WOX Travel Contest | Week 8 - Qutub Minar Complex, New Delhi

So here I am with my 8th entry in the contest by @o1eh for WOX Travel Contest- Week 8 and this time I am going to take you to Qutub Minar the world heritage complex which remains full with local and foreign visitors round the year. This trip comes from my visit to Qutub Complex, New Delhi, India.

However, I will not go into the historical facts about this building beyond a certain point, as I consider my post more of a photographic post than a historical post. Besides whatever facts I collected I did either from the sign posts in the complex or from internet therefore similarities are possible. I am sure no matter how I would make my personal experience but so much is available on the internet that it will direct you to one or the other page there.

This is Qutub Minar from closer quarters with Arabic script written all over it.

All these photos were taken by me during my visit to Qutub Complex 2019 in New Delhi, India. This building is approximately 76 meters high and has seven stories. However, visitors are no longer allowed to go to the top floor, as they have closed it because it has become popular as a suicidal point. So they say they have now closed the 7th story for technical reasons.

Qutub Minar is one of the best examples of Indo-Islamic architecture and is considered one of the most beautiful architectural beauties in the history of India.

The Qutub Tower with approximately 78 meters tall and 14 meters in circle has been built with the finest red sandstone and marble. Qutab Minar has five stories, and it has 379 steps.

Each of the five different stories of the minaret is decorated with an intricately designed balcony. The first three stories are made of different material probably red sandstone but the fourth is made of marble and the fifth is made of a mixture of marble and sandstone but locked for visitors.

I took this and many other photos of Qutubminar the UNESCO World Heritage Site from different angles. I have tried to cover other buildings and even the ruins of famous buildings.

This building was the idea of Sultan Qutbuddin, the first Sultan of the Delhi Sultanate, but it took over 20 years to complete. Finally, it was completed under the then-Sultan Iltutmish. Incidentally, Qutb al-Din was basically from Afghanistan, part of India then, and he knew all about Indian architectural values.

The Qutub Tower Complex spreads over a large area with many other buildings and a pillar made of special iron that has not rusted in hundreds of years, even as it stands in the open facing all the rain and impurities in the atmosphere.

Qutb Minar, Qutb Complex, from a different angle

The complex has various other mosques, tombs, and educational buildings. Some of them are still safe, but a few of them stand there as ruins, showing their past glory.

Most of the main prayer hall’s west side has lost its components, and the original tower that directs toward Mecca doesn’t remain in the service anymore.

Qutb mosque

Thousands of tourists visit this place every day and enjoy the architectural beauty of the buildings with appreciation for the makers and their great skill.

By the way, Qutub Minar is the tallest tower of its kind in the world and is made of bricks.

I will give you more pictures of various famous buildings from my trip as this one is right at the entrance.

Here is a different shot of the same tower, Qutub Minar.

Yes, this is Qutub Minar in Delhi, and I took all these photos back in 2019 during my visit to New Delhi, India.

This building, which is over 225 feet high, originally had five stories, but now they have closed the fifth story because several couples committed suicide from that point on.

As I told you, I took several other photos of this UNESCO World Heritage Site from different angles, so here is another one from a different angle, and if you want to see the other one, you can find it here.

This Qutub Complex is full of famous buildings, which I intend to bring to your attention. The complex also covers the ruins of other buildings.

This is a different and comparatively new open-air tomb.

Iltutmish’s tomb is located outside of the mosque’s courtyard. This differs from traditional tombs, which are simple and have little exterior decoration, but their interiors are altogether different and showcase their ornamental beauty.

As I told you, this building by Sultan Qutbuddin took over 20 years to complete. The last part of this complex was finished under his son-in-law, Sultan Iltutmish.

There is an iron pillar in this complex that surprises all the historians and tourists. This pillar is believed to have been built during the reign of King Chandragupta in the 3rd and 4th centuries. This 7-meter-tall pillar is also popularly known as Kirti Stambh.

This pillar was built hundreds of years ago but there is no sign of rust on it which is a mystery to the scientists as they are still working on its metal. I had taken its photo, but I could not find it in my collection.

The Alai Minar, located within the Qutub Minar complex, is a separate structure as its construction was left unfinished. The construction of this minaret was started by Alauddin Khilji as a project to build a minaret higher than the Qutub Minar.

Alauddin Khilji was a Muslim sultan who wanted to something different and build another tower twice the size of the Qutub Minar. But he could not complete it as he died during its construction was going on. Today, Alai Minar stands at a height of between 70 -80 feet and attracts a number of tourists. You can see how people enjoy sitting on top of the ruins.

The Quwwat-ul-Islam Mosque, located within the Qutub Minar complex, is an important historical structure that was built by Qutub-ud-din Aibak. This mosque is different from all other masks that I have seen in different cities of India and other countries. But they say it was the first of its kind in Delhi.

The archeological department has a library that has a lot of images and material about Qutubminar so some of my information comes from these documents.

The mosque is made of imported marble and red sandstone which was used commonely those days. Although the mosque is in ruins today, it is still regarded as one of the earliest mosques built in India and is considered one of the most spectacular examples of architecture in the world.

wide spread lawns of Qutub Complex

Also, the Qutub Complex has many other mosques, tombs, and educational buildings that I will cover in my future posts.

Image source - my camera

I hope you enjoyed my humble effort.
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