Begumpur Mosque

The Begumpur Mosque (बेगमपुरी मस्जिद), also known as The Jam'i Masjid of Jahanpanah, was built in the center of the sultanate capital of the Tughluq dynasty, Jahanpanah. Its construction took place around the year 1343 A.D. This historical monument is located in an urban village called Begumpur, which now bears its modern name. The mosque is designed to be a Friday mosque (Congregational Mosque) reflecting its enormous size, measuring 307 ft by 295 ft.

Geography
The city of Jahanpanah means "the center of the world," was built by the order of Muhammad bin Tughluq in 1327 A.D. The founding of this city aimed to protect the sultanate against any external invasion. The city had thirteen gates and numerous monuments that were credited to the Tughluq dynasty.

Patron
What is known about the Begumpur Mosque is somewhat limited as the identity of its patrons remains unclear to this day. There are two theories on who the patron of this magnificent monument was. The first suggests that it was built during the reign of Muhammad bin Tughluq in 1343 A.D, by or under the guidance of the Iranian architect Zahiruddin alJuyush who was also credited with the construction of the Khurramabad Palace. The second suggests that it was built by Khan-i Jahan Junan Shah, vizier of Firuz Shah Tughluq as one of the seven mosques under his patronage.

Usage
After serving as a mosque for several decades, the structure was used as a village in the early twentieth century before the restoration and cleaning.

In 1902 A.D, Herbert Charles Fanshawe wrote: "The Begumpuri Masjid is the finest of the mosques built by Jahan Khan, and well deserves a visit, although the arcades of the mosque are occupied by a village, in which some English refugees were long concealed in 1857. … it is the next largest at Delhi to the Jama Masjid of Shahjehan."

The site currently is under the supervision of the Archeological Survey of India. Presently, the site does not serve any religious purposes.

Layout
The dimensions of the mosque are ninety meters by ninety-four meters. The courtyard plan of the mosque is influenced by the Timurid type. The mosque contains four riwaqs (portico) and an enormous sahn (courtyard) measuring seventy-five by sixty-eight meters. A deeper prayer hall, facing Mecca, is located to the west and is the largest riwaq. The mosque is entered from only the eastern side through a magnificent gate. On the northern facade of the Begumpur Masjid, stands a square structure known as muluk khana (The Royal Loggia), which functions as a private entrance and a prayer hall for the royals.

Exterior
The Begumpur Mosque has an enormous domed entrance structure that stands tall above the street level, accessed by three-sided vertical steps. Unlike the later examples, like the Khirki or Kotla mosques, the ground floor is not used for the excavated niches. The mosque's walls represent the Tughluq slope walls, consisting of rubble masonry, which has been covered with a layer of thick stucco. The walls were originally decorated with blue-glazed tiles that are still present in some places.

Interior
The four-iwan plan was introduced for the first time in Indian Islamic Architecture. There is an iwan and a dome in the middle of each riwaq. The arches on each riwaq are roughly 12 ft in height with a width of 16.5 ft. There are about 45 rooms distributed in all the four sides of the mosque. The main hall is covered by a large dome while smaller domes are constructed over the bays of the colonnades. There are two tapering turrets on both sides of the starts of the iwan, which is a unique feature of the Tughluq architectural style. This structure, referred to as a "pylon" is very large enough to hide the large domes that cover the prayer hall.

Material and decoration
The materials in the Begumpur Mosque are mainly rubble masonry covered with mortar, which is molded to fit its architectural forms. Red sandstone was also used for the decorative carved motifs and for the jalis of the muluk khana and it was also used in the "royal" mihrab. The mosque had a lot of decorative carved stucco, much of it has now disappeared or been restored. The building in its current condition lost a lot of its original ornamentations. It still has remains of blooming lotuses relief-carved in red sandstone. Most of the sixty-four domes of the mosque feature this lotus motif. Regrettably, many of these domes either collapsed or were covered with white plaster.

Mihrabs
The main mihrab showcases a two-color palette reminiscent of the 'Ala'i Darwaza. The materials used in the mihrab are red sandstone and white marble, which are very common material compositions of the Indo-Islamic architecture. The mihrab inside the Ghiyath al-Din Tughluq tomb at Tughluqabad has also common features; aesthetics, proportions and the use of red sandstone and white marble.

Epigraphy
A few inscriptions still remain within the monument. Invocations to Allah can be found at the entrance and the muluk khana. Within the muluk khana, there are three epigraphic medallions above the central mihrab. Their inscriptions are in classical thuluth, featuring Quranic quotations from Surah 3 ('Al ‘Imran).

Influences


To gain more understanding of the architectural elements of the Begumpur Mosque, it is crucial to compare it with older Indian and Timurid Islamic mosques. The Begumpur Mosque has a lot of similar features to Quwwat al-Islam Complex. Both have their monumental external approaches, narrow riwaqs and their cupolas marking the four directions, thus privileging the cruciform plan. Both monuments share a certain "community of vision." The bishtak of the Begumpur Mosque exhibits a clear influence from the Timurid architecture of Bibi-Khanym Mosque. They are almost identical in their main feature; sloping towers and the OGEE arches, however, the Bibi Khanym is richer in decoration.

Current state
The continuous expansion and the increasing population, have resulted in a situation of overcrowding within the region. It is worth noting that the Begumpur Mosque is being protected under the Archeological Survey of India and as mentioned above, presently, the site does not function as a mosque. There are currently no plans in place for the restoration to safeguard its historical significance. At present, the monument is not in a good state, with many fallen domes and broken roofs.