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The Diwan-e-Khas or
the "Hall of Private Audience", the Sheesh Mahal (mirror palace) or Jai
Mandir, and the Sukh Niwas where a cool climate is artificially created
by winds that blow over the water cascade within the palace.
Hence, the Amer Fort is also popularly known as the Amer Palace. The palace was
lived in by the Rajput Maharajas and their families. At the entrance to
the palace near the fort’s Ganesh Gate, there is also a temple dedicated
to Sila Devi, a goddess of the Chaitanya cult which was given to Raja
Man Singh when he had defeated the Raja of Jessore, Bengal in 1604. (Jessore
is now in Bangladesh).
This fort, along with Jaigarh Fort, located immediately above on the
Cheel ka Teela (Hill of Eagles) of the same Aravalli range of hills, is
considered as one complex, as the two are well connected by a
subterranean passage. This passage was meant as an escape route in times
of war for the royal family members and others in the Amer Fort to shift
to the more redoubtable Jaigarh Fort.
Annual tourist visitation to the Amer Palace in Amer town was reported
by the Superintendent of Department of Archaeology and Museums to the
Amer Palace as 5000 visitors a day, and 1.4 million visitors were
reported during 2007.
Etymology
Amber or Amer Fort's name is derived from Amba, the Mother Goddess.
Geography
Amer Fort is situated on a forested hill premonitory, above the Maota
Lake near Amer village, about 11 kilometres (6.8 mi) from Jaipur city,
the Capital of Rajasthan. It currently sits near the National Highway,
which goes to Delhi. A narrow jeepable road leads up to the entrance
gate, known as the Suraj Pol or the Sun Gate, of the fort. Elephant
rides are also taken through narrow passage through the Sun Gate.
History
Amer was known in the medieval period as Dhundar (meaning attributed to
a sacrificial mount in the western frontiers) and ruled by the Kachwahas
from the 11th century onwards – between 1037 and 1727 AD, till the
capital was moved from Amer to Jaipur.
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The history of Amer is indelibly
linked to these rulers as they founded their empire at Amer.
Earlier to the Kachwahas, Amer was a small place built by Meenas in the
town they consecrated to Amba, the Mother Goddess, whom they knew as `Gatta
Rani' or `Queen of the Pass'. The Amer Fort, as it stands now, was built
over the remnants of this earlier structure during the reign of Raja Man
Singh, the Kacchwaha King of Amber. The structure was fully expanded by
his descendant, Jai Singh I. Even later, Amer Fort underwent
improvements and additions by successive rulers over the next 150 years,
until the Kachwahas shifted their capital to Jaipur during the time of
Sawai Jai Singh II, in 1727.
Many of the ancient structures of the medieval period of the Meenas have
been either destroyed or replaced. |
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However, the 16th century impressive
edifice of the Amer Fort and the palace complex within it built by the
Rajput Maharajas are very well preserved.
Layout
The fort is divided into four main sections each with its own entry gate
and courtyard.
Main entry is through the Suraj Pole (Sun Gate) which leads to Jaleb
Chowk, which is the first main courtyard. This was the place where
armies would hold victory parades with their war bounty on their return
from battles, which were also witnessed by the Royal family women folk
through the latticed windows. This gate was built exclusively and was
provided with guards as it was the main entry into the palace. It faced
the eastern direction towards the rising Sun and hence the name. Royal
cavalcades and dignitaries entered the palace through this gate.
Jaleb Chowk is an Arabic usage, which means a place for soldiers to
assemble. This is one of the four courtyards of the Amer Palace, which
was built during Sawai Jai Singh’s reign (1693 - 1743 AD). The Maharaja's
personal bodyguards held parades here under the command of the army
commander or Fauj Bakshi. The Maharaja used to inspect the Guards
contingent. At this location, the horse stables were also located where
its upper level rooms were occupied by the guards.
First Courtyard
An impressive stairway from the Jaleb Chowk leads into the main palace
grounds. Here, at the entrance itself to the right of the stairway steps
is the Sila Devi temple where the Rajput Maharajas offered worship,
starting with Maharaja Mansingh in the 16th century till the 1980s, when
the animal sacrifice ritual (sacrifice of a buffalo) practiced by the
royalty was stopped.
Ganesh Pol or the Ganesh Gate, named after the Hindu god Lord Ganesh who
removes all obstacles in life, is the entry into the private palaces of
the Maharajas. It is a three level structure which has many frescoes and
was also built at the orders of the Mirza Raja Jai Singh (1621 - 1627)
and leads to the private quarters of the royal family. Above this gate
is the Suhag Mandir where ladies of the royal family used to watch
through the latticed windows functions held in the Diwan-i-Am.
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On the right side of the Jaleb Chowk there is a small but an elegant
temple called the Sila Devi (an incarnation of Kali or Durga) temple.
The entrance to the temple is through silver sheet covered double leaf
gate with raised relief. The main deity inside the sanctum is flanked by
two lions made in silver. The legend attributed to the installation of
this deity is that Maharaja Man Singh sought blessings of Kali for
victory in the battle against the Raja of Jessore in Bengal. The goddess
instructed the Raja, in a dream, to retrieve her image from the sea bed
and install and worship it. The Raja, after he won the battle of Bengal
in 1604, retrieved the idol from the sea and installed it in the temple
and called it as Sila Devi as it was carved out of one single piece of a
stone slab. At the entrance to the temple, there is also a carving of
Lord Ganesha, which is made out of a single piece of coral stone. |
Another version of the Sila Devi installation is that Raja Man Singh,
after defeating the Raja of Jessore, received a gift of a black stone
slab which was credited with link to the Mahabharata epic story in which
Kansa had killed older siblings of Lord Krishna on this stone. In
exchange for this gift Man Singh returned the kingdom he had won to the
Raja of Bengal. This stone was then used to carve the image of Durga
Mahishasuramardini who had slain the demon king Mahishasura, and
installed it in the fort temple as Sila Devi. The Sila Devi was
worshiped from then onwards as the lineage deity of the Rajput family of
Jaipur. However, their family deity continued to be Jamva Mata of
Ramgarh.
Another practice that is associated with this temple is the religious
rites of animal sacrifice during the festival days of Navrathri (Nine
days festival celebrated twice in a year). The practice was to sacrifice
a buffalo and also goats on the eighth day of the festival in front of
the temple, which would be done in the presence of the royal family,
watched by a large gathering of devotees. This practice was banned under
law from 1975, where after the sacrifice is being held within the palace
grounds in Jaipur, strictly as a private event with only the close kin
of the royal family watching the event. However, the practice of animal
sacrifice has been totally stopped at the temple premises and offerings
made to the goddess are only of the vegetarian type.
Second Courtyard
The second courtyard, up the main stairway of the first level courtyard,
houses the Diwan-i-Am or the Public Audience Hall. Built with double row
of columns, the Diwan-i-Aam is a raised platform with 27 colonnades,
each of which is mounted with elephant shaped capital with galleries
above it. As the name suggests, the Raja held audience here to hear and
receive petitions from the public.
Third Courtyard
The third courtyard is where the private quarters of the Maharaja, his
family and attendants were built. This courtyard is entered through the
Ganesh Pol or Ganesh Gate, which is embellished with mosaics and
sculptures. The courtyard has two buildings, one opposite to the other,
separated by a garden laid in the fashion of the Mughal Gardens. The
building to the left of the entrance gate is called the Jai Mandir,
which is exquisitely beautified with glass inlaid panels and
multi-mirrored ceilings. The mirrors are of convex shape and designed
with coloured foil and paint which would glitter bright under candle
nights at the time it was in use. Also known as Sheesh Mahal (mirror
palace), the mirror mosaics and coloured glasses were "glittering jewel
box in flickering candle light". However, most of this work was allowed
to deteriorate during the period 1970–80 but has since then been
subjected to a process of restoration and renovation. Carved marble
relief panels are placed on walls around the hall. The hall provides
enchanting vistas of the Maota Lake.
The other building seen in the courtyard is opposite to the Jai Mandir
and is known as the Sukh Niwas or Sukh Mahal (Hall of Pleasure). This
hall is approached through a sandalwood door with marble inlay work with
perforations. A piped water supply flows through an open channel that
runs through this edifice keeping the environs cool, as in an air
conditioned environment. The water from this channel was led into the
garden.
Magic Flower
A particular attraction here is the “magic flower” fresco carved in
marble at the base of one of the pillars around the mirror palace which
is identified by two hovering butterflies depiction; the flower has
seven unique designs of fish tail, a lotus, a hooded cobra, an elephant
trunk, a lion’s tail, a cob of corn and a scorpion, each is viewed by a
particular way of partial hiding of the panel with hands.
Palace of Man Singh I
South of this courtyard lies the Palace of Man Singh I, which is the
oldest part of the palace fort. The palace took 25 years to build and
was completed in 1599 during the reign of Raja Man Singh I (1589 -
1614). It is the main palace. In the central courtyard of the palace is
the pillared baradari or pavilion; frescoes and coloured tiles decorate
the ground and upper floor rooms in this palace. This pavilion (which
used to be curtained for privacy) was used as the meeting venue by the
maharanis (queens of the royal family). All sides of this pavilion are
connected to several small rooms with open balconies. The exit from this
palace leads to the Amer village, a heritage town with many temples,
palatial houses and mosques.
Garden
The garden, located between the Jai Mandir on the east and the Sukh
Niwas on the west, both built on high platforms in the third courtyard,
was built by Mirza Raja Jai Singh (1623 - 68). It is patterned on the
lines of the Chahar Bagh or Mughal Garden. It is in sunken bed, shaped
in a hexagonal design. It is laid out with narrow channels lined with
marble around a star shape pool with a fountain at the centre. Water for
the garden is led from the Sukh Niwas cascades of water channel and also
from the cascade channels called the "chini khana niches" that originate
from terrace of the Jai Mandir.
Tripolia Gate
Tripolia gate means three gates. It is an access to the palace from the
west. It opens in three directions, one to the Jaleb Chowk, another to
the Man Singh Palace and the third one to the Zenana Deorhi on the
south.
Lion Gate
The Lion gate, the premier gate, was once a guarded gate, leads in to
the private quarters in the palace premises and is titled 'Lion Gate'
indicative of strength. It was built during the reign of Sawai Jai Singh
(1699 - 1743 AD). It is covered with frescoes and its alignment is
zigzag, probably made so from security considerations to attack
intruders.
Fourth Courtyard
The fourth courtyard is where the Zenana (Royal family women, including
concubines or mistresses) lived. This courtyard has many living rooms
where the queens resided and who were visited by the king at his choice
without being found out as to which queen he was visiting, as all the
rooms open into a common corridor.
The queen mothers and the Raja’s consorts lived in this part of the
palace in Zanani Deorhi, which also housed their female attendants. The
queen mothers took deep interest in building temples in Amer town. Jas
Mandir, a hall of private audience with floral glass inlays and
alabaster relief work is also located in this courtyard.
Conservation
The Amer town itself, which is an integral and inevitable entry point to
the Amer Palace is now a heritage town with its economy dependent on the
large influx of tourists (4000 to 5000 a day during peak tourist
season).
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This town is spread over an area of 4 square kilometres (1.5 sq
mi) and has 18 temples, 3 Jain mandirs and three mosques. It has been
listed by the World Monument Fund (WMF) as one of the 100 endangered
sites in the world; funds for conservation are provided by the Roberts
Willson Challenge Grant. As of 2005, some 87 elephants lived within the
fort grounds, but several were said to be suffering from malnutrition.
Conservation works have been undertaken at the Amer Palace grounds at a
cost of Rs 40 crores (US$8.88 million) by the Amer Development and
Management Authority (ADMA). However, these renovation works have been a
subject of intense debate and criticism with respect to their
suitability to maintain and retain the historicity and architectural
features of the ancient structures. Another issue which has been raised
is the commercialization of the place. |
A film unit shooting for a film at the Amer Fort damaged a 500-year-old
canopy, demolished the old limestone roof of Chand Mahal, drilled holes
to fix sets and spread large quantities of sand in Jaleb Chowk in utter
disregard and violation of the Rajasthan Monuments, Archaeological Sites
and Antique Act (1961).
The Jaipur Bench of the Rajasthan High Court intervened and stopped the
film shooting with the observation that "Unfortunately, not only the
public but especially the concerned (sic) authorities have become blind,
deaf and dumb by the glitter of money. Such historical protected
monuments have become a source of income.
Access
By Air
The nearest airport is Jaipur International Airport (IATA: JAI, ICAO: VIJP),
located in the
southern suburb of Sanganer, 13 km (8.1 mi) from Jaipur, the capital
of the Indian state of Rajasthan.
Delhi and Mumbai are the two main gateway cities to Rajasthan from
international destinations. There are regular flights connecting Delhi
and Mumbai to Jaipur and Jodhpur in Rajasthan and also important
destinations like Bengaluru, Hyderabad and Chennai operated by domestic
carriers.
By Train / Rail
Daily super fast train connects Mumbai to Jaipur, Jodhpur, Bikaner and
Kota. Delhi (the nearest rail head to Jaipur) is also directly connected
to Sawai Madhopur, Bharatpur, Kota, Udaipur, Bikaner, Jodhpur and
Jaisalmer. Shatabdi train operates from New Delhi station to Ajmer via
Jaipur. Double decker train is also available between Jaipur and Delhi.
By Road
Bus: The Interstate Bus Terminal (ISBT) at Kashmiri Gate, New Delhi has
almost a twenty – four hour bus service to Jaipur. Air-conditioned and
Volvo bus service of state owned Rajasthan state Roadways Transport
Corporation (RSRTC) to Jaipur is operational from the premises of
Bikaner House, Pandara Road © 011-23383469, journey time about 5 hours.
Delhi is connected to Jaipur via Darukhera, Behror, Kotputli and
Shahpura on NH 8. Jaipur is further linked to Mumbai via Ajmer, Udaipur,
Ahmedabad and Vadodara on NH 8. RSRTC also connects major destinations
in Rajasthan through express and deluxe buses from Jaipur.
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