Location
Located in the capital of Rajasthan, the City Palace of Jaipur.
The City Palace - Jaipur
The City Palace of Jaipur is an commanding monument of the city with
exemplary blend of traditional Rajasthani and Mughal architecture. The
palace complex occupies one seventh of the walled city of Jaipur. Originally
the palace was built by Maharaja Jai Singh II of the Kachhwaha clan of
Rajputs, but further additions have been made to the palace complex by many
of his successors.
The Architecture
In the heart of the city is situated the City Palace, a blend of Rajasthani
and Mughal architecture. The City Palace is marked by projecting balconies,
arches on slender pillars, and ornate entrances. There is a huge paved
courtyard flanked by apartments from three sides.
The place is now converted to museum with some part of it is housed by the
erstwhile royal family. The palace cum museum is constructed in the
fortified campus style and covers more than half of the old city. The city
palace has an exclusive part devoted to the arms and ammunitions used by the
royal family in the past. Apart from arms and ammunitions museum, there is
separate section on textile and costume, art gallery, Chandra Mahal, Mubarak
Mahal, Diwan-I-Khas, and Diwan-I-Aam.
The complex is divided into a series of courtyards, sprawling gardens and
buildings. It is home to several palatial structures like the Chandra Mahal,
Mubarak Mahal, Badal Mahal, Shri Govind Dev Temple and the City Palace
Museum. Each of the structures boasts of intricate piece of art and each
significantly made for specific purpose. Paintings, floral decorations,
mirror walls and ceilings in the traditional style adorn the palaces.
Extensive use of gold, silver, brass, glass made the complex is a place of
sheer beauty and luxury. The museum, Chandra Mahal has an extensive
collection of art, carpets, enamelware and 15th century weapons. The
paintings include miniatures of Rajasthani, Persian and Mughal schools. A
section of museum also contains dresses and costumes of the former Maharajas
and Maharanis of Jaipur. Another integral part of the palace complex is the
Hawa Mahal of unusual architecture, standing away from the main complex.
Reaching City Palace of Jaipur
By Air : Jaipur is connected to Delhi (262Km), Mumbai, Udaipur,
Jodhpur, Aurangabad, Calcutta and Varanasi by domestic flights.
By Rail : The train service to Jaipur is available from all the
major parts of the country.
By Road : Jaipur can be accessed from all the major places in
Rajasthan, Gujarat, Delhi and Mumbai by bus.
