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Havelies
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Haveli is the term used for a personal residence in Pakistan and North India. The word haveli is of Persian origin, meaning "an enclosed place".
The Havelis of Pakistan and North India follow the Islamic style of architecture and usually contain a courtyard often with a fountain in the center. The old cities of Lahore and Delhi have many fines examples of Mughal style Havelis.
The term Haveli is also used by the Vaishnava sect for their temples in Gujarat.
Between 1830 and 1930, Marwaris erected buildings in their homeland, Shekhawati and Marwar, as evidence of their success. These buildings were called Havelis. The Marwaris commissioned artists to paint those buildings. The Havelis are noted for their frescoes depicting mythological themes. The frescoes include Images of Gods, Goddesses, animals, scenes from the British colonization, and the life history of Lord Rama and Krishna, profusely painted on the Havelis in this region.
The havelis were the symbol of the status of the Marwaris and a home for their extended family, providing security and comfort, in seclusion from the outside world. The havelis used to be closed from all sides with one big strong main gate.
The typical havelis in Shekhawati consisted of two courtyards — an outer one for the men which serves as an extended threshold and the inner one, the domain of the women. The biggest ones sometimes had three or four courtyards and were two to three stories high. Most of the havelis are empty nowadays or are maintained by a watchman (typically an old man). These havelis are major attraction for tourists in Rajasthan.
View of a typical Haveli at Jaisalmer, Rajasthan |
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Jaipur
Distance (K.M.) |
Time taken in hours |
Height above sea level |
Temperature |
Clothing |
From Delhi- 258 kilometers |
5 &1/2 hrs. |
431m |
Max. Temp. - 41.0 (summer)
Min. Temp. - 8.0 (winters) |
Cotton in summers
Woolens in winter |
Fort at Jaipur |
During the British Raj, Jaipur
was the capital of a princely state of the same name. Jaipur
state, which existed from the twelfth century until Indian Independence
in 1947, took its name from the city. The state is said to have
been founded about 1128 by Dhula Rai, who hailed from Narwar;
he and his Kachwaha kinsmen are said to have absorbed or driven
out the local Meenas chiefs . Their original capital in the
Dhundhar region was Dausa, Ramgarth then Amber before the shift
to Jaipur. Maharaja Sawai Man Singh II (1922-1949), in 1948,
shortly after India's independence, acceded the state of Jaipur
to the Government of India, and Jaipur became the capital of
Rajasthan.
Jaipur is located at 26.92° N 75.82° E. It has an average
elevation of 432 metres (1417 feet). The climate of the
district is dry and healthy and is subject to extremities
of cold and heat during winter and summer respectively, due
to proximity to the Thar Desert. The minimum and maximum
temperatures recorded in the district varies from 3 to 48 degrees
Celsius. Normal annual rainfall is 556 mm.
How to Reach
Jaipur is the capital of Rajasthan.
Distance from major cities from Jaipur are
Delhi-265 km
Ahmedabad-625 km
Chandigarh-510 km
Mumbai-1,176 km
Calcutta-1,472 km
Agra-246 km
Places of Interest
In Jaipur you can see
- Nahargarh Fort
Nahargarh Fort |
Nahagarh Fort stands on the
edge of the Aravalli Hills, overlooking the pink city of Jaipur
in the Indian state of Rajasthan. The view of the city from
the fort is breath taking. Along with Amber Fort and Jaigarh
Fort it formed a strong defence ring for the city. During
the Sepoy revolt of 1857, Nahagarh served as a refuge for
Europeans fleeing from the havoc created by mutineers in neighboring
states. The word Nahargarh means the abode of tigers. Legends
say that it was name after Prince Nahar whose spirit haunted
the place and obstructed construction of the fort.
Built mainly in 1734 by Maharaja Sawai Jai Singh II, it is
partially in ruins. It was extended in 1868. The rooms are
linked by corridors and still have some delicate frescos.
- Amber Palace
The Amber Palace complex overlooking the artificial lake south
of Amber town is one of the most popular tourist sites in
the city, famous for its mixture of Hindu and Muslim architecture,
and offering elephant rides from the town up to the palace
courtyard. However, although the structure is today known
as Amber fort, the complex was initiatlly a Palace Complex
within the Fort of Amber which is today known as Jaigarh fort.
- Jaigarh Fort
The Jaigarh Fort on the hills above the Amber Palace complex
offers stunning views of the foothills of the Aravalli range,
as well as attractions such as immense underground water-storage
tanks, a medieval canon foundry and an impressive collection
of medieval cannons including the Jaivana which is reputed
to be the world's largest cannon on wheels. Historically this
was the original Amber Fort, although it became known as Jaigarh
from the time of Sawai Jai Singh II onwards.
- Hawa Mahal
Hawa Mahal |
Hawa Mahal, or the "Palace
of Winds", is a palace in Jaipur, India. It was built in 1799
by Maharaja Sawai Pratap Singh, and designed by Lal Chand
Usta. It forms part of the City Palace and extends the Zenana
or women's chambers, the chambers of the harem. Its original
intention was to allow royal ladies to observe everyday life
in the street below without being seen.
It has five stories and is constructed of red and pink sandstone,
highlighted with white quick lime. The side facing the street
outside the palace complex has 953 small windows, and the
breeze (hawa) which circulates through these windows gives
the palace its name, and keeps it cool even in hot months.
The entrance opens onto a courtyard with a double-storied
building on three sides, and one on the eastern wing with
three more stories, which is just one room wide. There are
no stairs to reach the upper floors, only ramps.
- Jantar Mantar
The Yantra Mandir (commonly known as the Jantar Mantar) is
an equinoctial dial, consisting a gigantic triangular gnomon
with the hypotenuse parallel to the Earth's axis. On either
side of the gnomon is a quadrant of a circle, parallel to
the plane of the equator. The instrument is intended to measure
the time of day, correct to half a second, and declination
of the Sun and the other heavenly bodies.
Maharaja Jai Singh II of Jaipur constructed four Yantra Mandir
in Delhi, Jaipur, Ujjain and Varanasi.
- Jal Mahal
- Shri Gopinath Ji
- Shri Galata Ji
- Shri Govind Dev Temple
- Shri Gayatri Temple
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