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| inside the first courtyard at Fatehpur Sikri |
Situated a short drive of about about 38km from Agra,
Fatehpur Sikri is a Mughal era fortified city made of local red sandstones. It runs along a ridge that at one time was in its entirety, part of the walled city complex. Only the central part is rebuilt and part of what you will see. I started to get excited when while driving up, as I started to see ruins from a few kilometers away. I'm sure you can walk the perimeter of the 5 mile long wall, but much of the wall is now in ruins.
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| you can see where a decoration was chipped away |
Started in 1571, it was built by Akbar the Great and served as the capital of the Mughal Empire until 1585 and has many features that make it stand out from most other Mughal era architecture. Unique and intricate water features can be found all over, and as always, Hindu and Mughal design elements are spread throughout, as was the habit of stonemasons sneaking in sculpture of their own here and there. Some Hindu elements had been chipped away over time. Most of the design elements though, are geometric shapes and repetitive patterns.
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| sculptural detail is second to none |
You will notice that the entire place in made of red sandstone, from the blocks under your feet, to the huge thin flat plates that make up the roofs of the buildings. Some have specs of yellow in them, which is a variety of sandstone known to come from this area. There are some buildings with minimal decoration or carvings, while others are extremely ornate, leaving you to stop and really take it all in.
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| One of the many buildings left in the complex |
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| these stalls, are where many of the workers and servants lived, each having their own niche |
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| central water channels moved water throughout the complex to the many pools and cisterns |
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| part of the wall now |
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