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Qutab'sminar, the 239ft sandstone tower is an
Indo-Islamic architectural wonder of ancient India. This
magnificent tower of victory stands in the Qutab Complex
located at Aurabindo Marg, near Mehrauli, 14 Km south of
Connaught place in Delhi.
Enter through the colossal Alai Darwaza, the erstwhile
main entrance to the whole complex nestling in the south
east of Qutab"s Minare. Look for the richly decorated
facades, built in white marble and embellished with
intricate geometric patterns and Arabic inscriptions.
Although you will find it hard to take your eyes off
this stately monument, but there are other attractions
strewned all over the alluring precincts that may catch
your attention. At the foot of the Qutab,s Minarie stands
the first mosque to be built in India, the
Quwwat-ul-Islam Masjid. Referred to as the Might of
Islam Mosque, this sacred relic is a fruit of successive
additions and extensions over the centuries.
Walk over to the east gate of tqutab minarie and you can see an
inscription over there that expounds that the original
mosque was built on the foundations of a Hindu temple
and the materials obtained by demolishing 27 idolatrous
temples! Walk over to the west of this mosque and you
will overwhelmed to see the spectacularly decorated tomb
of Iltutmish, portraying an enigmatic array of exquisite
carvings which virtually cover the entire interior of
the 9 sq m tomb.
According to history books, the utab minar's was started by
Prithviraj or his uncle Vigraharaja who won Delhi from
the Tomar Rajputs. However, it is assumed and historians
believe that Qutubuddib and Iltutmish finished it though
the minar may have been commenced by Prithviraj or
Vigraharaja. The minar was completed in 1200 A.D and
since then the tall structure has been there upright and
ever beautiful keeping an eye to Delhi just like a
sentry. When Alauddin returned from the wars in the
Deccan, he had this thought in mind that he would build
a victory tower somewhat similar to the Qutab's Minar. The
ruins of this very initiative can be seen adjacent to
the Qutbuddin's mosque because Alauddin died at the very
start of the construction work and no one carried on to
finish the initiative taken by Alauddin.
Moving upstairs inside the dqutab'sminar will give you a
wonderful experience and counting the stairs is always a
fun for visitors. It has 378 steps which takes good
amount of energy to reach at the top. The top of the
tower gives an insight to Delhi because you get to see
the bird's eye view of the city. To point a few sight
seeing from the top, you will find views of the Hauz
Khaz on the left and the walls of the Jahanpanah and
Siri on the right. It was this very top of Qutab"s Minar
that was used by Khilji and Tughlaq kings to watch the
wild Mongol hordes when they threatened Delhi. The top
also served as the watch top for Tughlaq who watched
Timur's army camp on the Wellingdon Airport. Other
important monuments that is visible from the top are the
walls of Tughlaqabad, Humayun's Tomb, Purana Qila, Firoz
Shah Kotla and Jama Masjid.
Timings: Sunrise - Sunset
Entry Fee: Indian Citizens: Rs.10. Foreigners : Rs.250
Camaras allowed inside the complex.
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