Historical 14th century Atala Mosque, Jaunpur, UP and its link with the Hindu temple !!

Navrang India August 31, 2020
Atala mosque, Jaunpur, UP India. Alamy com.

Atala mosque Jaunpur, UP, India justdial.com

Above image: Atala mosque, interior with Hindu temple pillars,Jaunpur, UP, Indiathe  ''Gazetteer'' of Jaunpur district dated 1908 CE during the Raj confirmed it...........................

The Atala Masjid or Atala Mosque, a 14th-century mosque in Jaunpur is a historical monument and lots of tourists visit this old mosque. It is just 2.2 km  from Jaunpur,

.Jaunpur, dist. UP, Indiamapsofindia.com

Atala mosque, interior, jaunpur, UP. India, getty pages.in

This mosque was also built with materials removed from the Hindu temple -   after they were razed to the ground.   Atala Devi Temple was built in 1155 A.D  by King Vijayachandra of the Gahadavala dynasty.The vestiges of old structures are still very much there. 

Atala Mosque, Jaunpur, Up & Hindu temple structure.Reddit.com 

It was Ibrahim Naib Barbak, step brother of Sultan Firoz Shah Tughlaq III (1351–1388 CE)  who destroyed Atala Devi Temple in 1364 C.E and the stones, etc taken from there were diligently used to build the mosque.  Ibrahim began the construction of mosque in 1376 CE and completed it in 1408 CE. The outer structure  was changed to give the appearance of  a,masjid, but indoor walls, pillars, etc retained the the original Hindu temple structures.

A Madarsa -  Madarsa Din Dunia is functioning in the  central courtyard of the mosque. The Mosque, a monument of historical value, is being managed by the ASI -the Archaeological Survey of India.

That one William Hodges in his book ''Select Views in India'' mentioned about this historical  mosque, suggests that this Muslim place of worship was a popular one way back in the past.

According to the  ''Gazetteer'' of Jaunpur district dated 1908 CE, written by H.R. Nevill, (of the British Raj) the district collector of Jaunpur, confirms the destruction and construction dates. It is further pointed out that  there stood an equally large temple of Mukatghat, built by Raja Vijaya Chandra of Kannauj, the father of Jayachandra/Jaichand (father-in-law of Prithviraj Chauhan)..

Atalia mosque, central dome, Jaunpur, Up, Getty pagesin

Above images:Interior of Atala Masjid Mosque, Jaunpur, India, engraving by Lisbet from a drawing by Breton,1844, from Monumenti piu ragguardevoli di tutti i popoli (The most remarkable monuments of all peoples), Turin. (Photo by Icas94 / De Agostini via Getty Images)

Built in a unique style called  Sharqi Style, the mosque has an impressive  17 meter tall central dome  Even though, the outer structure is changed, the inner walls, pillars of this masjid have retained the original Hindu temple The impressive 17 - meter tall central dome and is not visible  due to the presence of a tall tower (at 23 meters).

Tit-bits:

 Yet another structure of historical value is the Shahi Bridge or Munim Khan's Bridge or Akbari Bridge or Mughal Bridge or Jaunpur Bridge. This 16th-century (1569) bridge over river Gomti, located

Shahi Bridge, Jaunpur, UP,, India.tripoto.com

1.7 kilometres (1.1 m) north of Jaunpur Railway station has massive piers and arched openings and is still functional. The ten arched openings  are supported on huge and massive pylons. There is an additional extension of five arches  to cover the diverted channel. Chhatries (pavilions) are provided on the bridge.  Mughal Emperor Akbar built  the Shahi Bridge,that was completed in the year 1568–69 by Munim Khan. Designed by Afghan architect Afzal Ali it took 4 years to complete the bridge.In the 1934 Nepal–Bihar earthquake, seven of its arches  were damaged and had to be  rebuilt.The bridge has been on the Protection & Conservation list of Directorate of Archaeology, (U.P.) since 1978.