Entrance of Umaid Bhawan Palace
Interior of a Room
Interior of another room
Hallway of the Palace
The Back side of the Palace
Umaid Bhawan Palace was originaly called Chittar Palace during construction, due to its location on Chittar Hill, the highest point in Jodhpur. Ground for the foundations of the building was broken on 18 November 1929 by Maharaja Umed Singh, it was unfinished until 1944. Umaid Bhawan was one of the last royal constructions (and India's last Palace), built to provide work and drought relief for the poor. The building is dramaticaly illuminated at night causing some controversy in a city that continues to endure daily multi-hour power cuts
Built on the Chittar Hill in souteastern area of the Jodhpur, construction employed over 5000 men for six years. The building does not use mortar or cement to bind stones together, all of its pieces are carved stones joined together by a system of carved interlocking positive and negative pieces; a specially constructed train line was used to transport these large blocks of stone.
The Palace, when it was built, was the world's largest private residence, with 347 rooms.
The present owner is His Highness Gaj Singh, The Maharaja of Jodhpur. He has divided the Palace into three functional parts, one having a five-star hotel (in existence since 1972), one is the residence of the royal family and one has been opened to public where a small museum displays pictures, arms, swords, and other items relating to Jodhpur's royal heritage. Opening timings of this museum are 10 AM to 4 PM, it is closed on sundays.
The palace has an area of 26 acres (105,000 m²), out of which constructed area is 3.5 acres (14,000 m²) and 15 acres (61,000 m²) have been devoted to lawns. This is the most expensive hotel at Jodhpur and this is one of the largest private houses in India.
1 comments:
Beautiful place.
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