the QUTB MINAR, symbol of Delhi, 1193-1386


*MAP*
In the lower left part of the map
*GHAZNI*
and
*GHUR*
The Qutb Minar had antecedents in earlier victory towers built in Afghanistan first by the Ghaznavids (early 1100's), then by the Ghurids (late 1100's); compare also the *Kalon Minar* (c.1127) in Bukhara
*ADHAI
DIN KA
JHOMPRA*
In Ajmer, the Adhai din ka Jhompra ("Hut of 2 1/2 Days"), converted from a Jain temple into a mosque in 1199-1200, originally had two similar minars rising from the corners of its screen
The Qutb gets its name from the first great Sufi saint of Delhi, Qutb ud-Din Bakhtyar Kaki (d.1237); it has always been irresistible to artists
How the Qutb Minar itself looms above its surroundings; for many more huge photos of the whole complex, see the *ANU image collection*
The tomb of Iltutmish (r.1210-35), carved with wonderful elaboration, is also in the *Qutb complex*
The Ala'i Darvaza was added by Sultan Ala ud-Din Khilji (r.1296-1316) in 1310 as a formal gateway to the Qutb
The Qutb Minar and the adjacent Ala'i Darvazah, in early photos
Ala ud-Din Khilji then rashly decided to build an even larger "Ala'i Minar" in the same complex, but he died before the attempt could get (very far) off the ground
The tomb of the Sufi pir called "Imam Zamin" (d.1538/9), who came to Delhi from Turkestan around 1500, is also nearby




The Jama Masjid or Qubbat ul-Islam ("Refuge of Islam") mosque is approached through a "screen" formed by an impressive structure of arches
Just inside the screen, in the mosque courtyard, is the famous Gupta-era "Iron Pillar"
The galleries in the mosque courtyard are supported by pillars made from sections of Jain temple pillars



 
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