MODULE 3

PROVINCIAL STYLE
INDO-ISLAMIC STYLE

GUJARAT - JAMI MASJID , TEEN DARWAZA, WELL RETREATS OF AHMEDABAD

Provincial style : Gujarat

•Due to the urbanization and commercial development

of Gujarat under the Delhi sultanate, Gujarat became a
prosperous regional sultanate under the rule of the
Muzaffarid dynasty
•Capital was at Ahmadabad
•Mainly during tuglaq dynasty

• Declared independence from Delhi sultanate by

Muzaffar shah in 1407
•Grew to become one of the largest and wealthiest
cities in the world
•The sultans were patrons of a distinctive architecture
that blended Islamic elements with Gujarat's
indigenous Hindu and jain architectural traditions

P R O V I N C I A L S T Y L E : I N D O - I S L A M I C S T Y L E
 J A M I M A S J I D AT A H M E D A B A D

P R O V I N C I A L S T Y L E : I N D O - I S L A M I C S T Y L E
Jami Masjid at Ahmedabad

•Built by Sultan Ahmed Shah in A.D. 1423.

•Considered to be the high water mark of mosque design on western India.
•Most of the architectural effect is concentrated in the sanctuary.
•The flagged courtyard is 255' X 220'

P R O V I N C I A L S T Y L E : I N D O - I S L A M I C S T Y L E
Jami Masjid at Ahmedabad

P R O V I N C I A L S T Y L E : I N D O - I S L A M I C S T Y L E
Jami Masjid at Ahmedabad

P R O V I N C I A L S T Y L E : I N D O - I S L A M I C S T Y L E
 Jami Masjid at Ahmedabad

Sanctuary Facade:
•The architect has combined the two types of sanctuary facades, the screen of arches and the pillared
portico, with the screen in the centre and the portico on the wings.

•The juxtaposition of the two elements creates contrast between the volume and strength of the wall
surface and the depth and airy lightness of the colonnade.
•The large central archway has large moulded buttresses of minarets on either sides, whose upper
parts have now disappeared.

P R O V I N C I A L S T Y L E : I N D O - I S L A M I C S T Y L E
Jami Masjid at Ahmedabad

P R O V I N C I A L S T Y L E : I N D O - I S L A M I C S T Y L E
 Jami Masjid at Ahmedabad

Sanctuary Facade:
•Two smaller archways are placed on either side of the central one.
•Directly visible through the archway in the shadows is the colonnade of the interior with its engrailed
arch springing lightly from its slender columns.

P R O V I N C I A L S T Y L E : I N D O - I S L A M I C S T Y L E
 Jami Masjid at Ahmedabad

Sanctuary Interior:
•The sanctuary is a hypostyle hall 210' X 95'.
•It consists of around 300 slender pillars, closely
set at an average intercolumniation of 5'.

•The columns are symmetrically arranged to form

15 bays across the long axis of the hall, each
surmounted by a dome and connected to the next
through a columned interspace

P R O V I N C I A L S T Y L E : I N D O - I S L A M I C S T Y L E
Jami Masjid at Ahmedabad

•The central compartment of the nave rises up to 3 storeys, the side aisles are 2 storeys and the rest
of the hall is single storeyed.
•The nave is composed of two pillared galleries one above the other.
•Around the exterior of the balconies are pillared verandahs or loggias and in the arcade between
the pillars are stone jalis through which the galleries are illuminated.

P R O V I N C I A L S T Y L E : I N D O - I S L A M I C S T Y L E
 T E E N DA R WA Z A

P R O V I N C I A L S T Y L E : I N D O - I S L A M I C S T Y L E
Teen Darwaza

•A historical gateway on the east of Bhadra fort, Ahmadabad

•Completed in 1415
•The 'king's way' which connects the royal citadel and jami masjid in Ahmadabad constructed
by sultan Ahmed shah.

P R O V I N C I A L S T Y L E : I N D O - I S L A M I C S T Y L E
Teen Darwaza

•It is 37' high, 80' wide and 45' deep.

•It consists of 3 archways, each of the same height, with the two side arches only marginally
narrower than the central archway.

•The contours of the pointed arches are some of the best to be found in India.
•The parapet is skillfully arranged, being relieved by three elegant oriel windows on brackets.

P R O V I N C I A L S T Y L E : I N D O - I S L A M I C S T Y L E
Teen Darwaza

•The roadway in the central opening is

17 feet wide, and that of each side arch
is 13 feet wide
•The buttresses projecting from the piers Lamp niche

are richly carved.

•The height of the arches is twenty-five

feet
•There is Maratha inscription on pillar of
Teen Darwaza about inheritance of
property to female members of family
•A lamp in one of the niche of Teen
Darwaza is burning there for more than
six hundred years

P R O V I N C I A L S T Y L E : I N D O - I S L A M I C S T Y L E
 W E L L R E T R E AT S O F A H M E D A B A D

P R O V I N C I A L S T Y L E : I N D O - I S L A M I C S T Y L E
Well retreats of Ahmadabad

•Stepwells are wells or ponds in which the water is

reached by descending a set of steps to the water
level
•Rudabai ni vaav, (adalaj), bai harir ni vaav
(asarva), amritavarshini vaav (panchkuva),
jethabhai ni vaav (isanpur), etc are some of the
popular stepwells

•Adalaj stepwell or rudabai stepwell is one of the

main stepwell
•Located in the village of adalaj, close to
ahmedabad city
•Built in 1498 in the memory of rana veer singh by
his wife queen Rudadevi

P R O V I N C I A L S T Y L E : I N D O - I S L A M I C S T Y L E
Well retreats of Ahmadabad

TYPICAL SECTION

•Mainly to collect rainwater during seasonal monsoons

•While early stepwells were made of stone, later step wells were made of mortar, stucco, rubble
and laminar stones

P R O V I N C I A L S T Y L E : I N D O - I S L A M I C S T Y L E
Well retreats of Ahmadabad

•Step wells like the one in adalaj were once integral to the semi-arid regions of Gujarat
•They provided water for drinking, washing and bathing.
•These wells were also venues for colourful festivals and sacred rituals
•Also called stepped ponds, built between the 5th and 19th centuries, are common in western
india
•Over 120 such wells are reported in the semi-arid region of Gujarat alone

P R O V I N C I A L S T Y L E : I N D O - I S L A M I C S T Y L E
Adalaj stepwell

•Built in sandstone in the solanki architectural style

•Five stories deep
•Octagonal in plan at the top, built on intricately
carved large number of pillars
•Each floor is spacious enough to provide for people
to congregate

•Dug deep to access groundwater at that level,

accounting for seasonal fluctuations in water level
•The air and light vents in the roofs at various floors
and at the landing level are in the form of large
openings
•From the first story level, three staircases lead to
the bottom water level of the well

P R O V I N C I A L S T Y L E : I N D O - I S L A M I C S T Y L E
Adalaj stepwell

P R O V I N C I A L S T Y L E : I N D O - I S L A M I C S T Y L E
Adalaj stepwell

P R O V I N C I A L S T Y L E : I N D O - I S L A M I C S T Y L E
Adalaj stepwell

•The structural system is typically Indian style with

traditional trabeat with horizontal beams and
lintels
•The top part of the well, is a vertical space open
to the sky
•The temperature inside the well is said to be
about five degrees lower than the outside hot
summer temperatures.

• This encouraged the women who came to fetch

water to spend more time in the cool climes here
•A tribute paid to the rich underground structures,
which are intricately decorated with sculptures, is
that they are said to resemble palaces

P R O V I N C I A L S T Y L E : I N D O - I S L A M I C S T Y L E
Adalaj stepwell

P R O V I N C I A L S T Y L E : I N D O - I S L A M I C S T Y L E