Tourists reading a sign inside the Qutub Minar complex in New Delhi in India is a photograph by Ashish Agarwal which was uploaded on August 16th, 2013.
Tourists reading a sign inside the Qutub Minar complex in New Delhi in India
Tourists reading a sign inside the Qutub Minar complex in Mehrauli, South Delhi, India. Right next to them, you can see the depiction of an audio... more
Title
Tourists reading a sign inside the Qutub Minar complex in New Delhi in India
Artist
Ashish Agarwal
Medium
Photograph - Photo
Description
Tourists reading a sign inside the Qutub Minar complex in Mehrauli, South Delhi, India. Right next to them, you can see the depiction of an audio guide (which is used by tourists to listen to a tour guide). The Qutb Minar is a historical monument (a central minaret surrounded by other structures, including a very famous Iron Pillar) located in the southern half of the city of Delhi. It is designated as a UNESCO World Heritage monument, with the construction of the minaret having been started in the year 1192, started by the Delhi Sultan Qutub-ud-din and completed some years later by the Sultan Iltutmish. The minaret is 72.5 meters tall, and has a total of 379 stairs. The minaret is much wider at the bottom and thinner at the top, with the base having a diameter of 14.3 meters and a diameter at the top of 2.7 meters at the top. The structure of the minaret is made of red sandstone, and the entire structure has intricate carvings with verses from the Muslim holy book, the Quran.
The Qutub Minar is located in a complex having many other structures, and was actually constructed over the remains of the structures built by the Tomar and Chauhan kings (who were the last Hindu rulers of the city of Delhi, before Delhi started to be ruled by the sultans). Over the centuries, the minaret has suffered damage, with earthquake and lightning damaging the upper storeys of the building, and repairs have been carried out over the centuries, although some of the repairs and restorations were not exactly the same as the original.
Before 1981, tourists were allowed to climb the steps of the minaret, but in that year, a combination of school children and a power cut caused a deadly stampede in the narrow staircase, and this caused the death of around 45 people, among them a large number of children. After this tragedy, the entry of tourists inside the minaret was prohibited.
The Qutb Minar is famous not only for the striking minaret, but also for the Iron Pillar located in the same complex. The iron pillar is famous because of its composition, with the pillar having been created more than 2 millenia ago, and yet does not rust. It used to be a belief that if you could interlock your arms around it, with your back to the pillar, you would get your wishes fulfilled. That is no longer possible since there is now a protective fence built around it, to ensure that the huge horde of tourists do not harm the pillar.
Uploaded
August 16th, 2013
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