Tomb of Rumi Khan

Rumi Khan's Tomb, also known as Pila Gumbad ("yellow dome") is a mausoleum located in Ahmednagar, in the Indian state of Maharashtra.[1][2]

Background

Rumi Khan was a nobleman and a gun-caster in the Ahmednagar Sultanate, who died sometime in the late 16th century. The tomb was probably constructed during his lifetime, and used as a garden pavilion before his interment. This garden probably contained a gun-casting foundry, and it is possible that the Malik-i Maidan was cast here.[3]

Description

The tomb is constructed entirely out of dressed stone, without any plaster ornamentation on the exterior. It measures about 26 feet square, and has a height of about 40 feet. The walls are four feet thick. Externally, each wall consists of two horizontal floors, divided by a band of merlon-shaped crestings. Each floor has three recessed arches. Windows and doors are provided in the central arches of each wall. The building is surmounted by a lofty dome resting upon a drum, adorned with a band of lotus-petal moldings. Flat-roofed kiosks are placed at all four corners of the roof, and a trefoil-patterned parapet runs in between them.[1][3][4][5]

References

  1. ^ a b Sherwani, Haroon Khan; Joshi, P. M., eds. (1974). History of Medieval Deccan. Vol. II. pp. 264–265.
  2. ^ Shyam, Radhey (1966). The Kingdom Of Ahmadnagar. Motilal Banarsidass. pp. 394–395.
  3. ^ a b Sohoni, Pushkar (2018). The Architecture of a Deccan Sultanate: Courtly Practice and Royal Authority in Late Medieval India. Bloomsbury. p. 181. ISBN 978-1-83860-928-3.
  4. ^ Shyam, Radhey (1966). The Kingdom of Ahmadnagar. Motilal Banarsidass Publ. p. 394. ISBN 978-81-208-2651-9.
  5. ^ Michell, George; Zebrowski, Mark. Architecture and Art of the Deccan Sultanates (PDF). The New Cambridge History of India I : 7. Cambridge University Press. p. 83. Archived (PDF) from the original on 18 July 2023.