RISING SUN
SENIOR MEMBER
- Joined
- Jun 1, 2012
- Messages
- 4,015
- Reaction score
- 0
- Country
- Location
Grand makeover for Humayuns Tomb
DELHI: Over six years, 2,00,000 man-days of work and efforts of 1,500 conservationists and craftsmen later, Humayun's Tomb is once again set to receive visitors. Built in the 1560son a far grander scale than any of its predecessorsit was the model for the Taj, according to historians.
During these six long years, each stone on the facade of the mausoleum was individually inspected to ensure minimum intervention; millions of kilos of concrete and plaster inappropriately applied in the 20th century removed; dozens of wooden doors, arched recesses and canopies repaired.
For the Aga Khan Trust for Culture, which took on the project in 2007 to fulfil a request by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, the painstaking endeavour will culminate on September 18. Presiding over the event will be the Aga Khan and the PM. The dais will be shared by Union culture minister Chandresh Kumari Katoch and Ratan Tata, whose Sir Dorabji Tata Trust cofunded the conservation.
Humayun's Tomb, along with Qutub Minar, was among the first monuments in Delhi to be named a Unesco world heritage site in 1993. "At that time, its gardens were worn, its masonry cracked and the stonework broken or incomplete . More disconcertingly, it had few visitors," said a ministry of culture official.
AKTC began by restoring the gardens of Humayun's Tomb, in partnership with the Archaeological Survey of India, as the Aga Khan's gift to India on the 50th anniversary of India's independence. An urban renewal project comprising areas of Hazrat Nizamuddin Basti, Sundar Nursery and the Humayun's Tomb complex was signed in 2007. An archival research programme was initiated. It revealed architectural details that were severely compromised.
To execute the project, the skills of traditional masons, plasterers, stone-carvers and tile-makers were used. "Many prominent architectural elements were no longer in the shape the Mughal builders intended them to be. Conservation works, unlike construction, always commence from the top and the white marble dome was allowing water to percolate into the double-dome chamber. The stone joints were carefully filled with lime mortar prepared by mixing lime with marble dust. On four occasions in the 20th century, a layer of concrete was laid on the flat roof surrounding the dome. Using hand tools, stone-carvers removed a million kilos of concrete to restore the original water disposal system.
"A prominent intervention was the removal of cement plaster and the restoration of the decorative star-shaped patterns on the facade of the 68 mini-mausoleums on the ground level, where 160 members of the Mughal dynasty, including Dara Shikoh, lie buried," said AKTC project director Ratish Nanda.
For the Mughal builders, the tiles on roof canopies were a reminder of their Persian ancestry . It took four years of experimentation to restore these tiles, so that they match the original five colours. With large portions of the arcaded enclosure collapsing in the 20th century, masons had to reconstruct 42 6m tall arches.
Grand makeover for Humayunâs Tomb - Times Of India
DELHI: Over six years, 2,00,000 man-days of work and efforts of 1,500 conservationists and craftsmen later, Humayun's Tomb is once again set to receive visitors. Built in the 1560son a far grander scale than any of its predecessorsit was the model for the Taj, according to historians.
During these six long years, each stone on the facade of the mausoleum was individually inspected to ensure minimum intervention; millions of kilos of concrete and plaster inappropriately applied in the 20th century removed; dozens of wooden doors, arched recesses and canopies repaired.
For the Aga Khan Trust for Culture, which took on the project in 2007 to fulfil a request by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, the painstaking endeavour will culminate on September 18. Presiding over the event will be the Aga Khan and the PM. The dais will be shared by Union culture minister Chandresh Kumari Katoch and Ratan Tata, whose Sir Dorabji Tata Trust cofunded the conservation.
Humayun's Tomb, along with Qutub Minar, was among the first monuments in Delhi to be named a Unesco world heritage site in 1993. "At that time, its gardens were worn, its masonry cracked and the stonework broken or incomplete . More disconcertingly, it had few visitors," said a ministry of culture official.
AKTC began by restoring the gardens of Humayun's Tomb, in partnership with the Archaeological Survey of India, as the Aga Khan's gift to India on the 50th anniversary of India's independence. An urban renewal project comprising areas of Hazrat Nizamuddin Basti, Sundar Nursery and the Humayun's Tomb complex was signed in 2007. An archival research programme was initiated. It revealed architectural details that were severely compromised.
To execute the project, the skills of traditional masons, plasterers, stone-carvers and tile-makers were used. "Many prominent architectural elements were no longer in the shape the Mughal builders intended them to be. Conservation works, unlike construction, always commence from the top and the white marble dome was allowing water to percolate into the double-dome chamber. The stone joints were carefully filled with lime mortar prepared by mixing lime with marble dust. On four occasions in the 20th century, a layer of concrete was laid on the flat roof surrounding the dome. Using hand tools, stone-carvers removed a million kilos of concrete to restore the original water disposal system.
"A prominent intervention was the removal of cement plaster and the restoration of the decorative star-shaped patterns on the facade of the 68 mini-mausoleums on the ground level, where 160 members of the Mughal dynasty, including Dara Shikoh, lie buried," said AKTC project director Ratish Nanda.
For the Mughal builders, the tiles on roof canopies were a reminder of their Persian ancestry . It took four years of experimentation to restore these tiles, so that they match the original five colours. With large portions of the arcaded enclosure collapsing in the 20th century, masons had to reconstruct 42 6m tall arches.
Grand makeover for Humayunâs Tomb - Times Of India
to DEFENCE PK
