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in his invafion of Hindoftan.

Toward the

centre of the place is a building of an ancient ftyle, flanked with round pillars, and crowned with turrets of three ftories. At the top of this building, on an ample terrace of ftone, about forty feet in height, is a column of brown granite. On this column is an infcription, in the ancient character beforementioned, as discernible on the pillar in the fort of Alla habad, and compofed of the fame materials. This pillar is called, by the natives, Feroze Cotelah, the ftaff of Feroze, and from the construction of the building on which it is placed, I fhould conjecture it has been a monument of Hindoo grandeur, prior to the irruptions of the Muffulmans. Adjoining to the cotelah, is a very large building differing in the style of its architecture from thofe mofques built subsequent to the establishment of the Moguls. This mofque is fquare, has four extensive aisles or cloisters, the roofs of which are stone, and fupported by two hundred and fifty columns. of stone, about fixteen feet high. The length of the cloifters gives a grand appearance to the building. An octangular dome, of stone and brick work, about twenty-five feet high,

rifes from the centre of the mofque. In the western cloister is a kibla, or niche, in the wall, in the direction of Mecca. Of this mofque the emperor Timoor took a model, and carrying it with him on his return to Samarcand his capital, accompanied at the fame time by artificers and workmen of every defcription, he fhortly after his arrival built a magnificent temple.

In the northern aisle of this mofque, at the upper end, is a fmall window, from which was thrown the body of the late emperor the fecond Allumgeer, who had been affaffinated at the inftigation of his vizier Gaziodeen Khan. The affaffins were two Mahomedan devotees, whom he had vifited under the pretext of their working miracles. The body of this unfortunate prince, unburied, for two days lay on the fands of the Jumna. At laft it was taken up by permiffion of Gaziodeen, and interred in the fepulchre of Humaioon. To me it appears that the ftyle of building in this mofque, refers to a period in the architecture of Hindoftan prior to the Mogul conquefts. The mofque at Paniput, erected by the emperor Baber, may be

looked upon as the model of all the fucceeding Mogul buildings.

COOTTUB MINÂR.

Nine miles fouth of Delhi is the celebrated column, defignated Coottub Minar, fituated near, and deriving that name from the tomb of Khaja Cuttubadeen. His difciple, Shemfadeen, of the family of Ghazi, erected this column, Anno Hejirah 770. Shemfadeen defigned that this pillar and another fimilar one should have marked the entrance of a magnificent mofque. It was begun upon the ruins of a Hindoo temple. Having finished this pillar, and parts of the buildings adjacent, Shemfadeen's premature death prevented the completion of a work which would have been one of the moft magnificent in the world. The whole was intended as a nonument to perpetuate to pofterity the triumph of Mahomedan faith over that of Brimha. The column has a moft ftupendous appearance. Conceive a fhaft of fixty feet diameter, compofed partly of red ftone, partly of white marble,

rifing to the height of two hundred and fifty feet.

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Afcending this pillar, relief is afforded by four projecting galleries of red stone. Tapering toward the fummit, it was crowned with an octagon pavilion. I imagine this pavilion would have contained at least, a dozen perfons. Each of the galleries are moft richly tho' differently ornamented. The column is relieved, and rendered strikingly bold, by convex and angular projections.

Within this grand tower, is a circular flaircafe of three hundred and eight fteps of red stone. There are, at intervals, landing places which communicate with windows. From the octagon, on the fummit, the view is ftrikingly grand. Looking from fuch a height, the mind is impreffed with fenfations of admiration and of awe. Infcriptions in feveral parts, twelve inches in breadth, embrace the column. These contain verses from the Koran, in the Arabick character. The galleries are fupported by fculptured ornaments,

of which the richness is greatly heightened by profufion of frieze work.

This defcription of the Coottub Minar, with the engraving* fhewing the veftiges of the ruins which furround it, will I doubt not incline the reader to think with me that they are objects to a traveller, perhaps, equally interefting as any in the world; and through the east are not to be found more impressive memorials of its ingenuity, its magnificence, and its grandeur.

* For this I am indebted to the kindness of Lieutenant Macdougal, of the engineers, from whose sketch, on the spot, it has been engraved.

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