As part of one our school project on the Mughal Empire we headed to Humayun's Tomb last Saturday.
The complex has among many other tombs; a main tomb for Emperor Humayun & for his wife Hamida Begum.
Humayun's Tomb is a show piece of Mughal architecture & Persian gardens. The main architect of of this World Heritage Site was Mirak Mirza Ghayas from Afghanistan.
There are several monuments leading up to Humayun's tomb & one of the most prominent among them is that of the whole family of Isa Khan Niyazi, which predates the main tomb by 20 years, built in 1547 CE.
By the way, this handsome looking man is not one of the Mughals !!!
Infact he is one of our favourite teachers, he is known to us as Kavi bhaiyya & here he is introducing us to all these histories & during one of our breaks he is explaining a few things to us & also reminding us that we have not come here for gallivanting & to be bloody serious !! (& that was in his own words)
These are photographs of the main tomb, please click on it to enlarge.
The stairways are so narrow & steep, I wonder why !! Even Humayun had died (some where else) when he fell down a stairs when he ran to be on time to attend prayers !!
The Charbagh (four Square) gardens, spread over 13 acres changed rapidly since 1556. The decline of the mughals was a contributing factor, since the capital was already shifted to Agra in 1556, then the upkeep of the garden was costly & almost impossible. Then the British took over, 'though around 1903-1909 the Brits did try to restore a few things.
The Charbagh (four Square) gardens, spread over 13 acres changed rapidly since 1556. The decline of the mughals was a contributing factor, since the capital was already shifted to Agra in 1556, then the upkeep of the garden was costly & almost impossible. Then the British took over, 'though around 1903-1909 the Brits did try to restore a few things. Again during the Partition of India, Humayun's Tomb was a major refugee camp for almost five years, then again the gardens were unfortunately considerably damaged & also there was serious damage to the water channels & chief structures.
First the Archaeological Survey of India & now Agha Khan Trust for Culture have been trying to restore Humayun's Tomb back to its original glory, with all the gardens & the water channels. Infact there were people from Agha Khan Foundation to guide us during the walk.
First the Archaeological Survey of India & now Agha Khan Trust for Culture have been trying to restore Humayun's Tomb back to its original glory, with all the gardens & the water channels. Infact there were people from Agha Khan Foundation to guide us during the walk.We ended the walk with a shared & sumptous lunch (nana had packed some Veg Paella !!) & there was also a birthday cake which was cut for one of my friends !!
I did enjoy the walk.......... so, until next time
au revoir to all !!
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