Heritage Of India

Ajanta Caves
The Buddhist caves at Ajanta contain some of India's most magnificent paintings. The 29 caves were excavated beginning around 200 BC, but they were abandoned in 650 AD in favour of Ellora. Five of the caves were temples and 24 were monasteries, thought to have been occupied by some 200 monks and artisans. The Ajanta Caves were gradually forgotten until their `rediscovery' by a British tiger-hunting party in 1819.



 
Ellora Caves
The foundation was laid by emperor Akbar in 1565 AD, this huge fort is made of red-sandstone. It houses the Pearl mosque and many other noteworthy structures such as the Jahangir Palace or the Khas Mahal, built by Shah Jahan.



 
Taj Mahal
The Mogul emperor Shah Jahan had this immense funerary mosque of white marble built between 1631 and 1648 in memory of his favorite wife.



 
Agra Fort
The foundation was laid by emperor Akbar in 1565 AD, this huge fort is made of red-sandstone. It houses the Pearl mosque and many other noteworthy structures such as the Jahangir Palace or the Khas Mahal, built by Shah Jahan.


 
Sun Temple, Konarak
Built in the 13th century, this temple was dedicated to the Sun God and was originally designed in the form of his chariot.


 
Group of Monuments at Mahabalipuram
The great Pallava rulers built these monuments in the period 630-800 AD.


Kaziranga National Park
Located in Assam, this is one of the last areas in northern India undisturbed by man. The largest population of one-horned rhinoceroses in the world inhabits Kaziranga Park


 
Fatehpur Sikri
The "City of Victory" was Akbar's capital for approximately 12 years. Akbar selected Sikri as the seat of his government believing it to be auspicious for himself. He experimented both with architecture and art and built a city expressing his ideals and vision. The finest monuments within this area are the Diwan-i-Am, Diwan-i-Khas, Panch House, Panch Mahal, Buland Darwaza and the tomb of Saint Shaikh Salim Chisti, and the Jama Masjid (one of the largest mosques in India



 
Elephanta Caves
On an island in the Oman Sea near Bombay are four rock-cut temples on Elephanta Island. Thought to have been carved out between 450 and 750 AD, they survived Portuguese vandalism and remain equal in size, beauty and power to the caves at Ajanta and Ellora. The main cave contains large sculpted panels relating to Siva, including his marriage to Parvati, the killing of Andhakasura, and the six-metre-high triple-headed Trimurti - in which Siva embodies the roles of creator, preserver and destroyer.


 
Qutab Minar and associated monuments, Delhi
Qutab Minar is a 73-meter-high victory tower, built in 1193 by Qutab-ud-din immediately after the defeat of Delhi's last Hindu kingdom. It symbolises Islamic rule of the city. The tower tapers from 15 meters in diameter at the base to 2.5 meters at the top. The stairs inside the tower coil very steeply and the inside of the tower has been closed to visitors since a stampede during a school trip in 1979 resulted in a number of deaths.


 
Darjeeling Himalayan Railway



 
Red Fort (Lal Quila, Lal Qila)
The Red Fort was the palace for Shah Jahan's new capital, Shahjahanabad, the seventh Muslim city in the Delhi site when he moved his capital from Agra in the 17th century.