Lot Essay
This view shows the remains of a building of immense historical importance. The Quwwat-ul Islam, though not the earliest mosque in India, was the first stone mosque to be built there by a settled Islamic power. Following the victory of Muhammad of Ghur in 1192, it was built by his deputy, Qutb-ud-din Aibak, and his successors, on the site of a former Rajput fort, on the plain to the south of modern Delhi. The great tower, the Qutb Minar, was begun by Qutb and completed by his son-in-law, Shams-ud-din Iltutmish (1211-36), though it was later damaged and repaired more than once. The view is from the south-west. The wall in front of the minar is the outer wall of the mosque; in the centre is the magnificent domed gateway added by Ala-ud-din Khalji in 1311. Behind, to the left, is another, less successful, addition by the same sultan: the stump of the Alai Minar, intended to rise to twice the height of the Qutb Minar but soon aborted. Beyond, to the north and east, the plain stretches towards the Delhi of the Mughals.
The Daniells reached Delhi on 16 February 1789. On 24 February they 'marched' (presumably still with their military escort) to 'Old Delhi abt 13 miles SW of the Fort built by Shah Jahan. Encamped abt 1/2 mile beyond the Minaret erected by Sultan Shumsudin abt 650 years ago' (Journal). Their dating is not quite accurate: when they saw it the Qutb Minar was closer to 560 years old. On the other hand, their calculation of its height, as inscribed on the back of the watercolour, is remarkably precise. Their view shows it crowned by a pavilion which was added in the fourteenth century, as part of a repair after lightning damage. This pavilion was later destroyed, again by lightning, in 1803. It was replaced by another pavilion, designed by Colonel Robert Smith, which was removed not through the effects of nature but by reason of public opprobrium. Without a top, it now stands 238 feet high.
'The general form and proportions of this lofty building are judicious, and the effect agreeable. It is chiefly built of a reddish kind of granite [actually sandstone], but the white which appears in the upper part is very fine marble: there is a spiral staircase leading up to the top, with occasional openings to the balconies, which were originally defended by battlements; but many of them are at present gone to decay, as well as a considerable part of the cupola' (Oriental Scenery).
An aquatint based on the central part of this watercolour was published as Oriental Scenery, vol.V, no.24 (1 December 1808). A vignette engraving of the subject was included in the The Oriental Annual, 1834.
The Daniells reached Delhi on 16 February 1789. On 24 February they 'marched' (presumably still with their military escort) to 'Old Delhi abt 13 miles SW of the Fort built by Shah Jahan. Encamped abt 1/2 mile beyond the Minaret erected by Sultan Shumsudin abt 650 years ago' (Journal). Their dating is not quite accurate: when they saw it the Qutb Minar was closer to 560 years old. On the other hand, their calculation of its height, as inscribed on the back of the watercolour, is remarkably precise. Their view shows it crowned by a pavilion which was added in the fourteenth century, as part of a repair after lightning damage. This pavilion was later destroyed, again by lightning, in 1803. It was replaced by another pavilion, designed by Colonel Robert Smith, which was removed not through the effects of nature but by reason of public opprobrium. Without a top, it now stands 238 feet high.
'The general form and proportions of this lofty building are judicious, and the effect agreeable. It is chiefly built of a reddish kind of granite [actually sandstone], but the white which appears in the upper part is very fine marble: there is a spiral staircase leading up to the top, with occasional openings to the balconies, which were originally defended by battlements; but many of them are at present gone to decay, as well as a considerable part of the cupola' (Oriental Scenery).
An aquatint based on the central part of this watercolour was published as Oriental Scenery, vol.V, no.24 (1 December 1808). A vignette engraving of the subject was included in the The Oriental Annual, 1834.