Qutub Minar, Delhi

Qutab minar is a tower in Delhi which is world's tallest bricks minaret. It was constructed in 1199 by Qutub-ud-din Aibak as a victory tower. Further in 1386 Firozshah Tughlaq used marble to face the redstone. From a base of 14.32m it tapers to 2.75m at a height of 72.5m. Its a red sandstone tower covered with beautiful and striking carvings and is inscribed with verses from the holy Quran. Its projecting balconies with inscriptional decorative bands on different storeys heighten its decorative effect. Other towers in the world are the Great Pagoda in Pekin, China and the Leaning Tower of Pisa in Italy but these towers are not as high as the Qutab Minar in Delhi.

It has a number of floors or storeys which has beautiful carvings like the one on the tomb of Iltutmish. There are inscriptions all round the tower and these inscriptions reveal that Iltutmish finised the tower. The structure of the wall is made as such that it widens from top to bottom, just to make the minar stronger. Moving upstairs inside the minar will give you a wonderful experience and counting the stairs is always a fun for visitors. It has 378 steps which takes good amount of energy to reach at the top. The top of the tower gives an insight to Delhi because you get to see the bird's eye view of the city. To point a few sight seeing from the top, you will find views of the Hauz Khaz on the left and the walls of the Jahanpanah and Siri on the right. It was this very top of Qutab Minar that was used by Khilji and Tughlaq kings to watch the wild Mongol hordes when they threatened Delhi. The top also served as the watch top for Tughlaq who watched Timur's army camp on the Wellingdon Airport. Other important monuments that is visible from the top are the walls of Tughlaqabad, Humayun's Tomb, Purana Qila, Firoz Shah Kotla and Jama Masjid.

Qutab minar is the 237.8 ft stately tower is an exquisite example of Indo-Islamic Afgan architecture. This ornate tower is now an eminent member of the World Heritage Site community, and leans about 60 cm off the vertical, but otherwise has survived the ravages of time impressively. The architectural wonder is surrounded by a lush green manicured garden, which is a much favoured leisure pad for Delhites, and you can see people lazing out their afternoons here and there. Beautiful calligraphy adorns the adjacent edifices. The tower has five distinct storeys, each marked by a projecting balcony. The first three storeys are made of red sandstone, the fourth and fifth of marble and sandstone.