Humayun's Tomb Garden Revitalisation - Project Brief of the work carried out on the Gardens of the Humayun Tomb Complex in Delhi, India, by the Aga Khan Historic Cities Programme.  The objective of the project was to revitalise the gardens, pathways, fountains and water channels of the chahar-bagh, or four-part paradise garden surrounding Humayun's tomb in Delhi, according to the original plans of the builders.&nbsp; Site works encompassed a variety of disciplines, including archaeology, conservation science and hydraulic engineering.&nbsp; <br><br>The US$ 650,000 restoration project has featured the removal of 3000 truckloads of earth (12,000 cubic meters), the planting of 12 hectares of lawn, the re-setting and alignment of over 3,000 km of path edging, the preparation by some 60 stonecutters of 2,000 meters of hand-dressed red sandstone slabs (to edge the channels), the creation of 128 ground water recharge pits, the creation of a site exhibition, and the planning and installation of a new water circulation system for the walkway channels.&nbsp; To ensure that water flows naturally through the channels and pools on the 12-hectare (30 acre) site without the aid of hydraulic systems, the water channels had to be re-laid to an exacting grade of one centimetre every 40 metres (1:4000 scale).&nbsp; Over 2500 trees and plants, including mango, lemon, neem, hibiscus and jasmine cuttings, were planted in the gardens. Long-dormant fountains have come to life.

Revitalisation of the Gardens of Emperor Humayun's Tomb

Type
report
Year
2003
Project Brief of the work carried out on the Gardens of the Humayun Tomb Complex in Delhi, India, by the Aga Khan Historic Cities Programme. The objective of the project was to revitalise the gardens, pathways, fountains and water channels of the chahar-bagh, or four-part paradise garden surrounding Humayun's tomb in Delhi, according to the original plans of the builders.  Site works encompassed a variety of disciplines, including archaeology, conservation science and hydraulic engineering. 

The US$ 650,000 restoration project has featured the removal of 3000 truckloads of earth (12,000 cubic meters), the planting of 12 hectares of lawn, the re-setting and alignment of over 3,000 km of path edging, the preparation by some 60 stonecutters of 2,000 meters of hand-dressed red sandstone slabs (to edge the channels), the creation of 128 ground water recharge pits, the creation of a site exhibition, and the planning and installation of a new water circulation system for the walkway channels.  To ensure that water flows naturally through the channels and pools on the 12-hectare (30 acre) site without the aid of hydraulic systems, the water channels had to be re-laid to an exacting grade of one centimetre every 40 metres (1:4000 scale).  Over 2500 trees and plants, including mango, lemon, neem, hibiscus and jasmine cuttings, were planted in the gardens. Long-dormant fountains have come to life.

Citation

Aga Khan Historic Cities Programme (formerly Historic Cities Support Programme). 2003. Revitalisation of the Gardens of Emperor Humayun's Tomb. Geneva: Aga Khan Trust for Culture

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Aga Khan Trust for Culture

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CC BY-NC-ND

Country

India

Language

English

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