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Qutub Minar is the tallest brick
minaret in the world, and an important example of Indo-Islamic
Architecture. The tower is in the Qutb complex at Delhi, India.
The Qutub Minar is 72.5 metres high and requires 379 steps to
get to the top, although it has not been possible for visitors
to ascend the tower for some years, due to safety reasons. The
diameter of the base is 14.3 metres wide while the top floor
measures 2.7 metres in diameter. It is listed as a UNESCO World
Heritage Site.
 
Inspired by the Minaret of Jam in Afghanistan and wishing to
surpass it, Qutb-ud-din Aybak, the first Muslim ruler of Delhi,
commenced construction of the Qutub Minar in 1193; but could
only complete its basement. His successor, Iltutmish, added
three more storeys and, in 1368, Firuz Shah Tughluq constructed
the fifth and the last storey. The development of architectural
styles from Aybak to Tughluq are quite evident in the minaret.
Like earlier towers erected by the Ghaznavids and Ghurids in
today's Afghanistan, the Qutub Minar comprises several
superposed flanged and cylindrical shafts, separated by
balconies carried on Muqarnas corbels. The minaret is made of
fluted red sandstone covered with intricate carvings and verses
from the Qur'an, and is built on the ruins of Lal Kot, the Red
Citadel in the city of Dhillika. According to John Keay's
"History of India," 27 previous Hindu and Jain temples were
destroyed and their materials reused to construct the minar.
The purpose for building this beautiful monument has been
speculated upon, apart from the usual role of a minaret - that
of calling people for prayer in a mosque- in this case the
Quwwat-ul-Islam mosque to the northeast of minar in AD 1198. It
is the earliest extant -mosque built by the Delhi Sultans.Other
reasons ascribed to its construction are as a tower of victory,
a monument signifying the might of Islam, or a watch tower for
defence. Controversy also surrounds the origins for the name of
the tower. Many historians believe that the Qutb Minar was named
after the first Turkish sultan, Qutb-ud-din Aibak but others
contend that it was named in honour of Khwaja Qutb-ud-din
Bakhtiar Kaki, a saint from Baghdad who came to live in India
who was greatly venerated by Iltutmish. According to the
inscriptions on its surface it was repaired by Firuz Shah
Tughlaq (AD 1351-88) and Sikandar Lodi (AD 1489-1517). Major
R.Smith also repaired and restored the minar in 1829 |
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