Intricate Carving On The Qutub Minar

Dominating ruins of the earliest existing settlement of Delhi is the city’s famous landmark-the Qutb Minar. The imposing victory tower 73 metre high was built by Qutbuddin Aibak (1192-98) the founder of the Slave Dynasty. The tapering, fluted structure has five storeys, each marked by intricately carved projections or balconies.

Elaborately carved pillars – which come from Hindu temples of the earlier settlement of Qila Rai Pithora embellish the courtyard of a nearby mosque. At the centre of the courtyard is the amazing Iron Pillar-the dhvaja stambha (flag pole) of a Vishnu Temple (4^th-5^th century AD). Cast in a process that is lost to the present world, the 7.2 metre pillar has not rusted through the centuries. Other interesting structures in the vicinity include the base of another unfinished tower- the Alai Minar.

Tughlaqabad Fort 

In the southern periphery of Delhi are the ruins of a massive fort. This was once the capital of the Tughlaq kings – an impregnable fortification built by Sultan Ghiyasuddin Tughlaq in 1321. The elegant tomb of the emperor, in red sandstone with its sloping walls and white dome, located near the fort, is considered to be one of the best examples of Tughlaq architecture.

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