Site Name: Thanesar
Date: 1650-1707 CE, 1854 CE (repaired)
Subject: East facade of the complex
CENTER FOR ART AND ARCHAEOLOGY
Sheikh Chilli’s Tomb is an important
17th-century Mughal funerary and educational complex located in Kalyan Nagar,
Thanesar district of Haryana. The monument houses the remains of the Sufi saint
Abd-ur-Rahim Abdul-Karim Abd-ur-Razak, spiritual guide of Prince Dara Shikoh.
Built of buff sandstone and crowned with a white marble pear-shaped dome set on
a high drum, the octagonal tomb stands on an elevated terrace overlooking a
madrasa arranged around a central courtyard with a masonry tank. The complex
also includes Mughal gardens and later additions. Repaired in 1854 CE under the
supervision of John Dawkins, the monument is now protected by the
Archaeological Survey of India (Chandigarh Circle) and remains well preserved.
The madrasa building also houses
small site museums displaying antiquities recovered from nearby excavations.
