By Raza Mehdi
May 25, 2022
Photograph of the Delhi Gate at the Red Fort in Delhi in the 1890s. The Delhi Gate is one of two main entrances to the Lal Qila or Red Fort, the palace citadel built by the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan in the 1640s.
Image: Deen Dayal/WikiCommons
This photo shows Chandni Chowk (around 1863-67), the principal street of Shahjahanabad, the seventh city of the seven historical cities of Delhi. The roadsides are lined with shops and artisans selling their wares.
Image: Samuel Bourne/WikiCommons
Kolkata’s Howrah Bridge as seen in 1945. It was the city's only bridge spanning the Hooghly. It took 7 years to build, towering 310 feet high as the city's highest structure and was completed in 1942.
Image: WikiCommons
Victoria Memorial construction in progress, Kolkata, 1940s. The Victoria Memorial is a building dedicated to Victoria, Queen of the United Kingdom and Empress of British India.
Image: WikiCommons
A photo of The Golden Temple in 1857.The construction of the temple was started in 1588 and completed in 1601. Hazrat Mian Mir Ji, a Muslim saint, laid the foundation of the temple and the construction was supervised by Guru Arjun Dev.
Image: WikiCommons
Calcutta’s Park Street in the 1930s. Park Street has been the main evening recreation zone for the locals since the British era. In the 1970s and 1980s, Park Street was the hub of Kolkata's nightlife.
Image: WikiCommons
The Gateway of India on its inauguration day, December 4, 1924. It is an arch monument built in Bombay to commemorate the landing of King George V and Queen Mary at Apollo Bunder on their visit to India.
Image: Myers Brothers/WikiCommons
Victoria Terminus in Bombay in the late 1930s. This station, built in 1887 for Queen Victoria's Golden Jubilee, is a mixture of Gothic and Islamic architectural styles. It is one of the grandest station buildings in India.
Image: WikiCommons
The Hawa Mahal in 1875. It was built in 1799 by Maharaja Sawai Pratap Singh. The unique, five-storey exterior is akin to the honeycomb of a beehive, with its 953 small windows called jharokhas decorated with intricate latticework.
Image: Bourne & Shepherd/WikiCommons
The British Raj was the rule of the British Crown on the Indian subcontinent from 1858 to 1947. In the picture, a British man can be seen sitting on a horse while an Indian stableman stands beside the horse.
Image: WikiCommons
Group of silver and copper smiths in a workshop in Jammu and Kashmir in 1895
Image: WikiCommons
The Manikarnika Ghat of Banaras as photographed in 1922, is one of the oldest ghats in Banaras, now known as Varanasi. The city has 88 ghats that are used for bathing, puja ceremonies, and cremations.
Image: WikiCommons
Taj Mahal in the 1890s. This monument was constructed in 1632 by Emperor Shah Jahan and had been initially named 'Roza-e-Munavvara', which means Unique Building. But it was renamed by Shah Jahan as Taj Mahal as a loving tribute to his wife, Mumtaz Mahal.
Image: WikiCommons