History of Chemistry in Ancient and Medieval India, Incorporating the History of Hindu Chemistry by Acharya Prafulla Chandra Ray c37.19

c37.19

Of these, the iron pillar at Dhar, the ancient capital of Malava, deserves our first and foremost attention. A full account of this pillar has been given by H. Cousens in the *Annual Report of the Archæological Survey of India*, 1902-03 (pp. 205-212). The Dhar Pillar (Fig. 33) is much larger than the famous Delhi Pillar, of which we have already discussed before. This pillar had a length 43′-8″ as against 23′-8″ of the Delhi Pillar. It is now lying broken in 3 pieces at different places. The first and the largest piece, 24′-3″ in length and square in cross section, lies half-buried near the northern gate of the 'Lat Masjid' which was built near the pillar itself by Sultan Dilwar Khan in 1405 A D. The second piece, 11′-7″ in length, now lies in the courtyard of the Ananda High School; its shape is not uniform, 8′-6″ being square and 3′-1″ octagonal. The third piece lies embedded in the masonry foundations of the public garden named Lalbag. It has a length of 7′-6″ and is rectangular in cross section. The average width is 10 25- inches Several small holes surround the pillar, but they are not uniformly distributed The weight of the pillar is estimated to be seven tons, one ton greater than that of the Delhi Pillar. It is believed to have been constructed in the 12th century A.D. as a victory pillar. Like the Delhi Pillar, this is also evidently made of wrought iron and in a similar manner. Cousens is of opinion that the holes or pits in the body of the pillar were made as the result of inserting some instruments like crowbars, while the pillar was being forged and welded.