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Medieval And Colonial Capital Cities Of DelhiJUSTIFICATION FOR INSCRIPTIONhand it was the product of imperatives that ranged from expressions of Mughal imperial grandeur to the needsand aspirations of the population of a prosperous and vibrant trade centre. This aspect of the city’s development– the fact that it was not completely dependant on central planning and imperial control, was responsible for itssurvival beyond the decline of the Mughal empire. It has also given it features – such as the mixed scatter ofplaces of worship, that take it far beyond stereotypes of the ‘Islamic city’.Architecture of colonial New DelhiThe architectural style of the colonial capital of New Delhi is an excellent example of a confident and eclectic styleof architecture that developed during the late nineteenth century fusing Indian and European features.Sir Edwin Lutyens, who was responsible for the design of the iconic buildings in the city, was influenced by the‘grand manner’ in a lot of his earlier work. In 1896, he sketched an architectural fantasy, dominated by a highdome, which is similar to the sketch design for the Viceroy’s House, made by him almost 20 years later.The sense of civic design prevalent in England in the late 17th century, influenced Sir E Lutyens’ designs for NewDelhi. In the east of central London – an axial complex worked upon by Sir Christopher Wren, John Webb andNicholas Hawksmoor framed a vista towards the Queen’s House, designed by Inigo Jones in the 1630s. As a civicensemble this was a key influence.Classical Architecture has greatly influenced Lutyens work in Delhi and by his own admission, his idols in thisrespect were Palladio and Wren. Palladian details are visible in the design language of the Viceroy’s house.Lutyen’s appreciation for Italian Renaissance Civic Design and Roman ruins at first hand, including the wellpreservedPantheon, is obviously what influenced the Durbar Hall in Viceroy’s House.The architecture of Colonial New Delhi undoubtedly contained references to, and direct borrowings from, thearchitecture of the European Renaissance and the Classical canon. This eclecticism of the first two decades of thetwentieth century was not an indiscriminate combination of motifs, but a carefully wrought combination ofcherished mainstream ideals. Therefore, it is worthwhile pursuing the individual forms back to their presumedsources.European Classical elementso The obelisk made its appearance in the architecture of Lutyens during his search for appropriate symbolicforms for Hyderabad House and Baroda house. Of ancient Egyptian origin, the obelisk had already madeits entry into the imperial formal repertoire of ancient Rome as both a symbol of power and of the eternallife of the kings. The great number of obelisks, some genuine and some imitations, in the Europeanarchitecture of the Renaissance and classical eras was, for Lutyens, a reason to adopt this symbolpreviously not included in Viceroy’s House. In the case of Hyderabad House, obelisks adorn all theimportant corners of the building. In Baroda House obelisks flank the fireplaces.o Lutyens chose urns as adornment for the architecture of Baroda House for reasons no longerascertainable today. They are not to be confused with the Neo‐Classical vases already represented inPiranesi’s work, which Lutyens again produced on the roofs of Hyderabad House for festive flowerarrangements.o The lion, one of the heraldic animals of the British Royal Family, found its entry into the architecture ofImperial Delhi via Piranesi’s eighteenth century depiction of an ancient gymnasium. Edwin Lutyens, likethe Royal Family in London and the English administration in India, was deeply convinced of the humanisttask of his country towards its Indian subjects. He therefore adopted Piranesi’s allegory of strength andwisdom for the approach to Viceroy’s Court.o Round arches modelled after those of ancient Rome, the Renaissance, and later Classicism are objectsthat represent the political and cultural home of Imperial Delhi, and not just the palace of the BritishViceroy.31‐07‐2012 INTACH, Delhi Chapter 4
Medieval And Colonial Capital Cities Of DelhiJUSTIFICATION FOR INSCRIPTIONIndian symbolic Forms: In the architecture of the buildings in the colonial capital of New Delhi, Europeansymbolic forms appear in equal measure alongside Indian elements and motifs that drew inspiration fromBuddhist religious complexes and Mughal buildings. At one level the architecture of the buildings in colonial NewDelhi are completely indebted to Palladio and the architectural elements of the Renaissance. On the other handSir Edward Lutyens used forms and symbols of the Indian subcontinent that are both Hindu and Islamic in origin.oooElephants: Edwin Lutyens placed elephants in various locations throughout Viceroy’s House. For the mostpart they serve to guard the entrances. Their significance extends far beyond their present‐day use as aworking animal, and Lutyens understood their significance in Indian mythology. As early as in Mohenjo‐Daro, elephants had been found on seals, appearing time and time again as working animals, as well asmythical creatures in Indian mythology. They are termed ‘the king’s clouds’ and they guarantee rain forhis people in the period of monsoon.” Thus, the stone elephants that Lutyens provided for the entrancesto Viceroy’s House presumably also held a double meaning for him. First, as relatives of the clouds, theyensured the fertility of the land, and secondly as caryatids of the universe they supported the rulingBritish Empire. In Imperial Delhi, elephants not only guard the palace, as symbols of strength but they arealso fixtures in all great processions in India whether religious or political. Even the military parade onRepublic Day, held annually on January 26, does not dispense with these important symbolic beasts.Naga (snake): Another mythical creature from Hindu mythology was given a particularly prominent placein the architecture of imperial British rule in India: In the South Court of Viceroy’s House, two Naga snakesset on high octagonal pillars spout water from a large basin. They are: “serpent kings personifying anddirecting terrestrial waters of the lakes and ponds, rivers and oceans. Vishnu’s shoulders and head aresurrounded by nine serpent heads with expanded hoods, he crouches on the mighty coils. Nagas inhabitsubaquatic paradises, dwelling at the bottoms of rivers, lakes and seas, in resplendent palaces studdedwith gems and pearls.” Unlike its place in western mythology, the snake as Naga is not the least bitthreatening, nor is it any adversary of goodness. As a divine guardian over the life‐giving element of water,it is more a symbol of incomparable and unquestioned power. Therefore, it is not depicted as slitheringalong the ground, as in western representations. Rather, standing upright, it dispenses precious water forthe fountains and waterways of the palace and its Mughal Garden.Lotus flower The symbol of the lotus flower also appears in Viceroy’s House. Once at the top of the Jaipurcolumn, where a star grows out of the flower, and again in the Mughal Garden where four symmetricallyarranged fountains each display a hexagonally shaped lotus flower. Lakshmi‐Shri or Padma is the Lotusgoddess and the consort of Vishnu. She represents Vishnu’s creative energy. Alongside the originalconnection of the goddess Lakshmi with Vishnu, the lotus flower also appeared later in Hinduism inassociation with Brahma as “the anthropomorphic symbol of Brahman, the essence of the universe, thecosmic, anonymous Self.” (Ibid, P. 180). The Buddha also is almost always depicted sitting on a lotusflower since the third century, and the lotus position has increasingly become a symbol of divine origin aswell as enlightenment.Indian architectural featureso Dome of the Durbar Hall, Viceroy’s House Stupa: Lutyens ascribed a especially prominent role to theBuddhist stupa at Sanchi, dating from the third century B.C.as an architectural form together with thestone railing that usually surrounds it. He chose the form of the fenced‐in burial mound (also a Buddhistreliquary and symbol of the axis mundi) for the fashioning of the dome above the Durbar Hall. It waspresumably the rare, well‐preserved stupa that was model for the hall. The shape of its stone surround(vedika) was not only adopted as the tambour for the dome, but also appeared again as the monumentalboundary for Prince Edward Place (now Great Place) at the foot of Raisina Hill.o Pillars of the portico of Viceroy’s House, Lutyens did not refer back to the three Neo‐Classical orders(Doric, Ionic, and Corinthian)but designed instead, an individual “Delhi Order”, as Latrobe had alreadydone for Washington, D.C. in the United States. Lutyens chose the Hindu motif of the temple bell for thecapital of the pillars of the portico of the Viceroy’s house. It is again a kind of synthesis – and one of theusual acanthus leaf type, but strained and restrained to a much greater abstraction while it is, at the sametime, touched with an Indian note in its angle bells.31‐07‐2012 INTACH, Delhi Chapter 5
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