17th century ornamental layer has been discovered
A worker from Rajasthan working on a granite block for the parapet.
Hyderabad: A team of artisans from Rajasthan, who worked on the restoration of Humayun’s tomb in Delhi are now chiselling granite blocks at the Quli Qutub Shah tomb to build a parapet. “This part of the work was taken up based on archival photographs which indicated that a granite parapet existed around the tomb,” said Yoshowant Purohit, project manager with the Aga Khan Trust for Culture.
The restoration work taken up by AKTC which is being funded by the Tata Trusts is an attempt at reverting the damage of over a century of repairs done with inappropriate materials. The team is relying on historical evidence for assistance.
What was found during several excavations and restorations is that dressed granite or hand-chiselled granite blocks were used extensively by Qutub Shahis in several of their constructions in the tombs. Surprisingly, from the interior chamber of the Quli Qutub Shah’s tomb, many large blocks of stone have gone missing. “This is puzzling because each of the missing blocks occupied nearly five square metres. We need to find similar blocks, which is a tough task,” he said.
( Source : deccan chronicle )
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