Site 3: Zalamkot

The HDZ I monument, known simply as "Takht" (throne), commonly takes its name from Zalamkot, a small village. It is what remains of a Brahmanical temple from the Shahi period. From now on, the area must be more correctly referred to as Hati-dara (site 3) named after the homonymous valley on the northern flank of an imposing mountain range (site 4). The lower podium (made of isodomic block masonry) served to level out the slope or escarpment along which the monument was built. On the north side, the podium stands over 3 meters high. The monument's upper podium (approx. 14 x 23 m, with a lost staircase on the east side) was characterized by a thick torus molding running along the entire building, interrupted on the east side where the projecting body framed the entrance (staircase). Above the torus is a smooth wall marked by a series of false pilasters ending in a series of false brackets. Above this stood the elevation of the cella (the temple proper), of which conspicuous parts of the architectural decoration remain. Pilasters with pseudo-Ionic floral capitals, surmounted by a second band decorated with a smaller torus and figured metopes (Ganesha, Varaha-Vishnu) flanked by half-columns. The capitals and the upper parts of the figures formed part of a third band. A fourth band was formed by smaller, closed pillars, surmounted by a fifth band with capitals and projecting architectural elements topped by a row of dentils. The dome formed the upper section, with an unknown height and profile that might have been formally analogous to those of the contemporary architectural school of Kashmir. The monument is dated to the 8th–10th century CE.

Luca M. Olivieri, "Along the Elephant’s Road: The Takht of Zalamkot"

6 MB

The monument is located within a well-defended area (HDZ VI) with bastions and urban gates (HDZ IV-V). The defended area (approx. 40 hectares) includes residential quarters (HDZ II, where several square brick tiles with floral motifs were found among numerous artifacts), monumental buildings, peridotite and "kanjur" quarries (two very different building materials, both used during the Shahi period), three springs, a large masonry well (HDZ VII), a step-well or cistern over 20 meters long (HDZ VII), and, at the centre, the HDZ I monument. This grand and well-fortified inhabited centre strategically controls the great road known as Hati-lar (cfr. site 4). IThe site is identified as the city of "Jayapālanagara" (city of Jayapaladeva, the last Shahi ruler – see site 1) n the bilingual Persian-Sanskrit inscription of Zalamkot.

"The Mosque of the Forgotten City: The Bilingual Inscription of Zalamkot Revisited" by Ehsan Shavarebi with a contribution by Ingo Strauch

50 KB

Notably, the inscription mentions that this is the city where, on June 19, 1011, the "kotwāl Bektāš" built a mosque by order and with funds from the Amīr of Ṭūs (now in north-eastern Iran). The area of the ancient mosque has not yet been identified.

Foto gallery