Steeped in layers of cultural, religious, and political significance, Mehrauli, set amidst the lush greenery of South Delhi, offers fabulous photops. As one of the oldest of all the cities that makes today’s Delhi, Mehrauli usually tends to slip out of visitor’s itinerary, as the other newer chapters remain fresh in their minds while making them more vivid when they travel through the city along the monuments dotted roads. The Mehrauli Archaeological Park covers 100 acres of green land abutting the UNESCO-acclaimed World Heritage Site of the Qutb Minar and its clutch of heritage structures. Scattered across the archaeological park are reminders from every era of Delhi’s history—from the pre-Islamic to the late Mughal and the colonial period. The lush environs of the park act as a buffer between the settlement at Mehrauli village and the Qutb complex
Discovering the rich heritage and history of probably the oldest continuously inhabited area in DelhiUnspooling the narratives of one of the oldest cities in the worldSoaking in the atmospherics of the mélange of Mehrauli’s past and present
The walk which takes you past the lanes and bylanes of the Mehrauli village settlement, with its rich atmospherics, will open up many chapters of past Delhis. Their remnants lie scattered around the neighbourhood, intrinsically blending with the newer facades of the area while still standing apart as sentinels of memory from another era. From the bastion of Lal Kot of the Tomar Rajputs to Qila Rai Pithora of the Chauhan rulers, from Balban's tomb (ca 1287 CE),to the stepwells of Rajon Ki Baoli and Gandhak ki Baoli, Mehrauli has much to please the camera lens. Marvel at this grand legacy of centuries of architectural skills as you wander from one historic spot to the next. The founder of the Delhi Sultanate, Qutubuddin Aibak in the 12th century made Mehrauli the seat of Sultanate power. You may well chance upon some of the tombs and mosques built here in the early Sultanate period .The Qutb Minar, the most significant building from the early Sultanate period is surrounded by Iltutmish’s Tomb (1235), Alai Darwaza (1310), Allauddin’s Madrassa (1317) and the very photogenic rubble of Alai Minar.