Page:History of Indian and Eastern Architecture Vol 2.djvu/311

CHAP. VIII. BIDAR. 267 Shah I., A.D. 1422-1435, the new capital was adorned by edifices worthy of the greatness of the dynasty, but which are now greatly ruined. Among these the most magnificent appears to have been the madrasa or college erected by Khwaja Mahmud Gawan (or Gilani), the faithful but unfortunate minister of the tyrant Muhammad II. It was about 205 ft. by 1 80 ft, with lofty towers at the ends of the east face, and must have been a striking building, three storeys in height, with its towers if not the whole facade covered with enamelled tiles. It appears to have been finished two years before his death, in A.D. 1481, and in Ferishta's time was one of the most complete and flourishing establishments of its class in India. 1 Unfortunately, when the place was besieged by Aurangzib in 1656, a quantity of gunpowder was stored in it and exploded, either accidentally or by design, so as to ruin one wing. Since then the building has been disused, but so far as can be judged from such imperfect information as is available, it must have been one of the most splendid buildings of its day. In the citadel the most entire structure, perhaps, is the mosque, which is 295 ft. in length by 77 ft. deep, with nineteen arched entrances in front, and inside eighty round piers, each 4^ ft. in diameter, which support the groins of the roof. In the middle, enclosing the mihrdbs and a pulpit of three steps, is an apartment 38 ft. square, which is carried up as an octagon a storey above the roof of the mosque, and covered by a large dome. Parts of the roof which was covered by some eighty-four small domes have fallen in. The ten tombs of Bahmani kings, about 5 miles north-east from the city, are of the like pattern and of considerable splendour, the largest being that of Ahmad Shah I., who died in 1435. They are not much ornamented, but are structurally good, and impressive by their massive proportions. The tombs, too, of the Band Shahi dynasty, which reigned in Bidar from A.D. 1492-1609, are of considerable splendour, and rival those of Golkonda in extent. The tomb of Amir Band Shahi, the second of this dynasty (1504-1538), about half a mile to the west of the city, stands on a large solid platform, and is nearly 57 ft. square, with walls 9 ft. 8 in. thick, which rise to a height of 57 ft. from the platform, and are crowned with a sort of honeysuckle border. The dome is about 37 ft. in height and is ornamented inside with belts of coloured tiles, and further decorated with interlaced Arabic sentences. 2 1 Brigg's translation of Ferishta, vol. ii. p. 510. 2 For further information respecting Bidar, see ' Archaeological Western India,' vol. in. pp. plates 28-32. Survey of 42-46, and