, shone so dazzingly
that none would gaze steadily upon it." Nothing resembling this picture can now be
seen in the huge masses of broken masonry, the unadorned character
of which suggests that the· project took more the form
of a stern and practical old, than a work of architectural significance. As It is, however,
the first of those great complexes combining a city, fort, and
palace, which grew out of the residential and military requirements of the times,
elaborated reproductions of which became late{ a. notable feature of the Indo-Islamic
style, it calls for examination.

29. • The trace, or ground plan, of Tughlaqabad is irregular in outline, for which the
topography of the site is responsible, as it follows the shape of the rocky outcrop, a
rough rectangle of approximately 2,200 yards eachway.
• At close intervals throughout the entire circuit of its walls of over four miles, are
immense circular bastions, sometimes in two stories, each parapet heavily
embattlemented, their emphatically sloping sides perforated by innumerable ovlets
for archers.
• It is recorded that these walls were entered by as many as fifty-two gateways,
most of which are now in complete ruin, although a few on the southern side are
still in a condition to show they consisted of wide openings between flanking
towers and approached by broad ramps for the passage of elephants. Every part is
built of stone masonry of so massive a character as to be megalithic in appearance,
the ponderous rough-hewn boulders having evidently been quarried on the site.

30. The exterior plan of this fortress-tomb is in the form of an irregular pentagon with a
spreading bastion at each angle, its greatest length being less than three hundred feet, an
unusual shape evidently conditioned.
by the contours of the small rocky "island" on which it
was built.
The courtyard within is of the same unsymmetrical outline, with the tomb building placed
diagonally at its widest puT, a position rendered necessary in order to bring It into correct
orientation with Mecca.
The fabric of this tomb building is of red sandstone with certain portions, including the
dome, of white marble, but the most striking part of its composition is the determined
slope of the outer walls, as these are inclined at an angle of seventy-five degrees,
susgesting in a manner the converging sides of a pyramid. Its square base is sixty-one
feet side and the entire height of the structure, including its sandstone finial is over eighty
feet.
In the centre of each side is recessed a tall pointed archway, three of which contain
doorways, while the fourth, or western side, is closed to accommodate the mihrab in its
interior.

31. There is the same character ( like alai darwaza) in
the treatment of the pointed arches, each having its
spear-head "fringe“ although in the case of the
tomb, the horse-Shoe shape has been modified into
one of a more '''Tudor'' outline, and there is a slight
agee curve at the crown.
But the chief difference ties in the actual conception
of these archways, in which a notable expedient
appears for the first time, namely, the imposition of
a lintel across the base of the arch
A compromise was then effected in the form of a
fusion of the two systems, the trabeate
and the arcuate, a compounding of the structural
conventions of both communities, as illustrated in
the archways of this tomb.

32. But in spite of the fundamental changes this movement implies, the original imperial style of
architecture in the form that it finally assumed under the Lodi kings
continued to be practised for nearly half a century longer, partly on account of its prestige
and ancient lineage, and partly because the unsettled state of the
country under the early Mughuls precluded anything else from taking its place.

33. ASSIGNMENT:
• Discuss & Sketch different styles of Arches & Domes that are seen along the entire
timeline of Islamic Indian Architecture.
• Differentiate religious & secular buildings with examples.
• Discuss the Architectural works during Tughlaq Dynasty.
• Explain different elements of Islamic Architecture
• Explain Qutub Complex with sketch.
• Explain Sultanate style of Architecture with Examples.
• Discuss the Architectural contribution of Tughlaqs.
• Sketch tomb of Ghias-uddin Tughlaq.