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The palace
is overwhelmed with balconies, towers and cupolas and there are fine
views over the lake and the city from the upper terraces. The
interiors of City Palace presents a graceful beauty due to lavish use
of marble, mirror work,frescoes, wall paintings, colored glass, fluted
columns, inlay work and silver doors.
There are many relics and decorative items in the City Palace. There
are beautiful examples of old porcelain, glass and tiles as well as
the wonderful mosaic of silver leaves and precious stones that reflect
images of the lake when looked at from the right angle.
The City Palace is surrounded by walls for battlements. The City
Palace can be reached through three gateways. The entry to the palace
is from the Hathi Pol or the Elephant gate. At the entrance to the
place museum, there is a genealogical chart whose floor-to-ceiling
immensity traces the rule of the 76 Maharanas of Mewar, from 734 AD.
The Bari Pol or the Big gate brings you to the Tripolia, the Triple
gate. It is a triple arched gate which was built in 1725. It was once
a custom that the Maharana would weigh under this gate in gold and
silver, which was distributed to the populace. Balconies, cupolas and
towers surmount the palace which give a wonderful view of the Pichola
lake. Suraj Gokhada or the balcony of the sun is the place where the
Maharana would grant public audiences mainly to boost the morale of
the people in difficult times. The Mor Chowk is the peacock square and
gains its name from the vivid blue mosaic in glass of a peacock that
decorates its walls. The
rooms of the palace are superbly decorated with mirror tiles and
paintings.
The main part of the palace is now preserved as a museum which
displays a large and diverse array of artifacts like the miniature
paintings embellished with gold and silver leaf, armoury, lithographs,
Danish porcelain, crystalware, palanquins, howdahs and carry chairs.
The City Palace museum is entered through the Ganesh Deori meaning the
door of Lord Ganesh. The Ganesh Deori leads to the Rajya Angan, the
royal courtyard. Nav Chowki Mahal, is the oldest section in the
palace. This is the place where Maharana Udai Singh met the saint in
1559 who told him to found a city and laid the foundation of the
palace. The armoury museum exhibits a huge collection of protective
gear, weapons including the lethal two-pronged sword. The City Palace
consists of four main and several minor palaces. Part of the complex
is a Hawa Mahal. The Palace of Joy or Dilkhusha Mahal is decorated
with frescoes and wall paintings. Manak Mahal or the Ruby Palace has a
lovely collection of glass and mirror work while Krishna Vilas display
a rich collection of miniature paintings. The Sheesh Mahal, or the
palace of mirrors and glass has beautiful mirror work. The Krishna
Vilas is the most beautiful enclosure with four rows of painted scenes
in miniature. It was here that the beautiful princess, Krishna Kumari,
drank poison and saved the kingdom from the two kings. The Chini Mahal
houses a rich collection of Chinese porcelain and its niches and
jharokas are covered in blue-and-white Chinese tiles. The Surya Chopar
or the Sun Square depicts a huge ornamental Sun which symbolises the
Sun dynasty. The Bari Mahal is a central garden with view of the city.
Some more beautiful paintings can be seen in the Zenana Mahal or the
ladies chamber, which leads to Laxmi Vilas Chowk a beautiful white
pavilion. Laxmi Vilas Chowk is an art gallery, which houses a
distinctive collection of Mewar paintings. The Amar Vilas, the highest
point with its hanging gardens, towers and terraces, presents a
majestic and panoramic view of the town and Lake Pichola.
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