11 August – 11 October, 2015 at National Museum, New Delhi

Courtesy of the museum’s newly opened “Cosmology to Cartography” exhibition, here are some early maps of India’s biggest cities, accompanied by short excerpts from the exhibit’s catalogue.

Old Delhi (1857)
Old Delhi (1857) - A fine plan of Old Delhi issued during the Siege of Delhi, a major event of the Uprising of 1857: This intriguing plan depicts “Old Delhi” as it appeared during the Great Uprising of 1857…Delhi as depicted here was founded in 1638 by the Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan in order to serve as his new capital city. Named as Shahjahanabad, it was comprised of seven square miles enclosed by great walls. The city was dominated by the colossal Red Fort, the imperial palace constructed in 1648, that straddles the Jumna (Yamuna) River, in the lower part of the plan. The rest of the city was composed of a dense warren of streets interrupted by a few broad avenues, fine gardens and magnificent mosques.