Week Ending February 23, 2020

Slow week in Delhi seeing some obscure sites of the 1850s, visiting friends and purchasing remembrances!

The Northern Ridge, an area north of Old Delhi with lots of history.  Its oldest artifact is an Ashokan Pillar dating from around 250 B.C. which was brought to Delhi by Firoz Shah Tughluq from Meerut in 1356.  

Not too far away we checked out the last remains of the emperor Tughlaq’s hunting lodge, Kushk-i-Shikar.  Its now called Pir Ghaib which means “Vanished Saint” after a Sufi saint who suddenly disappeared there.  Climbing a dark winding stair, we found fresh flowers and smoldering incense in a small room dedicated to him. 

Another monument on the ridge is a memorial to the 1857 mutiny, or Sepoy Rebellion, depending on which side you are on.  Erected by the British in 1863, it honors all the British and Native officers and soldiers killed between 30 May and 20 September 1857 in the effort to recapture Delhi.  It was to the ridge that the surprised British withdrew and waited until the Indian rebels ran out of funds and its leadership fractured.  We visited the 1828 Flagstaff Tower where English survivors sought refuge on 10 May when the initial attack and slaughter occurred. 

 With the Toones  we visited Aman and Vivek Kumar and their parents and aunt

A nationally recognized artist, Dr. Sneh Gangal, we had met earlier and were now able to visit her at her studio.  We purchased about four of her works.