Diwan-I-Khas
Diwan-I-Khas
- Diwan-i-Khaas, or the Hall of Private Audience is the most distinctive of the administrative buildings built at Fatehpur Sikri.
- It is not a large structure, but it is conceived in an unusual manner.
- Externally, the structure is a rectangle in plan with two storeys having a flat terraced roof with pillared kiosks rising over each corner.
- The interior arrangements are quite unique. It is a single chamber whose principal feature is a large pillar occupying the central position with a massive expanding capital supporting a circular stone platform.
- From the platform, stone bridges radiate along each diagonal of the hall to connect with hanging galleries which surround its upper portion.
- The idea behind this arrangement is that the Emperor would occupy the central position while presiding over the representatives from various religious communities gathered there.
- The shaft of the central pillar branches out into 36 voluted and pendulous brackets carrying the throne platform.