Travel Incredible India › Indian Forts & Palaces › Hawa Mahal, Jaipur

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Hawa Mahal, Jaipur

Constructed in 1799, Hawa Mahal is the most sensational monument in the city of Jaipur. The palace, overlooks one of Jaipur's main streets and was originally constructed to offer women of the court an upper hand, so that they can watch the activities taking place in the bazaar and the surrounding streets behind stone-carved screens. For this purpose, it was designed with over 900 niches, and the entire building is shaped like a crown adorning Lord Krishna's head.

The site offers superb views of the city, including the many old palaces and houses which were painted ocher-pink for the 1853 visit of Prince Albert. This five-story, pyramid-shaped structure is made up of small casements, each with tiny windows and arched roofs, beautifully modeled and carved. There is a total lack of ornamentation on the inner face of the building. The chambers are plain and more mass of pillars and passages leading to the top storey.

It's Beauty
Famous for it's Beehive like structure, the entrance to the Hawa Mahal is in the rear side of the main building, the front portion of the building having no entry at all, unlike conventional buildings. The Hawa Mahal is made of red and pink sand stone, beautifully outlined with white borders and motif's painted with quick lime.

Entrance & Courtyard
The entrance to Hawa Mahal is from the City Palace side, through a stately door which opens into a spacious courtyard. The courtyard has a double storeyed building on three sides. There is a small archaeological museum here. Only the eastern wing has three more storeys above, which are just a single room thick. The building, standing on a high podium, is a fifty-foot high thin shield, less than a foot in thickness, with small intimate chambers, which give this palace its unique facade. There are no regular stairs to reach the upper floors, but only ramps.

Architecture Of Hawa Mahal
This five storey building of unusual architecture designed by Lal Chand Usta, is a stunning example of Rajput artistry made of red and pink sand stone, beautifully outlined with white borders and motif's painted with quick lime. Its facade from the road side makes Hawa Mahal look more like a delicate screen than a palace. This five-story, pyramid-shaped structure has tier after tier of 953 small casements, each with tiny lattice worked (Jali) pink windows, small balconies and arched roofs with hanging cornices, exquisitely modeled and carved.

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