Sunday, May 24, 2009

Cluttered with history...



Most flood-plains have been fought over through humankind. Uttar Pradesh is no different - its long history remains in bits and pieces on the landscape showing up in unexpected ways. Here are three examples.

On the top is a structure in Hardoi district that locals claim was used by travellers to rest. Today, farmland has hemmed it in - a bubble of the past resisting today.

In the middle is a property marker in Lucknow district - used by land-lords to indicate the borders of their lands. Intricacy of markers reveals the owner's stature. This one is beside a lovely pond full of reeds and bird life. There will be more features on markers on this blog.

And finally, some tomb-stones in Rae Bareli district, the crumbling old with the already-ageing new, reminding one of the onion that Uttar Pradesh is - layers upon layers of time.

Unfortunately, spare little is being done to preserve, highlight, or restore these classics.

2 comments:

  1. Well, with a mosque to raze and another temple to build, do you think they even had the time to think about these 'ruins'?

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  2. that looks like a mini Taj Mahal that has been neglected by decades, I bet there must be a lot of birds and some other animals, insects living there. Neat photos by the way!

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