History of Indian and Eastern Architecture v2.c26.10

v2.c26.10

With the Northern hordes the case was widely different; they were of Turanian blood, more or less pure, and wherever they went their mosques, and especially their tombs, remain to mark their presence, and to convey an idea of their splendour. In order to understand what follows, it is necessary to bear in mind that the Semitic conquest, from Mecca as a centre, extended from the mouths of the Guadalquivir to those of the Indus, and left but little worthy of remark in architecture. The Turanian conquest, from Bukhârâ and Balkh as centres, extended from Constantinople to Katak, and covered the whole intervening space with monuments of every class. Those of the west and centre have been described in speaking of Turkey and Persia;² the Eastern branch remains to be discussed, and its monuments are those of which this work purports to be a description.