Dating from the 15th century, this is the most famous building in Mandu. Built on a narrow strip of land between Munja and Kapoor tanks, with an upper terrace like a ship’s bridge (use your imagination), it’s far longer (120m) than it is wide (15m). The pleasure-loving sultan Ghiyas-ud-din Khilji, who is said to have had a harem of 15,000 maidens, constructed its lookouts, scalloped arches, airy rooms and beautiful pleasure pools.
Lonely Planet's must-see attractions
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The Royal Enclave is the largest group of monuments, with several beautiful buildings from the 15th- and 16th-century Ghuri and Khilji dynasties set near…
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17.83 MILES
Down to the right of the ramp descending towards the ghats are the chhatris (cenotaphs) of Ahilyabai and Vithoji Rao, a Holkar prince who was trampled to…
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Running along the banks of the holy Narmada River and shadowed by the daunting walls of the fort, the ghats are the life and spiritual soul of the town…
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A pleasant 4km cycle south of Mandu village brings you to the Rewa Kund tank and the two monuments of the Rewa Kund Group, Baz Bahadur's Palace and…
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This group, straddling the main road in the centre of the village, comprises three grand edifices constructed in the 15th-century by the Ghuri and Khilji…
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Standing at the top of an escarpment falling 366m to the plains, Rupmati’s Pavilion has a delicacy of design and beauty of location unmatched by Mandu's…
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Entered by a flight of steps leading to a 17m-high domed porch, this disused red-stone mosque dominates Mandu village centre. Hoshang Shah begun its…
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Reputed to be India’s oldest marble mausoleum, this imposing tomb is crowned with a tiny crescent thought to have been imported from Persia or Mesopotamia…
Nearby Madhya Pradesh & Chhattisgarh attractions
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These former stables now house a small Archaeological Museum with artefacts found at Mandu, including 11th- and 12th-century sculptures and 15th-century…
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The Royal Enclave is the largest group of monuments, with several beautiful buildings from the 15th- and 16th-century Ghuri and Khilji dynasties set near…
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Just north of Ghiyas’ stately pleasure dome is the Hindola Mahal, so-called because the slope of its walls sort of resembles that of the ropes of a swing…
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So-called because its water supposedly smelled as sweet as the champak flower, the Champa Baodi is a circular step-well with vaulted side-niches. It was…
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This palace on an island-like spit of land at the corner of Munja Tank is thought to have been a private retreat for noble couples. It has several step…
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This was the dwelling of a powerful merchant chieftain whose 'shop', on the main road outside the Royal Enclave, is even more impressive.
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Stars and octagons perforate the domed roofs of this tiny bathhouse, which had hot and cold water and a hypocaust (underfloor-heated) sauna.
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Built by Dilawar Khan in 1405, this is Mandu’s earliest Islamic building. It was built mainly with material from earlier Hindu temples – particularly…