NOTE TO USERS Page(s) not included in the original manuscript and are unavailable from the author or university. The manuscript was scanned as received. 418 This reproduction is the best copy available. UMI The Architecture of Ritual: Eighteenth-centuiy Lucknow and the Making of the Great Imambarah Complex, a Forgotten World Monument by Hussein Keshani B.E.S. University of Manitoba, 1992 M.A. University of Victoria, 2000 A Dissertation Submitted in Partial Fulfilment of the Requirements for the Degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY In the Department of History in Art We accept this dissertation as conforming to the required standard Dr. S. A. W&ldiy/Supervisor (Department of History in Art) "~~x _____________/ ProfM. Segger, Dgpaatmental Member (D^artment of History in Art) Dr. C. Thomas, Departmental Member (Department of History in Art) •utside Member (Department of History) Dr. H. Coward, Outside Member (Department of History) Dr. D. MacLean, External Examiner (Department of History, Simon Fraser University) © Hussein Keshani, 2003 University of Victoria All rights reserved. This dissertation may not be reproduced in whole or in part, by photocopying or other means, without the permission of the author. 11 Dr. S. Anthony Welch ABSTRACT In the late eighteenth century, a large urban redevelopment program was initiated by the Shu Isnâ ‘Asharl Muslim ruler Àsaf al-Dawlah in Lucknow, a city located in the prosperous, semi-autonomous north Indian region of Awadh. The development included four monumental entrances, a congregational mosque and a monumental imâmbârah, a ritual centre used for the annual mourning of the Prophet Muhammad’s grandson plusayn by the city’s small, elite ShîU snâ community. Incorporating one of the largest masonry vaults ever built in human history, the imâmbârah has a monumental scale that contributes to its uniqueness. Although Shli Isnâ ‘Asharl communities elsewhere developed smaller imâmbârah facilities, none ever thought to build one using monumental proportions typically reserved for congregational mosques. Àsaf al- Dawlah’s Great Imâmbârah is unusual in the history of world architecture and in Shl'i Isnâ ‘Asharl, Islamic religious practice, but the building and complex have never been the focus of study. They receive only passing treatment in historical, religious and architectural surveys of the period. As a result, an uncritical version of the site’s development has entered into circulation. The Great Imâmbârah, in particular, is seen as a famine relief project by Asaf al-Dawlah, designed by the architect Kifayat Allah and undertaken in 1784 with the labour of an impoverished nobility. I will demonstrate that this version is unsupportable. Instead, a more complex view of the site’s development Ill can be put forward that portrays it as the product of several social discourses. In fact, the site is not a series of unrelated monuments. It is a cohesive, interwoven complex where social discourses within the Lucknow community, generated by rulers, elites, builders, and Islamic religious leaders converge to define ritual practices for the citizenry of Lucknow and the city’s ShlJIsnâ community, who were inheritors of Safavid and Mughal imperial legacies and aspired to be a distinct but authentic Islamic community. This view can be illustrated by examining how the site appears today, how it has been understood in the past, how it served the ambitions of its patrons, how its designers and builders brought their vision to reality, and lastly how it was an instrument in religious believing. Examiners; Dr. S. A. Wel£hpSupervis9t.(pep^^ of History in Art) Prof. Mr^S^ger, Departnjental Member (Department of History in Art) Dr. C. Thomas, Departmental Member (Department of History in Art) Dr. A. RicWn ide Member (Department of History) Dr. H. Coward, Outside Member (Department of History) Dr. D. MacLean, ÈidemaNExmîtiser (Department of History, Simon Fraser University) IV T:/U3i_E ()]F (:(:MsnrENT!3 The Architecture of Ritual Eighteenth-century Lucknow and the Making of the Great Imambarah Complex, a Forgotten World Monument Title Page i Abstract ii Table of Contents iv List of Figures v Acknowledgements xii Dedication xiii 1 Introduction 1 2 Surveying the Great Imambarah Complex 40 3 In the Minds of Intellectuals 77 The Shifting Significance of the Great Imambarah Complex 4 In Service of Power 104 5 In the Builders’ Eyes 156 Designing and Building the Great Imambarah Complex 6 In the Hearts of the Believers 204 The Great Imambarah Complex and the Unveiling of Shi‘i Isna Ashari Belief 7 Conclusion 242 Glossary 264 Appendix A 267 Appendix B 271 Appendix C 272 Bibliography 273 Figures 285 LIST OF FIGURES Unless otherwise specified, all photographs and drawings are produced by the author. 1. Map of India, line drawing 2. Plan of the Great Imambarah complex, c. 2002, with key photo angles corresponding to figure numbers, line drawing 3. Plan section of Rumi Darvazah, line drawing 4. Plan section of first Imambarah gate, line drawing 5. Plan section of second Imambarah gate, line drawing 6. Plan section of congregational masjid, line drawing 7. Plan section of Imambarah, line drawing 8. Section of Imambarah, line drawing 9. Plan section of Baoli Palace, line drawing 10. Section of Baoli Palace, line drawing 11. West facade of Awrangzib masjid, photograph, March 2002 12. North-west exterior of first forecourt,photograph, March 2002 13. Interior of first forecourt facing west,photograph, March 2002 14. Interior of first forecourt facing east,photograph, March 2002 15. West exterior of Rumi Darvazah-arcade, photograph, March 2002 16. Detail of west facade of Rumi Darvazah, photograph, March 2002 17. East exterior of Rumi Darvazah-arcade, photograph, March 2002 18. Exterior of second tier arcade on Rumi Darvazah-arcade, photograph, March 2002 19. Interior bays of second tier arcade on Rumi Darvazah-arcade, photograph, March 2002 20. North terrace above second tier arcade on Rumi Darvazah-arcade, photograph, March 2002 21. North profile of half octagonal superstructure supporting Rumi Darvazah, photograph, March 2002 22. South terrace above second tier arcade on Rumi Darvazah-arcade, North terrace above second tier arcade on Rumi Darvazah-arcade, photograph, March 2002 23. Detail of guldastas embedded around top half of Rumi Darvazah, photograph, March 2002 24. East exterior of octagonal superstructure on Rumi Darvazah, photograph, March 2002 25. Exterior of chamfered gateway in first forecourt, photograph, March 2002 26. South facade of Naqar Khanah, photograph, March 2002 27. East facade of Naqar Khanah, photograph, March 2002 28. Arcade east of Naqar Khanah, photograph, March 2002 29. North facade of Naqar Khanah, photograph, March 2002 30. East marble balcony of Naqar Khanah, photograph, March 2002 31. Central marble balcony of Naqar Khanah, photograph, March 2002 32. South facade of first Imambarah gateway-arcade, photograph, March 2002 33. Detail of fish spandrel ornament on south facade of first Imambarah gateway. VI March 2002 34. North facade of second Imambarah gateway-arcade, photograph, March 2002 35. North facade of second Imambarah gateway, photograph, March 2002 36. Detail of fîsh spandrel ornaments on north facade of second Imambarah gateway, photograph, March 2002 37. Pier chambers in second Imambarah gateway, photograph, March 2002 38. Interior of east enclosure arcade in second forecourt,photograph, March 2002 39. Interior of east enclosure arcade in second forecourt,photograph, March 2002 40. South facade of second Imambarah gateway-arcade, photograph, March 2002 41. East exterior facade of congregational masjid, photograph, March 2002 42. South exterior facade of congregational masjid, photograph, March 2002 43. Arcade connecting the Great Imambarah to the congregational masjid, photograph, March 2002 44. Well in front of congregationalmasjid, photograph, March 2002 45. Inscribed marble tablet at well in front of congregational masjid, photograph, March 2002 46. Projecting entrance to congregational masjid, photograph, March 2002 47. Arcade surrounding congregational masjid, photograph, March 2002 48. Inscribed tablet over exterior central arch of congregational masjid, photograph, March 2002 49. Detail of floriated engaged column bases on congregational masjid exterior, photograph, March 2002 50. Detail of floriated engaged column capital, arch cusp and muqarnas on congregational masjid exterior, photograph, March 2002 51. Interior of south chamber of entry hall tomasjid facing north, photograph, March 2002 52. Detail of coved muqarna cornice and ceiling ornament of the interior of south chamber of entry hall to masjid, photograph, March 2002 53. Western facade (qiblah) of central mihrab chamber of masjid, photograph, March 2002 54. Foliated grooved dome over centralmihrab chamber of masjid, photograph, March 2002 55. Foliated grooved dome over south chamber ofmasjid’s qiblah wall, photograph, March 2002 56. Southernmost bangla vaulted transition space of masjid’’^ qiblah wall, photograph, March 2002 57. North exterior facade of Great Imambarah, photograph, March 2002 58. Eastern sloped projecting wall, stairs and terrace of the Great Imambarah, photograph, March 2002 59. Western sloped projecting wall of the Great Imambarah, photograph, March 2002 60. West ground level engaged bastion of the Great Imambarah, photograph, March 2002 61. Detail of exterior foliated double-cusped arch on north facade of Great Imambarah, photograph, March 2002 62. Detail of exterior muqarna cornice on north facade of