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Jaialmer fort is one of the place in city witch can be called " Best In Jaisalmer" to visit. Jaisalmer Fort is a monument witch better known as "golden-fort or "sonar-killa. Like various other cities of Rajasthan, in Jaisalmer too you will find different facets of its own glorious heritage. Jaisalmer Fort will immediately demand your attention. Made of sand stones and locally known as jaisal-garh, the Jaisalmer Fort is a dominating structure amidst sands. The city is said to be founded by Raja Rawal Jaisal, a Bhati Rajput ruler, in 1156 A D. Legends go by that he did it on the behest of a local hermit named Eesaal. The raja choose Trikuta hill as the new site for his fort as his earlier adobe at Luderwa(16 k.m from present Jaisalmer) was too vulnerable to his comfort. But it should always be kept in mind that these legends are most of the time product of conscious minds that are very vulnerable to the oriental exaggeration. Jaisalmer fort is the second oldest in Rajasthan after chittour-garh . Two hundred and fifty feet high and reinforced by imposing crenellated sandstone wall 30 feet high; it has 99 bastions, 92 of which were built between 1633 and 1647. Wells within the fort still provide water. Even today, you will find that nearly one sixth of the old city's population resides within the fort. for students of cross-cultural merging, the subtle fusion of Rajput and Islamic architectural styles, visible in this fort. Ganesh-Prol, Akshya-Prol, Suraj-Prol and Hawa-Prol are a must see. |
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Desert cultural center and museum is a place where you will get to know about the rich cultural heritage and customs of Jaisalmer, a popular destination in Rajasthan. So if you are short on time and cannot mug up in library, this is the place to be. The place is well maintained and harbors rare coins and manuscript related to Jaisalmer history and the history of Rajpuana.
This museum has some unique collection of traditional Rajasthani textiles, utensils, weapons, musical instruments and fossils. One thing that is very popular among foreigners is 'Karal', the traditional opium mixing box. The place often organizes programs for tourists. |
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Gadsisar Lake is one of the best tourist attractions of Jaisalmer. popular stories tells us that it is not an oasis but a water conservation tank made around 1400 A.D. by the then rawal of Jaisalmer, Maharwal Gadsi Singh. this structure just outside the city walls once acted as a reservoir that controlled the entire supply of water to the arid city of desert! This place was selected because it had a certain amount of declivity already and it automatically retained some of the rainwater. If you are lucky and venture out in winters, you might get to see a variety of migratory birds. Don't miss to carry a good pair of binoculars and high megapixel camera with a wide-angle lens if you want to take away some really mesmerizing snaps. You will find whole varieties of temples and shrines surrounding the lake. The beautiful gateway that arches across the road down to the Lake was built by royal courtesan named Tillon in the end of 19th century, known as Tillon Ki prol (Gate of Tillon). Lord Vishnu's statue was installed in the year 1908 A.D. or the gate by the courtesan & declared Krishna Temple to save it from demolition by the then maharawal. |
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| The jain temples are one of the best in jaisalmer. Jain Temples situated in the Jaisalmer Fort are a must visit site in Jaisalmer, Rajasthan. You will find these temples to be very old and high pilgrimage as well as archeological value. These are a chain of Jain temples dating back 12th and 15th centuries and are devoted to various Jain Tirthankars. On the walls of the temples, you can find animal & human figures, carved in famous Dilwara style. The style got its name from the famous 'Dilwara Temples' situated on Mount Abu, a famous Hill station and pilgrimage destination in Rajasthan. The Jain temples in the Jaisalmer Fort are dedicated to Rikhabdevji and Shambhavdev Ji, the famous Jain hermits known as 'Tirthankars'. Like all other structures in Jaisalmer, these temples are craved of yellow sandstones. The beautifully carves decorations on the wall will give you divine peace. The temple complex is open through out the morning till 12noon, for the visitors. So try to get up a bit early or you might miss this splendor. There is also A Gyan Bhandar library. Well if you are eager to get more knowledge, the library will prove to be a good place to prowl because it contains some of the rare manuscripts available in India. |
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| This Nathmal ki haveli was built to serve as the residence of Diwan Mohata Nathmal, the then Prime Minister of Jaisalmer. Maharawal Beri Sal Singh commissioned the construction of this Haveli. The architects of this haveli were Hathi and Lalu witch was brothers. There is a very interesting story regarding its construction. It is said that the two brothers started building different facets of haveli simultaneously. In those days there were no such instruments, which could keep a track on continuity and thus when this building came up finally it had irregular shape. Barring that, this haveli is still considered the best in Jaisalmer in terms of grandeur. There are other minute details worth appreciation. For example there are two Elephants made of yellow stone. These life-size replicas have been put in front of the main entrance so that it looks as if they are guarding the Haveli. Other than these, there are pictures engraved on pillars and walls. These consist of Horses, Cattle, and depiction of Flora among other things. But the most interesting aspect of this haveli is the drawing of modern amenities such as cars, fans etc. It is said and believed that the Architect brothers dint see these things ever in their life and engraved it with mere help of their descriptions given by people who had seen it. Thus the architecture present in this haveli is quite different from the one popular in other parts of Jaisalmer. The workmanship of Jaisalmer havelis is an amalgam of both Rajput architecture as well as Islamic art that was imported via the traders' caravan through the desert. |
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| The Patwon ki Haveli is an interesting piece of Architecture and is the most important among the havelis in Jaisalmer. This is precisely because of two things, first that it was the first haveli erected in Jaisalmer and second, that it is not a single haveli but a cluster of 5 small havelis. The first among these havelis was commissioned and constructed in the year 1805 by Guman Chand Patwa and is the biggest and the most ostentatious. It is believed that Patwa was a rich man and was a renowned trader of his time. He could afford and thus ordered the construction of separate stories for each of his 5 sons. These were completed in the span of 50 years. All five houses were constructed in the first 60 years of the 19th century. This is the largest Haveli in Jaisalmer and stands in a narrow lane. This haveli is partly occupied by the government, which uses it for touristic purposes. Nevertheless, even after these encroachments and abuse you can find a good amount of paintings and mirror-works on the wall. The other important aspects are its gateways and arches. You will notice individual depictions and theme on each and every arch. Although the whole building is made yellow stone, the main gateway of the Patwon ki Haveli is in wood-brown color. |
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| Salim Singh ki haveli has been built on the remains of an older haveli built in the late 17th century. The new building was built in the year 1815 and was occupied by the Mohta family in Jaisalmer. This haveli was built by Salim Singh, the then Diwan ( revenue minister) of the state of Jaisalmer. The haveli has a fine work of architecture. The roof is constructed in the form of Peacock. The haveli is situated near the Jaisalmer Fort. People claim that Salim Singh made two additional floors in order to make it as high as the fort but the Maharaja did not take this attempt in good spirit. He ordered the extra floors to be fall down. Like other havelis in Jaisalmer, this too has tuskers guarding the gateways. These are made of sand stones and look very close to the original in appearance. The haveli consists of as many as 38 balconies and they all have distinct designs for themselves. The front facet of the haveli resembles ship stern and thus this haveli is also sometimes referred as Jahazmahal. |
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