The myriad monuments of Bijapur, such as the Gol Gumbaz, the Jami Masjid, the Malik-e-Maidan and the Ibrahim Rauza, continue to evoke the grandeur of its past as the capital city of a sultanate that held sway for two centuries.
The Ibrahim Rauza contains the tomb of Ibrahim Adil Shah II (r. 1580-1627). The tomb and the mosque in the complex were built by Malik Sandal, the celebrated Abyssinian architect in the Adil Shahi Sultanate of Bijapur. ▲
The perforated script carved on basaltic stone on one of the entrances to the tomb of Ibrahim Adil Shah II.
Photo: Melukote_Muralidhar
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The Gagan Mahal (Heavenly Palace) was built by Ali Adil I (r. 1558-1579) after the Battle of Talikota in 1565. ▲
The Malik-e-Maidan (Lord of the Field), whose muzzle displays a lion holding small elephants in its teeth. ▲
The Haidar burj (bastion), known popularly as the Upli burj, was built in 1583, probably to accommodate a long iron cannon. ▲
The Gol Gumbaz, the tomb of Mohammed Adil Shah (r. 1627-1656). Its hemispherical dome is one of the largest free-standing domes in the world. ▲
Abdul Gani Imaratwale, historian and author of “Studies in Bijapur Sultanate”. ▲
“Studies in Bijapur Sultanate” edited by Abdul Gani Imaratwale and Maqsood Afzal Jagirdar (Afzal Khan Memorial Trust) ▲
The Jami Masjid that was begun by Ali Adil Shah I after the Deccan Sultanates’ victory over Vijayanagara at the Battle of Talikota in 1565. ▲
The Taj baoli (a public tank or stepwell) was constructed around 1620 by Malik Sandal and named after Taj Sultan, the favourite queen of Ibrahim Adil Shah II. ▲
The large and ornate “mihrab”(prayer niche in the direction of which the congregation prays) of the Jami Masjid of Bijapur added by Mohammed Adil Shah (r. 1627-1656) in 1636. ▲
The mosque of Afzal Khan (d. 1569), a powerful generalissimo of the Adil Shahi Sultanate, located in Afzalpur.
Photo: Melukote_Muralidhar
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A bathing tower in Kumatagi, around 25 kilometres from Bijapur. Resorts such as Kumatagi provided a space for relaxation for the Adil Shahi Sultans. ▲
The tomb of Ain-ul-mulk, a noble at the court of Ibrahim Adil Shah I, in Ainapur on the outskirts of Bijapur.
Photo: Melukote_Muralidhar
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Asar Mahal, originally intended as a hall of public audience but later converted into a building housing a holy relic of Prophet Mohammed. ▲
The cenotaph of Afzal Khan.
Photo: Melukote_Muralidhar
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The Chand baoli. Baolis were the main source of water for the fortified cities of the Deccan. ▲
The unfinished tomb of Ali Adil Shah II (r. 1656-1672) commonly known as Barakaman (twelve arches) in Bijapur. If this structure had been completed, it would have been bigger than Gol Gumbaz.
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