cons red.fort report

Conservation at the Red Fort New Delhi 2003

table of contents:

Neher-i-Behist & Bagh-i-Hayat Baksh> Destroyed Evidence for Medieval Hydrological System> Reconfigured & Reconstructed Terrace> Contravened Conservation Standards

Hayat Baksh Extant Traces covered or removedIntrusive lighting FeaturesRepaved PathwaysReconstituted Features

Shah Burj Marble Pool re-Pointed with Cement

Diwan-i-Khas & Khas Mahal> Damaged Scale of Justice Jali> Renovated Pietra Dura

C o n s e r v a t i o n at t h e R e d F o r t, S h a h j a h a n a b a d , N e w D e l h i . 2 0 0 3 2

The Red Fort is amongst the finest Mughalmonuments in India- a talismanic emblem of thesubcontinent's struggle against colonial rule.

The palace at Delhi is, or rather was, the most magnificent palace in theEast perhaps in the world... The gems of the palace (remain), it is true, butwithout the courts and corridors connecting them they lose all theirmeaning and more than half their beauty. Situated in the middle of aBritish barrack-yard, they look like precious stones torn from their settingsin some exquisite piece of Oriental jewellers work and set at random in abed of the commonest plaster.James Fergusson, James Fergusson, James Fergusson, James Fergusson, James Fergusson, History of India and Eastern Architecture, 1910,in Nicholson, Venturi - The Red Fort Delhi,London: Tauris Parke Books (1989)

s tate m e nt o f p u r p os e

As a public-spirited group of citizens, we draw your attention tothe reckless renovation work at the Red Fort.

We present herewith ev idence of a caval ier approach toconservation that perpetuates a 'chalta hai' attitude towards ascientific discipline. The present works at the fort violateinternational norms of conservation that could disqualify itsbid to achieve World Heritage status. Adhoc measuresof'beautification' in the name of restoration attack both protectedmaterial heritage and the cultural identity of a society.

Who is to be held responsible for the criminal negligence inthe execution of well-established guidelines? who answers for:

> the eliminatiion of authentic evidence of material heritage,and thereby our identity

> the replacement of this authentic heritage with new designelements in violation of international conservation charters

> the presentation of a complex, integrated hydrologicalstructure as a decorative feature

> the alteration of a traditional architectural ethoswith an aesthetics of public-works landscapes

> the devaluation of high-quality traditional skillsby patronising substandard workmanship

> the denial of our basic right to be informedabout the state of our heritage


Compared with its counterpart in Agra, the palacein the red fort of Delhi is a unified whole. Its mainparts were conceived all at once, rather than builtup piecemeal over time, and though it has somelater additions these have not destroyed theoriginal basic pattern. however, it is much less wellpreserved than the Agra palace, for varioushistorical reasons.After half a century of destruction adn neglect, aprogramme of restoration of the surviving parts wasbegun by the Archeological Survey in 1903.GHR TillotsonGHR TillotsonGHR TillotsonGHR TillotsonGHR Tillotson, Mughal India, London: Viking (1990)

Of all the Mugal monuments of Delhi which are nowinvested with so much interest owing to the city havingbecome once more the Capital of the Indian Empire, theFort of Shah Jahan will, to the majority appeal to the most.SandersonSandersonSandersonSandersonSanderson (in ASI Annual report 1911-12,1915, p.1)

In the larger context Red Fort played an enormous symbolicrole for the Indian people throughout the country, bothduring and after the freedom movement. On the morning of15 August 1947, it was from this port Pandit JawaharlalNehru the first prime minister of independent India,addressed his countrymen to commemorate a day that hadlong been sought.A S MukherjiA S MukherjiA S MukherjiA S MukherjiA S Mukherji, The Red Fort,Delhi: Oxford University Press (2003)

the Red Fort

An axonometric view showsbuildings up until theBritish occupation in 1858(adapted from Sanderson)in Nicholson, Venturi(1989) p.122

Circled is the area underscrutiny in these papers.


Hayat Baksh Garden

There were two major gardens, the HyatBaksh or Life Giving Garden, and theMahtab Bagh or Moonlight Garden,combined to form one grand design. Thelatter no longer exists, but much of theHayat Baksh remains, designed as a watergarden and connected with the easternterrace with the Neher-i-Behist runningthrough it.

In the Hyat Baksh the centre of each of itsfour sides was marked by pavilions orgateways. On the northern and southernends were Sawan and Bhadon pavilions,and on the eastern and western ends wereMoti Mahal pavilion and the connectinggateway to the Mehtab Bagh respectively.Moti Mahal, no longer extant, isrepresented by the white pavilion inminiature drawings. Written descriptionshowever portray it as a red stone building(with a) white marble tank in the centre.A S Mukherji A S Mukherji A S Mukherji A S Mukherji A S Mukherji (2002) the Red Fort,Delhi, p.149

In the design of their gardens, the Mughals balanced everythingperfectly: space and texture, light and shade, colour and scent. Inthe realm of waterworks, their imagination knew know bounds;every detail was considered, even surface patterns.

The Hayat Baksh, or life bestowing garden, once had several rowsof cypress and beds of saffron, crimson and purple flowers, afavorite combination in the colorful Timurid charbags. Today thegarden area is modernized with lawns and low, clipped hedges andflower beds, though it is still planted in the old colors. The gardensof the Red Fort, once most splendid of Mughal Gardens, lack eventhe melancholy charm of a ruin.

There has been much restoration and unfortunately, somebuilding. Within the fort today, ugly nineteenth century barracksstand on the site of the Mahtab Bagh and loom over restored riverside terrace.

Above all it was the playful use of water in their gardens that soenchanted and pleased the Mughals. For these gardens were notjust symbols of power where they lusted after pleasure. Rather thedeeper symbolism and the poetic nature of the appeal of theseParadise Gardens is reaffirmed in an inscription in the Red Fortdescribing the water garden of the palace: The Hayt Baksh (lifebestowing garden), which is to these buildings as the soul is tobody, and the lamp to an assembly; and of the pure canal, thelimpid water of which is to the person possessing sight, as themirror showing the world; and of the water cascades, each ofwhich you may see is the whitener of the dawn and of thefountains, each of which is hand inclined to shake hands with theinhabitants of heavens, or a string of bright pearls made todescend reward the inhabitants of the earth; and of the tank, fullto the brim of the water and in its purity the envy of light andspring of the sun.E Moynihan E Moynihan E Moynihan E Moynihan E Moynihan (1979) Paradise as a Garden - In Persia & Mughal India,p.135, 136, 146, 147

Made the earth the envy of the sky Fadil Khan


the Neher-i-Behist

There is almost no chamber but it hath at its Door a storehouse of runningwater; that tis full of Parterres, pleasant Walk, shady Places, Rivulets,Fountains, Jets of Water, Grottas, great Caves against the heat of the day,and great Terraces raised high, and very airy, to sleep upon in the cool: in aword, you know not there what tis to be hot.BernierBernierBernierBernierBernier, in Crowe, Haywood,The Gardens of Mughul India, p.159

Based on contemporary and preceding Mughal water systems, it seemslikely that within the Red Fort, water would have flowed from a storagetank with designated pipe inlets and outlets, through copper pipes intothe pavilion attached to the Shah Burj. Water in the canal, after rising upat fountains at frequent intervals, would have continued through thepavilions into the garden. It would have then entered hammams, theemperors private chambers, and the imperial seraglio to finally collect ina baoli in the Asad Burj. Here, it was probably used as a watering hole forthe animals, after which it was allowed to flow back to the river. Since theYamuna also flowed southwards, the direction of currents would haveensured that this used water would not flow back towards the Shah Burjand into the Fort.Mukherji Mukherji Mukherji Mukherji Mukherji (2002) The Red Fort, Delhi, p.115

Once inside Shahajahanabad, the Neher-i-Behist split into two. One branchmet Chandni Chowk near Fatehpur Masjid and flowed down the middle ofthe bazaar to Faiz Bazar. The other branch entered Saihibabad garden andran to the northeastern corner of the palace-fortress near Shah Burj. Aingenious device called Shuturgulu (Camels Neck) is said to have lifted thestream from the ground level to the floor of the fort. A marble channeldirected water to the building and the apartments along the eastern wall,while smaller canals diverted the flow to the gardens and waterways.

A mid eighteenth century writer observed: (The canal) brought greennessto Delhi. It ran in all of the city from lane to lane, and the wells became fullfrom it. Having flown to the mansion of princess and amirs it flowed intothe city to Chandni Chawk, to the Chawk of Saadulla Khan, to Pahargunj,to Ajmeri Gate, to the grazing places to the other mahallahs, and to all thelanes and bazaars of the city.

The paradise canal was responsible for much that was fresh green andbeautiful in Shahjahnabad. Sujan Rai wrote: confers freshness to thegardens in suburbs of the capital, lends happiness to the streets andbazaars, and enhances the splendor of the imperial palaces.SSSSS ujujuju ju jan Ran Ran Ran Ran Ra ia ia ia ia i, Khulasat al-Tawarikh, fol.29b

Water moved regularly from the Jamuna to the city until the middleof the eighteenth century. The canal proved a boon to cultivatorsand the taxes they paid in superintending (amir SafdarJang is saidto have received two million five hundred thousand rupees oneyear) were ample incentive to keep it open. With the collapse oforder and government, however the canal again ran dry.Chatruman RaiChatruman RaiChatruman RaiChatruman RaiChatruman Rai, Charan Gulshan, fols. 37 a-bin Stephen P. Blake - Shahjahanabad, The Sovereign Cityin Mughal India (1639-1739) p.65

The Nehar-i-Behist also ran through a pavilion termed the Moti Mahalwhich, as shown in the old maps, is positioned on the eastern terrace asthe climax of one of the Hyat Bakshs central axes. The rest of the distanceon the terrace that the Neher-i-Behist passed through before entering thehammams appears open to sky.

Excavations by the ASI at the beginning of the twentieth century haverevealed that the channels and the canals in the garden were generallyshallow, with holes in the sites connected to the earthen pipes. Theoverflow from the channels would have thus percolated back into the earthand no doubt used for irrigating the flowers beds and fruit trees, to finallyflow back in the river. The discovery of traces of Mughal drainage system inthe later excavations in the Fort, as in the [t]renching which revealed anunderground drain leading to a doorway in the outer wall of the Fort(Sanderson, 1914), points to such a possibility. The moat around the fort isdescribed as being full of fish in clear water. This suggested that the moatwas connected in a continuous circulation system, and took in water fromthe northern end and emitted it the south end.Mukherji (2002) p.116-117Mukherji (2002) p.116-117Mukherji (2002) p.116-117Mukherji (2002) p.116-117Mukherji (2002) p.116-117

Reconstituted PlanReconstituted PlanReconstituted PlanReconstituted PlanReconstituted Planshowing a stretch ofshowing a stretch ofshowing a stretch ofshowing a stretch ofshowing a stretch ofthe Neher-i -Behistthe Neher-i -Behistthe Neher-i -Behistthe Neher-i -Behistthe Neher-i -Behist& Hayat Baksh Garden& Hayat Baksh Garden& Hayat Baksh Garden& Hayat Baksh Garden& Hayat Baksh Gardensources: Koch (2001) MughalArt and Imperial Ideology,Collected Essays, p.222;Mukherji (2002) The Red Fortof Shahjahnabad, p.118, 146


the Neher-i-Behistand the science of medieval hydrology

the water parterre looking north towards the Shah-Burj pavilion.Remnants of this stone pattern were found beneath layers of rubbishwhen the gardens were restored at the beginning of the (20th) century.

Crowe, Haywood, Jellicoe - The Gardens of Mughal India, Vikas (1973), 160-61.

Looking south towards the Hammam, more recent photographicevidence indicates an intricate profile for the stream

Nicholson, Venturi (1989) The Red Fort, Delhi, Tauris Parke Books, p.90


Configuration & Hydrology before...

These photographs of excavations in2002 reveal traces of a scientificsystem of terracotta pipes contiguouswith the streams that fed the fortgardens and palaces.

Specific names and uses of separatepipes- for big and small baths, fortanks, canals, and passages-weremarked on the tank from which theyflowed onwards

This was a complex, precisely gradedsystem of waterworks activated bygravity, as recently revived as part ofthe restoration of Humayun's tomb.

there are several indications that the Neher-i-Behist went underground and reappeared allalong the Eastern terrace of the royal palace.

Left: Neher flowingthrough the Hammam,photo Mukherji (2002) p.115;

Right: through Diwan-i-Khas,photo Dube, Ramanathan(1997) p.124;

Below: Mukherji (2002) p.141

Photos taken duringexcavations, 2002.Courtesy Ratish Nanda


& after...In the present configuration, oblong scallops createa uniformly paved pool that bears no resemblance toany Mughal structure or historical precedent

before...

Photo taken 09/2003

Configuration & Hydrology ... after

footprint of Moti Mahal

the footprint of theMoti Mahal plinth,where the Neher goesunderground, hasnot been preserved.


in the newly finished 'restoration' atruncated scallop extends right to thewall of the hammam. this was most likelya portal in and out of the royal baths tothe terrace, probably done in marble likethe rest of the Neher. a platformed areahere, visible in the photograph above,would have extended over the intakepipes, allowing residents to enter andexit the hammam. It is safe to infer thatthe king did not step down and wade intoa stagnant pool at this point.

The end result is the creation of a still,leaky waterbody, below.

In the process of this so-calledrestoration, all evidence of the highly-evolved water circulation system of themughals has been at best concealed, andat worst destroyed.

Configuration & Hydrology after...

photos taken 09/03

A puzzling aspect of this arrangement is that in such a dustyclimate as Delhis, the water that flowed into hammams andthe private rooms of the emperor was allowed to first flowuncovered. An explanation for this may be that the treesflowers and the plantation both within the gardens andaround the Fort produced a micro climate that ensuredreduced level of dust. And it is also probable that at the pointat which these channels entered royal paviions or hammams,a system of filtration removed any adhering particles andpurified the water before it was heated or cooled for bathing.Mukherji Mukherji Mukherji Mukherji Mukherji (2002) p.116

The eastern wall of theFort, retaining thisterrace with itscosmetic changes andtwo leaky water bodies,is already weakening

(refer to 'Red Fort regalia is adamp squib', the Pioneerartical in Annex A)photo Vijay Kumar (2002)

These cosmetic changesare clearly notaddressing realconservation issues.

C o n s e r v a t i o n at t h e R e d F o r t, S h a h j a h a n a b a d , N e w D e l h i . 2 0 0 3 1 0

Photos taken during excavations, 2002.Courtesy Ratish Nanda

cornice details along waterway edges

& after...

Configuration of the Neher-i-Behist...

before...

likely beforeas suggested bythe main channel,left, in the HayatBaksh garden

and at presentafter renovation

Photos taken 09/03.

sections of cornices


Water flowed from theNeher-i-behist, throughthese concealed pipesunder the terrace,leading into the HayatBakhsh garden

Left: Reconstructed plan of the Bagh-i-Hayat Bakhsh, in Ebba Koch (2001)Mughal Art and Imperial Ideology,Delhi, Oxford University Pub.

Below: Notional sketch

Evidence of stairwaysdescending into thegarden can be seen in theretaining wall of theterrace.

These correspond to themorphology of the Neher-i-Behist, and the streamsintersecting the HayatBaksh garden

Photos taken 17/09/03.

Configuration & Hydrology before...


The evident traces of stairways leading fromthe Neher-i-Behist Terrace down to the HayatBaksh garden have recently received Lime-plaster infill

photos taken on 17/09/03.

Conservation Standards... preserving extant traces

This ad-hoc concealment ofextant architectural tracesindicates a wilfull neglect oftheir significance in thelarger architectural andhydrological scheme, with noeffort at either preservationor restoration.

Photos taken on 24/09/03.


MM Kaye's book 'the Golden Calm' is based on the post-1867 reminiscencesof Emily Metcalfe, an English memsahib, her mother Lady Clive Bayley andher father, Sir Thomas Metcalfe, a resident at the Mughal court whocommissioned illustrations of the Fort from Delhi artists in his 'Delhie Book'.

Illustration from 'the Golden Calm', ed. MM Kaye (1980), Webb & Bower,Great Britain, reproduced from the 'Delhie Book' by Sir Thomas Metcalfe

Another example of the Neher-i-behist depicted by an artist ofAnother example of the Neher-i-behist depicted by an artist ofAnother example of the Neher-i-behist depicted by an artist ofAnother example of the Neher-i-behist depicted by an artist ofAnother example of the Neher-i-behist depicted by an artist ofthe period, showing the the period, showing the the period, showing the the period, showing the the period, showing the linkage of the terrace to the garden.Illustration from 19th century copy of M. Salih Kanbo, Amal-i-Salih, British Library Collection, reproduced in Ebba Koch (2001)Mughal Art and Imperial Ideology, Delhi, Oxford India Pub.

Significantly, this was a private area, part of the royal household, and henceshielded from the eyes of painters. These painters would have relied onchance sightings, descriptions and imaginative renderings of existing stylisticconventions and work drawings.

These illustrations do not stand scrutiny as authoritative,incontrovertible evidence towards creating blue-prints for restoration.

Public Campaign to Misinform

This was the 'evidence'cited by the Minister inthe same newspaper -"the Nehr-i-Bihist whichwas covered under earthand debris, wasexcavated and thenrestored with redsandstone in conformitywith the description andphotographs(sic) given inthe book written byMetcalfe (sic) titledGolden Calm(sic)."



The Minister released thesephotographs, through an unsignedarticle in a national newspaper, a dayafter the first media reportsrevealing the fiasco at the red fort.

Misleading the public, the ministercited this as proof of the "originalstructure revealed after ASIexcavation".

The photo actually shows the newlyconstructed cement structure, madeto retain the modified Neher-i-Behist.

in the subsequent photo, a platformwith brick-rubble infill andsandstone cladding furtherobscures the footprints of the Neherand moti mahal.

These "restorations" have now beencompleted, unchallenged.


May 2002 Neher-i-Behist during excavations


photo courtesy: S. Makhija


at the source of the Neher-i-Behist in the Shah Burj,Pointing with white cement (a bag of which sits beside the artisan)A material analysis by an independent conservationist is requested.

Conservation Standards... pointing marble with cement

Shah BurjThe Shah Burj, or royal tower, was used for theprivate council meetings that were part of the dailyroutine of the emperor. It was accessible only to theimperial princes, the vizier and a few importantcourtiers who had the emperors special confidence.Koch Koch Koch Koch Koch (2001) Mughal Art and Imperial Ideology, p.219

From the pavilion attached to the Shah Burj, waterdrawn from the river below would have flowed into a poolat the head of the Neher-i-Behist, and continued from thereinto the fort's complex system of waterways.


Conservation Standards... Shah Burj

Careless reactivationof Water flow

leaks have developed onthe east wall of the ShahBurj. This indicatesimproper pointing andwater-proofing in thesource pool, from wherewater is seeping into theplinth and foundation ofthe structure. The damagefrom this flow into thestagnant Neher-i-Behistwill soon become evident.

Below, cement pointingand other inappropriatemeasures taken to staunchthe flow, endangeringthe building.

photos courtesy: S Makhija21 Oct. 2003.


Conservation Standards... Paving pathways PWD-style

Conservation Standards... preserving extant traces in-situ

several alternatives, true to period technologies,are available.

For instance, hexagonal-patterned brickpaving in the paien bagh or ladies gardenof Jehangir's Lahore Fort

photo Crowe, Haywood, Jellicoe, Patterson(1973)p. 154,155


Conservation Standards... intrusive lighting features

before media reports

New lighting featuresalong pathways in theHayat Baksh Garden.

Photo taken earlySeptember 2003

after media reports

The Minister claimed thatthis pathway lighting wasrequired for thesound andlight show, when the RedFort's son et lumiere doesnot extend to this part atall. (refer to annex A)

However, soon thereafterthe lamps were removedfrom this same stretch -a small change consideringthe serious issues raised byrenovations at the fort, butan acknowledgement ofculpability.

Photo taken late Sept. 2003

indiscreet lightingcontinues...

Floodlight mounted ondome of protectedstructure

Photos courtesy A.G.K. Menon,Oct. 2003


Conservation Standards... Reconstituted features

New Fountainheads

Newly carved fountains have beenadded in a denser and atypicalarrangement in the channelflowing between the Sawan andBadhon pavilions.

The photograph above indicatestheir original form and placement.Those below document successivegenerations: the older, withweathered blue paint from aprevious beautification effort, sitsunmoored beside an inaccuratereproduction; fragments fromthe succession.

Photos taken Oct. 2003

The Zafar Mahal stands amidstfountains in a pool where fourcanals converge. The southand north canals emanatedfrom the small Sawan and theBhadon pavilions.Right: Photo from E. Moynihan (1979)Paradise as a Garden In Persiaand Mughal India, p. 136


Footprint of Moti Mahal,in Koch (2001)

details of the pipes being laidunder the new paving of theNeher-i-Behist terrace

Conservation Standards

cemented water tanks created underthe extant footprint of the Moti Mahal.

Photos 09/03

in electrification& water storage


Khas Mahal*

One of the finest specimensof Mughal lattice-work inthe country.

The screen carved with the scale of justice, partof emperors insignia, formed a transparentvertical boundary between two central arcadeverandas on the north and south faces. TheNeher-i-Bahist channel flowing below the screenbisected the open width of the Khas Mahal.This space, cooled by the water channel, seemsto have been a favourite spot of the lateremperors, who are often depicted in the courtpaintings with the screen of justice, silhouettingtheir profile amidst the hint of the breeze andthe prospect of a vista of marble pavilions.MukherjiMukherjiMukherjiMukherjiMukherji (2001) p.29

scale of Justice Jali before...

above: 19th cent. illustr. from Kaye (1980) p.75left: uncredited photo from a common postcard;left below: photo taken in 1997,from Mukherji (2001) p. 31

* The Khas Mahal, or special palace, wasthe emperors personal living quarters, withmultiple verandahs and chambers.Its parts were variously designated theKhwabgah, the House of Dreams or moreprosaically, the Sleeping Chamber; theTasbih Khana or Chamber of Telling Beads;the Toshakhana or the Baithakkhana, theRobe Chamber or the Sitting Chamber.


photos taken o9/03, allegedlytwo months after breakage.

Is there a first-information/police report, or any otherrecords establishing liabilityor accountability?

scale of Justice Jali after...


Diwan-i-Khas renovated Pietra Dura

No picture can give an adequate ideaof it, for in design, proportion,material and finish, it was faultless...a more wonderful building does not existin the world."MetcalfeMetcalfeMetcalfeMetcalfeMetcalfe, in Kaye (1980) p. 168

photo: Nicholson, Venturi (1989) p.115

Photo taken 09/03

Shah Jahan chose to describethis marble pavilion inwords inscribed on itssouthern interior arcades:

Agar firdaus bad zamin ast,hamin ast, hamin ast

if there is paradise on earth,it is this, it is this!

photo from Nicholson(1989) p.51

It is this place that the king, seatedin a chair, his Omrahs standingaround him, grants more privateaudience to his officers, receivestheir reports, and deliberates onimportant affairs of the state.Bernier Bernier Bernier Bernier Bernier (1996), Travels in the MughalEmpire, AD-1656-68, p.265

The descriptions ofDiwan-i-Khas by mostwriters convey a pictureof a delicately lavishinterior containingpainted gold decoration,finely carved marblescreens, glass infill onarched windows, and aceiling of pure silver.

Plan of the Diwan-i-Khasshowing its 32 pillars, alldelicately inlaid.


varying state of inlayson different Panelsin the Diwan-i-Khas

Photo taken 1966, ASI no. 1062-66 TTTTTopopopopopPhoto taken 1989, in Nicholson, Venturi(1989), p.120 Mid Mid Mid Mid Middld ld ld ld leeeee

Photo taken 2003, after restoration BottomBottomBottomBottomBottom

assessing Material-use & skill

renovated Pietra Dura

Documentation of worksDocumentation of each stage in the conservation& restoration process is mandatory.

There must be records of every stage ofconservation for each face of the 32 columnsin the Diwan-i-Khas (approx. 120 faces)

It is incumbent on the ASI and its contratorsto maintain and furnish these public records.

a comparitive studyby independent conservationists and specialists,based on ASI records, is necessary.

an in-situ assessmentof restoration and expert advice by president-honoured master craftsmen, for which a requestfor has been made to the ASI.


Comparable inlays from the Taj Mahal, Agra,demonstrate the fine pietra dura craft-skills that could still be brought to bearin restoration, where appropriate.

photos from Joshi, Okada, Nou(1993) p.21, 34, 64

Stone (Cornelian, Lapis, Jaisalmeretc.)was carefully selected (with thechoice of shades obtained by theheating of stones such as Cornelian& Jaisalmer) to achieve the subtlegradations in hue at the turning ofa leaf or petal

There is no justification for craftsmanshipof a quality inferior to the original Mughalor British colonial work, when today theskills and the technologies employed by thecountry's craftspeople are vastly improved.

Interviews of mastercraftsmen who havereceived presidential awards reveal thatnone have been consulted.

Material-use& Craftsmanshippossible



the removal of surviving inlays, andreplacement by an inferior grade ofmaterial and workmanship, to effectuniformity.

The Contrator for the restoration ofinlays was changed after work wasunsatisfactorily 'completed' on 20columns.

(according to the accounts of craftsmenworking on-site, in early september)

Replacement of Inlays

Negligent choices

examples of carelessinlay with poor,discoloured stone, &finishing with epoxy

photos taken 24/09/03



Diwan-i-Khas

pietra dura panelclearly indicating incompatibleadhesive usage & irreversiblerestoration procedures.

photo 2002courtesy: s. Makhija


Diwan-i-Khas

pietra dura panel

indicating the removal of original materialprior to current restoration work

photo 2002courtesy: s. Makhija

inappropriate filling with epoxy suspected(refer to previous image)permission for evaluation requested.


Bibliography

S. P. Blake - Shahjahanabad The Sovereign City in Mughal India 1639-173, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press (1993)

Crowe, Haywood, Jellicoe, Patterson - The Gardens of Mugal India,Delhi: Vikas Publishing House Pvt. Ltd. (1973)

Dube, Ramanathan - Delhi, The City of Monuments, New Delhi:Timeless Books (1997)

M.M. Kaye (Ed.) - The Golden Calm,Devon: Webb & Brown Ltd. (1980)

Ebba Koch - Mugal Art and Imperial Ideology Collected Essays,New Delhi: Oxford University Press(2001)

Ehlers, Krafft (Ed.) - Shahjahanabad/Old Delhi Tradition and ColonialChange, New Delhi: Ajay Kumar Jain for Manohar Publishers (2003)

Joshi, Okada, Nou - Taj Mahal, Paris: Abbeville Press Publisher (1993)

MARG, Vol. XXXIX, No.1, Patrons of Art: The Mughals and the Medici,Bombay: MARG Publications.

Masselos, Gupta - Beatos Delhi 1857,1997, Delhi: Ravi Dayal Publisher(2000)

E. Moynihan - Paradise as a Garden In Persia and Mughal India, NewYork: George Braziller, Inc. (1979)

A. S. Mukherji - The Red Fort of Shahjahnabad,New Delhi: Oxford University Press (2002)

Nicholson, Venturi - The Red Fort Delhi,London: Tauris Parke Books (1989)

G.H.R. Tillotson - Mughal India, London: the Penguin Group (1990)

Illustration credits

All uncredited photographs & images in these paperscontributed by R. Sethi & S. ChatterjeeCredited Contributors: S. Makhija, A.G.K. Menon

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