|
The city of Agra lies on the banks of the Yamuna River in India. This medieval city was found by Sultan Sikandar Lodi in the year 1506. The city has achieved fame as the capital of the Mughal emperors from 1526 to 1658. It is today a major tourist destination in India and tourist from all over India and the world come here to admire the fascinating architecture. Some of the splendid Mughal era buildings include Taj Mahal, Agra Fort and Fatehpur Sikri , all three of which are UNESCO World Heritage Sites. Jahangir Mahal is the most important building of the Akbari period in the Agra Fort. Jahangir Mahal, Agra or the Jahangir Palace is the most significant building inside the Agra Fort. The Jahangir Mahal was the principal zenana palace. The zenana palce was built for women belonging to the royal household and was mainly used by the Rajput wives of Akbar. The Jahangir Mahal in Agra boasts a splendid gateway which leads to an interior courtyard surrounded by grand halls covered with profuse carvings on stone, heavily fashioned brackets, piers, and crossbeams. You can still spot the remains of decorations in gold and blue done in the prevalent Persian style. The features of the Jahangir Mahal are mixed in Transoxanian or Central Asian features such as the verandah on the east front with its high slender columns with courtyard halls styled in the broader Gujarat-Malwa-Rajasthan tradition. This tradition has been passed onto the Mughals by the architecture of Raja Man Singh of Gwalior in the early 16 th century. The Jahangir Mahal, Agra is glaring example of a daring approach in architecture. The brackets which are so typical of the Gujaratis feature animal and floral motifs which are fabulously carved. They also register a dominating effect on the few Islamic features such as the verandah on the eastern front with exquisitely slender pillars facing the riverfront.
|
