Discover Lahore - The Mughal City

Badshahi Mosque

The Badshahi Mosque or the 'King's Mosque' in Lahore, commissioned by the Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb in 1671 and completed in 1673, is the second largest mosque in Pakistan and South Asia and the fifth largest mosque in the world. Epitomising the beauty, passion and grandeur of the Mughal era, it is Lahore's most famous landmark and a major tourist attraction.

Capable of accommodating 5,000 worshippers in its main prayer hall and a further 95,000 in its courtyard and porticoes, it remained the largest mosque in the world from 1673 to 1986 (a period of 313 years), when overtaken in size by the completion of the Faisal Mosque in Islamabad. Today, it remains the second largest mosque in Pakistan and South Asia and the sixth largest mosque in the world after the Masjid al-Haram (Grand Mosque) of Mecca, the Al-Masjid al-Nabawi (Prophet's Mosque) in Medina, the Hassan II Mosque in Casablanca, the Istiqlal Mosque in Jakarta and the Faisal Mosque in Islamabad.

To appreciate its large size, the four minarets of the Badshahi Mosque are 13.9 ft (4.2 m) taller than those of the Taj Mahal and the main platform of the Taj Mahal can fit inside the 278,784 sq ft (25,899.9 m2) courtyard of the Badshahi Mosque, which is the largest mosque courtyard in the world.

In 1993, the Government of Pakistan recommended the inclusion of the Badshahi Mosque as a World Heritage Site in UNESCO's World Heritage List, where it has been included in Pakistan's Tentative List for possible nomination to the World Heritage List by UNESCO.

www.wikipedia.org





http://www.panoramio.com/user/221285?with_photo_id=38123511









Pictures by Kaiser Tufail

Bashahi Mosque, Lahore, Pakistan

Lahore Fort

The Lahore Fort, locally referred to as Shahi Qila is citadel of the city of Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan. It is located in the northwestern corner of the Walled City of Lahore. The trapezoidal composition is spread over 20 hectares.

Origins of the fort go as far back as antiquity, however, the existing base structure was built during the reign of Mughal emperor Akbar (1556–1605), and was regularly upgraded by subsequent rulers, having thirteen gates in all. Thus the fort manifests the rich traditions of Mughal architecture. Some of the famous sites inside the fort include: Sheesh Mahal, Alamgiri Gate, Naulakha pavilion, and Moti Masjid. In 1981, the fort was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site along with the Shalimar Gardens (Lahore).

Timeline

It cannot be said with certainty when the Lahore Fort was originally constructed or by whom, since this information is lost to history, possibly forever. However, evidence found in archaeological digs gives strong indications that it was built long before 1025 AD.
1241 AD - Destroyed by Mongols.

1267 AD - Rebuilt by Sultan Ghiyas ud din Balban.

1398 AD - Destroyed again, by Amir Tamir's army.

1421 AD - Rebuilt in mud by Sultan Mubark Shah Syed.

1432 AD - The fort is occupied by Shaikh Ali of Kabul who makes repairs to the damages inflicted on it by Shaikha Khokhar.

1566 AD - Rebuilt by Mughal emperor Akbar, in solid brick masonry on its earlier foundations. Also perhaps, its area was extended towards the river Ravi, which then and up to about 1849 AD, used to flow along its fortification on the north. Akbar also built Doulat Khana-e-Khas-o-Am, the famous Jharoka-e-Darshan (Balcony for Royal Appearance), Masjidi Gate etc.

1618 AD - Jehangir adds Doulat Khana-e-Jehangir

1631 AD - Shahjahan builds Shish Mahal (Mirror Palace).

1633 AD - Shahjahan builds Khawabgah (a dream place or sleeping area), Hamam (bath ), Khilwat Khana (retiring room), and Moti Masjid (Pearl Mosque).

1645 AD - Shahjahan builds Diwan-e-Khas (Hall of Special Audience).

1674 AD - Aurangzeb adds the massively fluted Alamgiri Gate.

(Sometime during) 1799-1839 AD - The outer fortification wall on the north with the moat, the marble athdera, Havaeli Mai Jindan and Bara Dari Raja Dhiyan Singh were constructed by Ranjit Singh, Sikh ruler from 1799-1839 AD

1846 AD - Occupied by the British.

1927 AD - The British hand over the Fort to the Department of Archaeology after demolishing a portion of the fortification wall on the south and converting it into a stepped form thus defortifying the fort.







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http://www.flickr.com/photos/manalkhan









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http://www.flickr.com/photos/manalkhan

Sheesh Mahal

The Sheesh Mahal (The Palace of Mirrors) is located within the Shah Burj block in northern-western corner of Lahore Fort. It was constructed under the reign of Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan in 1631-32. The ornate white marble pavilion is inlaid with pietra dura and complex mirror-work of the finest quality. The hall was reserved for personal use by the imperial family and close aides. It is among the 21 monuments that were built by successive Mughal emperors inside Lahore Fort, and forms the jewel in the Fort’s crown. As part of the larger Lahore Fort Complex, it has been inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1981.

The solid brick foundations of Lahore Fort were laid in 1566 under the reign of Mughal emperor Akbar the Great on the location of an earlier mud-fort. To build the new fort, the Emperor brought experienced artisans after the completion of Fatehpur Sikri. Later, Shah Jahan converted the fort into a pleasure resort and added Diwan-i-Khas, Moti Masjid, Naulakha Pavilion, sleeping chambers, and Sheesh Mahal in to the complex. Sheesh Mahal is located within the Shah Burj (King's Pavilion) block that was actually built by his predecessor Jahangir. The chamber was exclusively used for private council meetings as part of the daily routine of the emperor, whereas the whole block was only accessible to the imperial princes, the vizier, and selected courtiers. The extension work of private quarters by Shah Jahan continued between 1628 and 1634. The distinctive Shah Jahani architecture is reflected in the extensive use of white marble and hierarchical accents of the construction. During the Sikh Empire, Shah Burj became Ranjit Singh's favourite place. He built a harem over the top of Sheesh Mahal.This was also the place where he used to display his prized possession, the Koh-i-Noor.

The sheesh mahal was built by a famous architect of mughals. It was built in the middle of Akbar's rule. The façade, comprising of five cusped marble arches supported by coupled columns, opens into the courtyard. The engrailed spandrels and bases are inlaid with precious stones. The pavilion is in the form of a semi-octagon, and consists of apartments roofed with gilded cupolas and intricately decorated with pietra dura and convex glass and mirror mosaic (ayina kari) with thousands of small mirrors. The decorative features also include stucco tracery (munabat kari) and carved marble screens in geometrical and tendril designs.The roof of the central hall rises up to two storeys. The hall was originally decorated with fresco paintings that were later replaced with glass mosaic in different colours.









Moti Masjid

Moti Masjid, one of the "Pearl Mosques", is a 17th century religious building located inside the Lahore Fort. It is a small, white marble structure built by Mughal emperor Shah Jahan, and is among his prominent extensions (such as Sheesh Mahal and Naulakha pavilion) to the Lahore Fort Complex.The mosque is located on the western side of Lahore Fort, closer to Alamgiri Gate, the main entrance.







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Wazir Khan Mosque

The Wazir Khan Mosque in Lahore, Pakistan, is famous for its extensive faience tile work. It has been described as ' a mole on the cheek of Lahore'. It was built in seven years, starting around 1634-1635 AD, during the reign of the Mughal Emperor Shah Jehan. It was built by Shaikh Ilm-ud-din Ansari, a native of Chiniot, who rose to be the court physician to Shah Jahan and later, the Governor of Lahore. He was commonly known as Wazir Khan. (The word wazir means 'minister' in Urdu language.) The mosque is located inside the Inner City and is easiest accessed from Delhi Gate.

In his published notes, F H Andrews, former Principal of the Mayo School of Arts, describes the mosque thus: 'The material used in the construction of the Mosque is a small tile-like brick universally used by the Mughals when stone was unusable or too costly. The only stone used in the building is used for brackets and some of the fretwork (pinjra). The walls were coated with plaster (chunam) and faced with a finely-soft quality of the same material tooled to a marble-like surface and coloured. All the external plasterwork was richly coloured a rich Indian red, in true fresco, and the surface afterwards picked out with white lines in the similitude of the small bricks beneath. The extreme severity of the lines of the building is relieved by the division of the surfaces into slightly sunk rectangular panels, alternatively vertical and horizontal, the vertical panels having usually an inner panel with arched head or the more florid cusped mihrab. These panels, where they are exposed to weather, are generally filled with a peculiar inlaid faience pottery called kashi, the effect of which must have been very fine when the setting of deep red plaster of the walls was intact.'

'The facade of the sanctuary is practically covered with kashi and is divided into the usual oblong panels. A beautiful border is carried rectangularly round the centre archway, and inscriptions in Persian characters occur in an outer border, in a long panel over the archway, and in horizontal panels along the upper portions of the lower walls to right and left. The spandrels are filled in with extremely fine designs.'

'With the minars, however, the facade of the sanctuary, and the entrance gateway, where a small portion of the surface was left for plaster, the effect of the gorgeous colours against the soft blue of a Punjabi sky, and saturated with brilliant sunlight and glowing purple shadow is indescribably rich and jewel-like.'

'Right and left of the sanctuary are two stately octagonal minars 100 feet in height. On the long sides of the quadrangle are ranged small khanas or cells, each closed by the usual Indian two-leaved door set in a slightly recessed pointed arch, of which there are thirteen on each side by a pavilion rising above the general level, containing larger apartments and an upper story reached by two flights of steps, which also give access to the roof of the arcading and pavilions...these pavilions occur, in the centre of the north and south sides of the lower level of the pavement. In the pavilion on the south side is a fountain set in a circular scalloped basin, and served from the main which supplies the tank in the quadrangle.'

Within the inner courtyard of the mosque lies the subterranean tomb of Syed Muhammad Ishaq, known as Miran Badshah, a divine from Iran who settled in Lahore during the time of the Tughluq dynasty. The tomb, therefore, predates the mosque.

www.wikipedia.org











Beautiful ceiling







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Shalimar Gardens

The Shalimar Gardens, sometimes written Shalamar Gardens, is a Persian garden and it was built by the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan in Lahore, modern day Pakistan.

The Shalimar Gardens are laid out in the form of an oblong parallelogram, surrounded by a high brick wall, which is famous for its intricate fretwork. This garden was made on the concept of Char Bhagh. The gardens measure 658 meters north to south and 258 meters east to west. In 1981, Shalimar Gardens was included as a UNESCO World Heritage Site along with the Lahore Fort, under the UNESCO Convention concerning the protection of the world's cultural and natural heritage sites in 1972.

The three level terraces of the Gardens

The Gardens have been laid out from south to north in three descending terraces, which are elevated by 4–5 metres (13-15 feet) above one another. The three terraces have names in Urdu as follows:

The upper terrace named Farah Baksh meaning Bestower of Pleasure.
The middle terrace named Faiz Baksh meaning Bestower of Goodness.
The lower terrace named Hayat Baksh meaning Bestower of life.

410 fountains

From this basin, and from the canal, rise 410 fountains, which discharge into wide marble pools. The surrounding area is rendered cooler by the flowing of the fountains, which is a particular relief for visitors during Lahore's blistering summers, with temperature sometimes exceeding 120 degrees fahrenheit. It is a credit to the ingenuity of the Mughal engineers that even today scientists are unable to fathom how the fountains were operated originally. The distribution of the fountains is as follows:
The upper level terrace has 105 fountains.
The middle level terrace has 152 fountains.
The lower level terrace has 153 fountains.
All combined, the Gardens therefore have 410 fountains.

The Gardens have 5 water cascades including the great marble cascade and Sawan Bhadoon.



Royal Bath





Diwan-e-Khas: Hall of Special Audience







Pearl Mosque

Tomb of Jahangir

Tomb of Jahangir, is the mausoleum built for the Mughal Emperor Jahangir who ruled from 1605 to 1627. The mausoleum is located near the town of Shahdara Bagh in Lahore, Pakistan. His son Shah Jahan built the mausoleum 10 years after his father's death. It is sited in an attractive walled garden. It has four 30 meter high minarets. The interior is embellished with frescoes and pietra dura inlay and coloured marble. The mausoleum features prominently on the Pakistan Rupees 1,000 denomination bank note.

The entrance to the mausoleum is through two massive gateways of stone and masonry opposite each other (to the north and south) which lead to a square enclosure known as the Akbari Serai. This enclosure leads to another one, on the western side, giving full view of the garden in front of the mausoleum, which is traversed by four-bricked canals proceeding from the centre, and in which many fountains were placed which are now in ruins. The corridor around the mausoleum is adorned with a most elegant mosaic, representing flowers and Quranic verses.

The interior of the mausoleum is an elevated sarcophagus of white marble, the sides of which are wrought with flowers of mosaic in the same elegant style as the tombs in the Taj Mahal at Agra, India. On two sides of the sarcophagus the ninety-nine attributes of God are inlaid in black. Beautiful 'jalis' admit light in various patterns.









Jehangir's Tomb

Maryam-uz-Zamani Mosque

Among the most courtly Mughal monuments is a mosque built by Jahangir's mother—the daughter of the famous Raja of Amber Bihari Mal and sister of Raja Bhagwant Das, later a grandee at Akbar's court—who carried the title of Maryamuzzamani or Mary of the Age.
The mosque stands out for its unique fresco decoration, with which the whole interior surface of the prayer chamber is replete. The paintings are unrivalled for their delicacy, liveliness, perfection of technique, and variety of subject. The endless variety of geometric, floral, and inscriptional designs spread over the interior surface in a subtle colour scheme is not seen elsewhere. The surface has been divided into various panels of different shapes and dimensions according to the space available, and all the soffits, niches, squinches, arches, dome interiors, and apex are covered with these paintings.
It was due to the mosque's utilization as a gunpowder factory by Ranjit Singh, that the mosque became known as Barudkhana Wali Masjid. It was not until 1850 that the mosque was restored to the Muslims of Lahore who were able to rehabilitate it with their contributions.





Pictures of Badshahi Mosque and Lahore Fort

Baradari at Hazuri Bagh near Badshahi Mosque



Old Walled City



Wazir Khan Mosque







Wazir Khan Mosque, Lahore, Pakistan


























Architecture in Lahore, Pakistan


Badshahi Mosque



Lahore Fort



Fort Road Food Street









Shahi Hammam



Lahore Fort

Credits: Bahria Town Website

Grand Jamia Mosque is a mosque located in Bahria Town, Lahore, Pakistan. It is the third largest mosque in Pakistan. Designed by Nayyar Ali Dada & Associates, it was inaugurated on Eid-ul-Adha on 6 October 2014. It can accommodate 25,000 worshipers indoors, while the courtyard and corridor leading to the main halls of worship can accommodate a total of 70,000. The architecture is influenced by Badshahi
Masjid, Wazir Khan Mosque and Sheikh Zayed Mosque, with construction costs of over 4 billion rupees (or approximately $ 40 million).



















GRAND JAMIA MASJID LAHORE

Worlds 7th Largest; Capacity of 70,000
Pakistan’s Largest Indoor Praying Facility; 25,000

By Bahria Town's Website

Grand Jamia Mosque, Lahore



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A worth visiting place indeed




7C2B3292 by Liaqat Ali Vance, on Flickr
Pre Partition Building

Inside Mori Gate

Walled City

Lahores


Naulakha Pavilion, Lahore Fort. by Khalil-ur-Rehman Waleed, on Flickr


architecture by Liaqat Ali Vance, on Flickr
Hansraj Hall

Pre Partition Building

DAV School

Out Fall Road

Lahore


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untitled-1-2 by Liaqat Ali Vance, on Flickr
Pre Partition

Door Of A House

Inside Bhati Gate

Walled City




Walled City by Liaqat Ali Vance, on Flickr
Old Architecture

Bhaian Wala Medaan

Walled City



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0W6A1318 by Liaqat Ali Vance, on Flickr
Wall of Samadh Maharajah Ranjit Singh


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7C2B4599 by Liaqat Ali Vance, on Flickr
Yateem Khana Mosque

Amazing Architecture

Multan Road





untitled-1-2 by Liaqat Ali Vance, on Flickr
Pre Partition House

Gandhi Square

Gawalmandi


untitled-1 by Liaqat Ali Vance, on Flickr
Pre Partition Structure

Gandhi Square

Railway Road

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7C2B4548 by Liaqat Ali Vance, on Flickr
Door

Of a house

Pre Partition Structure

Gandhi Square

Gawalmandi

Wazir Khan Mosque
Entrance view of Wazir Khan Mosque, Lahore by atifaj, on Flickr
Lahore Wazir Khan mosque by Huma Beg, on Flickr
Lahore Wazir Khan mosque by Huma Beg, on Flickr
Shalimar Garden
Shalimar Garden Lahore!!! by Imran Sohail, on Flickr
Coocosden
Coocosden Restaurant by Usamah Mahmood Khan, on Flickr

Google Street View Lahore























Credits: Bilal Shah

Food street










The Hujra Of Emperor Jehangir by bilalmehdi1312, on Flickr


Lahore Fort and Hazuri Bagh by bilalmehdi1312, on Flickr



Badshahi Mosque by bilalmehdi1312, on Flickr


Lahore Museum by bilalmehdi1312, on Flickr


Lahore Museum by bilalmehdi1312, on Flickr

Old Building - Aitchison College Lahore (1890) by aliffc3, on Flickr

Credits: Zohaib Ahmed‎




University of Lahore

Credits: Hassan Photography




Path to Dai Anga

Credits: Bilal Shah




Grand Jamia masjid

Credits: Adeel Chishti‎

Liberty Market





Minar e Pakistan



Minar-e-Pakistan


Fat burger


Badshahi Masjid



Captured by OmI92 from overhead bridge outside Kot Lakhpat railway station




MIAN MIR bridge



Taken by OmI92
Moulana Shoukat Ali road



ferozepur road by ahmar


BY OMI

Lahore Fort Theatre Festival Day 3

Lahore Fort Theatre Festival Day 3






























Some videos of recently held 'PFDC Sunsilk Fashion Week 2016'

Lahore photo journal: "Anderooni Shehr" Inner City by Inam Photography, on Flickr


Lahore photo journal: Lahore Fort by Inam Photography, on Flickr


Lahore photo journal: Lahore Fort by Inam Photography, on Flickr


Lahore photo journal: Lahore Fort by Inam Photography, on Flickr


Lahore photo journal: Lahore Fort by Inam Photography, on Flickr


Lahore photo journal: Lahore Fort by Inam Photography, on Flickr


Lahore photo journal: Lahore Fort by Inam Photography, on Flickr


Lahore photo journal: Badshah Mosque by Inam Photography, on Flickr


Lahore photo journal: Badshah Mosque by Inam Photography, on Flickr


Lahore photo journal: Badshah Mosque by Inam Photography, on Flickr


Lahore photo journal: Badshah Mosque by Inam Photography, on Flickr


Lahore photo journal: Badshah Mosque by Inam Photography, on Flickr


Lahore photo journal: Badshah Mosque by Inam Photography, on Flickr

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A night view of Jahangir Tomb, Shahdra by Khalil-ur-Rehman Waleed, on Flickr

Usman ali said:

Credits: Sara Sheikh

Masjid Gateway by Muhammad Waqas, on Flickr

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Jinnah Library at Mall road


The mall road


A view of Mall road


Mall road at night


Lovely view of Minar-e-Pakistan
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Museum of Lahore


Red light Area of Lahore


St. Anthony's Church


Wapda house


Punjab Assembly Hall


At the mall road


Wide Angle views of Badshahi Mosque






Wapda house at cherring cross of Mall road




By Asadullah Ahmad on flick

Lahore Museum, Pakistan

The Lahore Museum (Punjabi: لاہور میوزیم, Urdu: لاہور عجائب گھر‎), was originally established in 1865-66 on the site of the hall or building of the 1864 Punjab Exhibition[2] and later shifted to its present site located on The Mall, Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan in 1894. Rudyard Kipling's father, John Lockwood Kipling, was one of the earliest and most famous curators of the museum.[3] Over 250,000 visitors were registered in 2005.[1] The current building of Lahore Museum was designed by the well-known architect Sir Ganga Ram. The Museum is the biggest museum of the country.

The Museum contains some fine specimens of Mughal and Sikh door-ways and wood-work and has a large collection of paintings dating back to the Mughal, Sikh and British periods. It includes a collection of musical instruments, ancient jewellery, textiles, pottery, and armory. There are important relics from the Indus Valley civilisation, Gandhara and Graeco-Bactrian periods as well as some Tibetan and Nepalese work on display. The museum has a number of Greco-Buddhist sculptures, Mughal and Pahari paintings on display.The Fasting Buddha from the Gandhara period is one of the most famous objects of the museum. The ceiling of the entrance hall features a large mural by renowned Pakistani artist Sadequain.

The Museum displays archaeological material from pre-historic times to the Hindu Shahi period. It has one of the largest collections of archaeology, history, arts, fine arts, applied arts,ethnology, and craft objects in Pakistan.It also has an extensive collection of Hellenistic and Mughal coins. A photo gallery is dedicated to the emerging of Pakistan as a state.