The Cambridge History of India, Vol. III: Turks and Afghans v3.c30.26

v3.c30.26

Between the death of Iltutmish in 1236 and the accession of ‘Alā-ud-dīn Khaljī the story of architecture at Delhi is all but a blank. The only monument of note that throws light on its progress in the interval is the tomb of Balban¹ (1266–86) which stands in the south-east quarter of the *Qal‘a-i-Rāi Pithaura*. It is a simple structure comprising a square domed chamber, 38 inches across, with an arched entrance in each of its sides and a smaller chamber to the east and west, in one of which was the grave of Khān Shahīd, the son of the Emperor, who fell in battle against the Mongols (1285–86). Unfortunately, every trace of decoration has perished from the tomb and what is left of it is a mere shell, but the presence of arches built on true scientific principles is an innovation that deserves notice. In every building of Qutb-ud-dīn and Iltutmish that has been described, the arches were constructed not with voussoirs, as they ordinarily are, but in corbelled horizontal courses, the fact being that, in their ignorance of arch construction, the Hindu craftsmen engaged on these structures had to resort to their own traditional methods of dome building. The appearance, then, of the true arch in the tomb of Balban marks a definite advance in construction and at the same time is symptomatic of a general reaction against Hindu influences. This reaction had already made itself felt during the reign of Iltutmish and, though we have no means of following it stage by stage, it is evident that it must have gathered considerable strength in the half century succeeding his death. For by the time the Khaljīs came upon the scene Muslim building traditions had already become firmly established on Indian soil, with the result that not only had methods of construction been revolutionised but ornament had come to be treated more as an integral factor and less as a quasi-independent accessory of architecture.