Jantar Mantar, New Delhi

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Jantar Mantar, New Delhi
Misra Yantra
Jantar Mantar, New Delhi (Misra Yantra).jpg
Misra Yantra at Jantar Mantar
Type Observatory
Location New Delhi, India
Nearest city New Delhi
Coordinates 28°37′38″N77°12′59″E / 28.6271°N 77.2164°E / 28.6271; 77.2164
Height723 feet (220 m)
Founder Maharaja Jai Singh II
Built1724
Website Official website
Location map India Delhi EN.svg
Red pog.svg
Location of Jantar Mantar, New Delhi in Delhi
India location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Jantar Mantar, New Delhi (India)

Jantar Mantar is located in the modern city of New Delhi. "Jantar Mantar" means "instruments for measuring the harmony of the heavens". [1] It consists of 13 architectural astronomy instruments. The site is one of five built by Maharaja Jai Singh II of Jaipur, from 1723 onwards, revising the calendar and astronomical tables. Jai Singh, born in 1688 into a royal Rajput family that ruled the regional kingdom, was born into an era of education that maintained a keen interest in astronomy. There is a plaque fixed on one of the structures in the Jantar Mantar observatory in New Delhi that was placed there in 1910 mistakenly dating the construction of the complex to the year 1710. Later research, though, suggests 1724 as the actual year of construction. Its height is 723 feet (220 m).

Contents

The primary purpose of the observatory was to compile astronomical tables, and to predict the times and movements of the sun, moon and planets. Some of these purposes nowadays would be classified as astronomy.

Completed in 1724, the Delhi Jantar Mantar had decayed considerably by 1857 uprising. The Ram Yantra, the Samrat Yantra, the Jai Prakash Yantra and the Misra Yantra are the distinct instruments of Jantar Mantar. The most famous of these structures, the Jaipur, had also deteriorated by the end of the nineteenth century until in 1901 when Maharaja Ram Singh set out to restore the instrument. [2]

History

Jantar Mantar is located in New Delhi and built by Maharaja Jai Singh II of Jaipur in the year 1724. The maharaja built five observatories during his rule in the 18th century. Among these five, the one in Delhi was the first to be built. The other four observatories are located in Ujjain, Mathura, Varanasi, and Jaipur.

The objective behind the construction of these observatories was to assemble astronomical data and to accurately predict the movement of the planets, moon, sun, etc. in the solar system. It was a one of a kind in its time when it was built. By the year 1867, when India was under the British Raj, the observatory had undergone considerable decay. [3]

Purpose of individual structures

The 4 distinct instruments within the observatory of Jantar Mantar in New Delhi: the Samrat Yantra, the Jayaprakash, Rama Yantra and the Misra Yantra.

Other observatories

Between 1727 and 1734 Jai Singh II built five similar observatories in west-central India, all known by the name Jantar Mantar. They are located at

While the purpose of the Jantar Mantar was astronomy and astrology (Jyotish), they are also a major tourist attraction and a significant monument of the history of astronomy.

See also

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References

  1. 1 2 GURJAR, ROHIT (10 February 2017). "JAIPUR JANTAR MANTAR :WORLDS LARGEST SUNDIAL". Medium. Retrieved 15 December 2020.
  2. "Jantar Mantar". World Monuments Fund. Retrieved 15 December 2020.
  3. "Jantar Mantar in Delhi: Information, Facts, History, Timings, Entry Fee". FabHotels Travel Blog. 28 May 2019. Retrieved 30 September 2021.
  4. 1 2 3 4 "Jaipur's Jantar Mantar: Legacy of an Astronomer-King". livehistoryindia.com. Retrieved 15 December 2020.

Further reading