Studies in Medieval Indian Architecture

This is an anthology of papers on Medieval Indian Architecture, covering some of its main themes and the period from 1192 to 1803 AD. It includes the study of such important monuments as the Qutb Minar Delhi; the tomb of Muhammad bin Tughlaq in the Dar’ul-Aman, Delhi; the Begumpuri and Four-quartered mosques of Delhi; the Iwan mosques of Jaunpur, the gateways of Chanderi and the tombs of Sasaram, as also such typical ornamental designs as ‘arabesques’ and ‘geometricals’. Chapters on ‘Ceilings’ deal with some unique constructional techniques used in Medieval India. An important paper is on the hitherto unknown and unpublished will of Babur and another on his mysterious tomb at Agra. Medieval Christian monuments have been studied by way of introduction. An academic study of the Ram-Janmabhumi temple of Ayodhya and its epigraphic data has also been made for the first time. Vastu-Purusa-Mandala is a study of the basic theory of Indian Architecture, practiced through the ages. Rather than descriptive, these are interpretative studies of the fundamentals of this art and contain substantial research material of a lifetime. The text is adequately illustrated by 42 figures and 117 plates.