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Sights
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Junagarh
Fort |
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| This
is the fort nobody could conquer. Built
between 1587 and 1593, Junagarh Fort
is an imposing bulwark of north India,
the cornerstone of Mughal Emperor Akbar's trusted Rajput general
Raja Rai Singh. Rai Singh's fort was
designed with a high wall and deep moats
round it. Inside is a complex of 37
buildings: pavilions, palaces and temples.
Two gates provide access to these bastions.
One is the Suraj Pol or the Sun
Gate. It is also the main entrance.
The
gilded Diwan-i-khas or the special
audience hall is inside. In Phool Mahal
you will see a series of paintings
depicting the Ramayana. The Anup Mahal and the
Karan Mahal have gold-tipped art
in plaster and relief. The complex also
has the blue Badal Mahal; the chambers
of the rulers called Gaj Mandir
and the summer palace or Hawa Mahal.
Outside the second entrance, the Daulat
Pol are the chilling palm prints of
royal women who became Satis by burning
in their embattled husband's funeral pyres.
Entrance Rs 50 (Indians Rs 10). Included
in the charge is the price of a group
guide. Camera Rs 30, video camera Rs 100.
Open daily, 10 am to 4.30 pm.
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| Lalgarh
Palace
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| Created
in a mix of European and Oriental style,
it was built by Maharaja Ganga
Singh in the memory of his father
Maharaja Lal Singh in 1902.
You
can stroll around Lalgarh's terraced
lawns and bougainvillea bushes if you
live in the section that has been converted
into a hotel. The palace's Sadul
Museum showcases hunting trophies,
photographs of the Raj era and contemporary
possessions of the Maharaja like swimming
goggles(!) and a film projector. The
library of the palace is supposed to
have the largest collection of original
Sanskrit manuscripts on parchments,
copper and gold or silver plaques. Check
out the personal carriage of the maharaja's
royal train.
Three
km from the city centre. Open Thurs
to Tue, 10 am to 5 pm.
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| The
Ganga Golden Jubilee Museum
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| To
view a good collection of late-Harappan,
Gupta and Kushan pottery, this is the
place to go to. Also exhibited here
are carpets, paintings, armoury, the
firmans (decrees) to the Bikaner
maharajas asking them to travel to Delhi
immediately. On one occasion to the
funeral of Emperor Akbar.
Coins,
miniatures, sculptures are also displayed.
On
Jaipur Rd, Open Sat to Thurs, 10 am
to 4.30 pm.
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| Bhandeshwar
and Sandeshwar Temples |
| (5
km) These
old surviving temples are named after
two merchant brothers who built them
in the 16th century.
Bhandeshwar
temple was commissioned 1468 and is
dedicated to the fifth tirthankar,
Suminath. It is believed that the finest
of Emperor Akbar's artisans were employed
to carve the gilded motifs inside the
temple. It is supposed to have taken
500 labourers 50 years to build this
temple which apparently used 40,000
kg of ghee and water for the foundations.
On scorching days, this clarified butter
is said to ooze out of the walls!
Pillars
are adorned with a floral intertwining
design. The 24 Jain thankaras and
their lives are depicted here in picturesque
stories.
The
inner sanctum is decorated with English
tiles and stones transported from Jaipur.
The altar of Suminath is adorned in
mirror and gilt. Sandeshwar temple completed
in 1536 is the smaller of the two and
is dedicated to Neminath the 22nd Jain
tirthankar. Inside, marble statues,
carved doors and painted pillars echo
the rich imagery of the Bhandeshwar
temple.
Closed
between noon and 4 pm. |
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