Chaunsath Khambha is the tomb of Mirza Aziz Kokaltash, son of Atgah Khan and Jiji Anga, and was built in the year CE 1623–24. He was the great Mughal Emperor Akbar’s foster brother, and thus was known by the name ‘Kokaltash’ — meaning ‘milk brother’.

Chaunsath Khambha is the tomb of Mirza Aziz Kokaltash, son of Atgah Khan and Jiji Anga, and was built in the year CE 1623–24. He was the great Mughal Emperor Akbar’s foster brother, and thus was known by the name ‘Kokaltash’ — meaning ‘milk brother’.

In the 16th year of his reign, Akbar conferred upon him the title of Azam Khan. He later settled in Ahmedabad (Gujarat), where he died in CE 1623.

His remains were brought to Delhi and buried near the tomb of his father, Atgah Khan, and the Sufi saint Hazrat Nizamuddin Auliya.

CHAUNSATH Khambha’s enclosure is entered through a lofty arched gateway and has a large sunken forecourt. The mausoleum is unique on account of it being built entirely of marble, with 25 marble domes supporting the flat roof of the structure.

CHAUNSATH Khambha’s enclosure is entered through a lofty arched gateway and has a large sunken forecourt. The mausoleum is unique on account of it being built entirely of marble, with 25 marble domes supporting the flat roof of the structure.

The monument gets its name on account of the sixty-four pillars it contains. The mausoleum’s 67 feet wide square hall is built of marble and divided into 25 open bays which are covered by domes. Each of the four sides is divided into five bays by a range of double columns set depth-wise, from the capitals of which spring pointed arches. The spaces between these columns are filled with 10’ high marble jaalis (lattice screens). In each of the central bays there is a doorway in these screens, providing access/entry into the monument. The arches above the screen are open.

Each façade of the square structure has five marble arches inset with marble jaalis or lattice screens, and a doorway in the central arch providing access to the tomb. The column capitals are intricately carved with simple yet striking pendentives bridging the square floor plan to the circular dome above.

Repairs commenced in 2011 and each dome required complete dismantling of the marble blocks followed by repairs to marble and masonry prior to restoring blocks to their original position.

Repairs commenced in 2011 and each dome required complete dismantling of the marble blocks followed by repairs to marble and masonry prior to restoring blocks to their original position.

The conservation of CHAUNSATH Khambha was undertaken by the Aga Khan Trust for Culture (AKTC) in partnership with the Archaeological Survey of India, and with co-funding of Federal Republic of Germany, New Delhi.

DOCUMENTATION:

Archival research was carried out to achieve better understanding of the historic fabric of the building and its relationship with one of oldest precinct in Delhi.

The study of the structure revealed that over 80% of the stone blocks had severe cracks and past repairs had inappropriately only filled up burst portions of stone blocks with white cement – masking the damage but allowing the deterioration to accelerate.

A high-definition survey, using 3D laser scanning technology, was carried out on the structure as a precursor to conservation works. This was followed with a stone-by-stone assessment of the entire structure to map the profile and defects on each individual stone coupled with photo and video documentation.

To complete a structural analysis pits were dug to study the foundations – which were surprisingly found to reach a depth greater than five metres.

In view of the unique architectural design, construction techniques of the CHAUNSATH Khamba as well as the fact that each stone itself was unique in shape and size, it was agreed that all original stone was required to be retained. However, steps needed to be taken to replace iron dowels with non-corrosive stainless-steel dowels of matching size.

The forecourt – largest open space in Hazrat Nizamuddin Basti – was also landscaped to create a performance venue for the Qawwali musicians residing in the historic neighbourhood. The preservation of CHAUNSATH Khamba was possible only if the iron dowels could be removed and thus it was necessary to commence a conservation programme that required dismantling each of the 25 domes. Such an effort had never before been undertaken anywhere in the world.

The multi-disciplinary conservation team comprising experienced engineers, craftsmen and conservation architects could only access the iron dowels from below as the documentation had revealed over 1m thick masonry above the marble domes. Each stone was thus required to be numbered and mapped.

Once a specially designed support framework was built, the keystone was held in place and rings of marble blocks were dismantled and carefully reassembled on the floor. Iron dowels manually removed and stone indents of matching size prepared for corners which had burst.

TERRACE:

The masonry above the domes had 1 metre deep and 4 inches wide cracks through which the water was seeping inside the building. These cracks were required to be repaired urgently to stop further deterioration.

The 230 mm thick layer of cement concrete from the roof was removed without disturbing the underneath structure and pressure grouting was done to repair the network of cracks in the roof which were approximately 2 meters in depth. A new layer of lime concrete with additives like Jaggery and Bael fruit pulp (Belgiri) was laid maintaining the original slope levels. Clogged waterspouts were opened to prevent rainwater from stagnating.

DOME:

The repair of the 25 domes has taken almost four years during which time three teams of stone craftsmen have worked under close supervision. The repairs to the domes has been coupled with repairs to the 350 mm thick arch stones and the diamond shaped pendentives – several of which were severely damaged and displaced - creating a major threat to the structure as these pendentives and arches support the marble domes.

After removing the white cement from the broken joints, tell tails were fixed over the joints for structural monitoring for further observation by trained conservation architect and engineers. Each stone weighs from 200 to 350 kilograms and requires 4 to 5 persons to remove and stack the stone.

The stones being structural stones and are interlocked with each other. Proper precision needs to follow while removing the stone without damaging the stone.

Shifting of stones from the scaffolding has to be done with great care with the help of rope and requires 4–5 persons without damaging the edges of the stone. The corroded iron dowels are then removed carefully without damaging the stone and then replaced with stainless steel dowels. The process was constantly supervised by conservation architect and site engineer.

FAÇADE:

Conservation works on the facade of the structure needed to similarly repair damaged stones, though this did not require complete dismantling.