Another stop at our bus tour, and another UNESCO Heritage Site, this time in the south of New Delhi. The Qutab Minar (also spelled as Qutb or Qutub Minar), meaning ‘victory tower’ and part of the bigger, Qutb complex.
The minaret was built over the ruins of the Lal Kot, the citadel of Dhillika and the complex and the tower both were extended and completed over multiple centuries.
The construction started in 1193 by Qutab-ud-din Aibak, the first Muslim ruler, immediately after the defeat of Delhi’s last Hindu kingdom.
You can spot the minaret from a big distance, since the height is almost 73 meters. This makes it the tallest tower built in bricks in the world. Inside there’s a spiral staircase of 379 steps.
The surface of the tower is decorated with inscriptions and geometric patterns. In the walls of the tower quotations from the Holy Quran are inscribed.
Besides the height and decorations, it’s moreover the 5 distinct storeys, constructed from different materials, that make the tower stand out extra:
Because of limited time, we only saw the tower from a distance. If you do have the time, you can climb the tower and visit the monuments of the Qutb complex around it.
For example the first mosque in India, the Quwwat-ul-Islam Mosque, built in 1198 by the Delhi Sultans.
On the website of Delhi Tourism we read that there’s this provocative inscription over the eastern gate, informing that the mosque was built with material obtained from demolishing ’27 Hindu temples’.
(source: https://delhitourism.gov.in)
Qutab Minar, Lado Sarai, New Delhi, Delhi, India
Breuhuys 
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