Intricate red stone palace
History,  Rajasthan,  Ten photos

Around the world in ten photos: day seven

An abandoned city

There is something about a tale of an abandoned city that tugs at the imagination, and this one is no different. Here among the remnants of an emperor’s glory you can still discover riches, and the sense of a world that existed only briefly and is long gone.

Margaret of From Pyrenees to Pennines and Teresa of My Camera & I have both invited me to join them and other bloggers to post one favourite travel picture a day for ten days without explanation, then each day, nominate someone new to join in on the same terms. I don’t usually post a single photo on my blog; I like to tell a story. But for this challenge I’ll resist that temptation and instead play a guessing game with you all. So, does anyone know the name of this city? I’ll post the answer along with tomorrow’s photo.

Intricate red stone palace

And the answer is, the walled city of Fatehpur Sikri near Agra. Here the third Mughal emperor Akbar built his new capital over a period of fifteen years, only to abandon it soon after its completion due to a lack of water at the site. Much of what remains is in ruins; but Akbar’s palace and some other buildings still stand, testament to his ambition and to his love of architecture and the arts.

I realise not everyone likes to be nominated for this sort of thing so I’m not nominating any more people. But if anyone else would like to join in the fun, please link back to this post as I’d love to see your photos!

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