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¤ Constructed As A
Holy Minar
 The
world famous towering Qutub Minar, started in 1192 by
Qutub-ud-din Aibak (1192-98), breathes down the neck of
the Quwwat-ul-Islam mosque. There is a slight difference
of opinion as to its purpose: it probably was a tower of
victory, but then again it could have been built to be a
minar (tower), attached to the Quwwat-ul-Islam mosque,
for the muezzin (priest) to climb up top for a prayer.
¤ Other Belief of Its Construction
Among Delhites there are lots of other theories about
the origin of the tower. Some say it was the observatory
of the great scientist Aryabhatta of ancient India,
other claim that it was built by Prithvi Chauhan for his
daughter to see the Yamuna. In fact everything short of
an extraterrestrial origin has been attributed to it.
The presence of the ancient non-rusting Iron Pillar
within the complex further appears to add credence to
the first theory. However the tower, its entire design
and architecture are undisputedly Islamic and all the
other theories are just matters of wild surmise.
Considering how shortchanged he was for time, it is
doubtful that Qutub-ud-din got much further than a
couple of levels of the minar, in fact many suggest that
lived to see only the first storey complete. Altamash,
his successor, completed the remaining tower.
¤ Measures Taken To Keep The Minar In Perfect Shape
It is clear that the tower was very close to the
sultanate's heart, since repeated efforts were made to
keep it in perfect shape. In its long career, the tower
got hit by lightening twice – something that, of course,
with its height it was literally asking for. Once during
the reign of Muhammad-bin-Tughlaq, who very decently
repaired the ensuing damage. The next time was in the
indefatigable builder Feroze Shah Tughlaq's time, when
the topmost storey got damaged. Feroze Shah, who of
course couldn't well leave things alone, not only
repaired the floor, but also sneaked in another level.
The result of this combined effort is an interesting mix
in styles that is clearly discernable all over the
tower. Each of the original three storeys has different
designs. The base storey has alternate angular and
circular flutings while those of the second one are
round and the third one has only angular flutings. Their
alignment is mercifully similar, so giving the tower a
rhythmic harmony. The pretty projecting balconies have a
very interesting pattern, with icicle-shaped pendentive
(an intricate design in which triangular pieces of
vaulting spring from the corners of a rectangular area
and support a rounded or polygonal dome) type of
brackets. The attractiveness of the balconies is
heightened by the bands of sonorous inscriptions. The
diameter (at base) of the Qutub Minar is 14.32m and
about 2.75m at the top.
¤ The Attraction of Crownig Cupola
The tower had a crowning cupola on the top at one time,
however this was struck down sometime in the early 19th
century, an earthquake felled it. This was replced by a
well meaning English engineer Major Smith. However it
must have looked quite an eyesore for when Lord Hardinge
was Governor-general of British India, he had it
removed. You can see it now on the spruce lawns of the
Qutub complex. Come to think of it, it must have been
eyesore – it's called Smith’s folly. |
