The Hawa Mahal is a palace in the city of Jaipur, India. Built from red and
pink sandstone, it is on the edge of the City Palace, Jaipur, and extends to
the Zenana, or women's chambers.
It was designed by Lal Chand Ustad. The palace is an extended part of a huge
complex. Many people see the Hawa Mahal from the street view and think it is
the front of the palace, but it is the back.
The stone-carved screens, small casements, and arched roofs are some of the
features of this popular tourist spot. The monument also has delicately
modelled hanging cornices.
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Approaching Hawa Mahal Palace.
The structure was built in 1799 by the Maharaja Sawai Pratap Singh,
grandson of Maharaja Sawai Jai Singh, the founder of the city of Jaipur,
India.
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He was so inspired by the unique structure of Khetri Mahal that he
built this grand and historical palace.
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Hawa Mahal Palace.
Its five-floor exterior is akin to a honeycomb with its 953 small
windows called Jharokhas decorated with intricate latticework.
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The original intent of the lattice design was to allow royal ladies to
observe everyday life and festivals celebrated in the street below
without being seen, since they had to obey the strict rules of
"purdah", which forbade them to appear in public without face
coverings.
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This architectural feature also allowed cool air from the Venturi
effect to pass through, thus making the whole area more pleasant
during the high temperatures in summer.
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Palace renovation.
In 2006, renovation works on the Mahal were undertaken, after a gap of
50 years, to give a facelift to the monument at an estimated cost of Rs
4.568 million.
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The corporate sector lent a hand to preserve the historical monuments
of Jaipur and the Unit Trust of India has adopted Hawa Mahal to
maintain it.
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See also
Source
Location
