Posted on: 25 May 2010

The Iron Pillar and the great screen of the Quwwat al-Islam Mosque - 1815.

Watercolour of the Iron Pillar and the Quwwat al-Islam Mosque from 'Views by Seeta Ram from Delhi to Tughlikabad Vol. VII' produced for Lord Moira, afterwards the Marquess of Hastings, by Sita Ram between 1814-15. Marquess of Hastings, the Governor-General of Bengal and the Commander-in-Chief (r.1813-23), was accompanied by artist Sita Ram (flourished c.1810-22) to illustrate his journey from Calcutta to Delhi between 1814-15.
Idealised view of the Iron Pillar and the great screen of the Quwwat al-Islam Mosque in the Qutb Minar complex in Delhi. The Qutub Minar complex was initiated by Qutub-ud-din Aibak, the founder of the Slave Dynasty in Delhi (1206-90), to celebrate the onset of Islamic rule in India in 1192. The Iron Pillar, with a height of 7.2 m and diameter of 32 cm, is dated to the Gupta period with Sanskrit inscriptions from the 4th or 5th century. This pillar was taken from a Vishnu temple and placed at this site before the construction of the complex. The Quwwat-ul-Islam mosque is one of the earliest extant in India and is a fine example of Islamic architecture employing Islamic principles of accurate construction and geometric ornamentation, but utilising Indian building traditions. Masonry from 27 Hindu and Jain temples was salvaged for use in the construction of the mosque. Inscribed below: 'Metal Pillar at the Cutub.'

Source : British Library


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This is an excellent painting by Seeta Ram. However, the complex looks quite different today. The top of the central arch is gone, the wall of small arches has many gaps, the fountain and the tank at the right are nowhere to be seen. But the most intriguing observation is: Was the iron pillar brought here from a Vishnu temple, or was the Qutb complex constructed around the pre-existing pillar? My impression has been that it was already there when the complex was built from the remains of many temples. Anyway, it is a grand structure and we owe it to Lord Curzon who had all these historical monuments (including the Taj Mahal) cleaned up since tigers were haunting this area.

It was constructed after demolishing 27 Hindu and Jain temples. Well recorded in NCERT books. The iron pillar was brought here from Vidisha astrological complex. That complex depicting Vishnu was also desecrated by invaders. Contrary to popular belief, the Qutub was not built by Qutubuddin Aibak or Altamus, it was already there as 'Vishnu Stambh' for astronomical observations. They just added Quranic facades to it. From time immemorial, Vishnu as depiction of sun god had been presiding deity of such centres.