Photos

This is the narrow, central aisle with slim arches looking toward the qubba to the west. The plan of this mosque is unique in India being the only example of a completely covered mosque with no courtyard. The closest parallel, to be found in the north of the country, is the Khirki Masjid in central Delhi dating from 1351 - 1354 CE. Zafar Khan, after taking Daulatabad Fort (Maharashtra) in 1345, moved the capital 350 kms. southeast to Gulbarga two years later. He founded the Bahmani Sultanate August 3, 1347 CE, and Gulbarga was made the capital city. The Jami Masjid was built inside the fort to commemorate that auspicious event. The mosque was probably not completed, or mostly complete, until the reign of Feroze Khan who was shah from 1397 to 1422 CE.