A s one of the world’s oldest civilizations, India has been influenced over the centuries by cultures from around the globe. From the Roman remains in Arikameddu to the Mughal architecture of the sixteenth-century Emperor Akbar and the distinctive urbanism of French, British, and Portuguese...Read more
The soft glow of butter lamps illuminates Lama Tsering as he blesses a bundle of prayer flags, aspersing them with rose water and grains of white rice. Clad in a saffron robe and enveloped in a cloud of juniper incense, he prays for the success of our mission, his rhythmic chant punctuated by the...Read more
Embraced by two of the world’s great mountain ranges—the Himalaya and the Karakoram—the tiny Buddhist kingdom of Ladakh—now part of the Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir—is one of the most desolate places on Earth. Yet it is also one of the most enchanting with its snow-capped peaks and rugged...Read more
In 1585, three Englishmen—William Leeds, Ralph Fitch, and John Newbury— landed on the west coast of India, bearing a letter from Queen Elizabeth I. Her majesty requested that the travelers be “honestly intreated and received,” as a first step toward establishing a “mutual and friendly trafique of...Read more
Built at the beginning of the nineteenth century, the former British Residency in Hyderabad is considered one of the earliest examples of classical revival architecture in India. The building, which at the time of publication is home to Osmania Women’s College, was constructed for Colonel...Read more
Strategically sited on a Rajasthan hilltop, the fortified city of Jaisalmer is one of India’s greatest architectural treasures. Founded in a . d. 1156 by the Rajput prince, Rawal Jaisal, Jaisalmer is known colloquially as Sonar Kila, or the “Golden Fort,” after the luminous sandstone of which it is...Read more