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Nili Masjid |
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| Kasaumbhil, a nurse by profession built the Nili
Masjid or the blue mosque in about 1505-06 during the
reign of Sikandar Lodi (1489-1517). She was the nurse of Fath
Khan, the son of Khan-i-Azam Masnad, the governor of Delhi.
Located within the Hauz Khas Enclave, the central chamber of
the mosque is all that is left at present. It has three-arched
openings and is surmounted by a dome. The central arch of the
mosque has the inscription that displays the date of its construction.
The mosque is called 'Nili masjid' because the façade
above the chhajja (lintel) is decorated with blue tiles. |
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| Just south of the Nili Masjid lie the ruins of
an Idgah with rubble built walls
on the west having a series of eleven mihrabs. The mosque appears
to have served the purpose of a place of worship as well as
a battlement. The southern bastion of the structure has an inscription
that informs readers that Iqbal Khan built the mosque around
1404-05 after the invasion of Timur. Iqbal Khan was a powerful
noble during the reign of Mahmud Tughlaq's reign. He was popularly
known as Mallu Khan. |
| Chor Minar is a rubble-built
tapering tower situated about 300 meters southeast of the Idgah.
Built during the Khilji period, the tower is fixed on a raised
platform and has a staircase in its interior. The exact use
of the tower is not unknown but it is believed that it may have
functioned as a watchtower. However, some believe that the heads
of burglars and thieves were placed in the circular holes present
on the exterior of the tower to discourage the people from unethical
activities. |
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