Telangana360

Gulzar Houz is a octagonal-shaped fountain with a five-feet central fountain with three saucers and a four feet pedestal has a lamp post located at Gulzar Houz Chowk, near Charminar in the Old City, Hyderabad, Telangana, India. The Gulzar Houz was built as Hyderabad’s foundational monument in 1591 by Mohd Quli Qutb Shah, the city’s founder. The Gulzar Houz was originally called ‘Char Su Ka Houz’ (fountain of the four sides) and was built as a drinking water fountain for locals of the city. However, after the destruction of Hyderabad in 1687 by Mughal emperor Aurangzeb, and subsequently with the Nizams coming in (1724) as governors of the Decan, changes were made to Gular Houz. The old massive structure was eventually broken down to what it is today. After the completion of Charminar, at about 75 metres feet to its north, four lofty arches known as Char Kaman were built in 1592. All four arches are at equidistant with each other with Gulzar Houz in the Centre. These arches were built by...

Kolanupaka Sri Someswara Temple or Sri Chandikamba Sametha Someshwaraswami temple as called by locals is a Shiva Templelocated in kolanupaka village (also called as Kulpak), Alair or Aler Mandal, Yadadri Bhuvanagiri district in Telangana State, India. The main deity of the temple is lord Shiva in the form of Swayambu or Someshwara Swamy, and his consort is Shakti or devi Chandika. There is a huge Saharsalinga inside one of the temple sanctums, which gives it the name of Veyi Lingala gudi, meaning the temple of the thousand lingas.  The temples in the complex include those of Sri Renukacharya, Sri Mallikarjunaswami, Chandeshwari, Kundamamba, Kotilingeswaraswami, Kala Bhairaviswami, Anjaneya, Rudranidraswami, Veerabhadraswami, Kumaraswami and the Ekadasharudrula temple. The temple has Ganapathi and Nataraja idols and Mahavir in yoga posture of the Chalukya period in the 12th century. This Shiva temple is situated around 82 km from Warangal and located near Kulpak ji, a famous Jain te...

Gangapuram Chenna Keshava Swamy Temple is located in Gangapuram Village, Jadcherla Mandal, Mahabubnagar district, Telangana State, India. Built in 1042 AD is one of the important temples existing in South India and it is mentioned in Skandha Purana. This place is located about 5 Kms from Jadcherla towards Kalwakurthy in Mahabubnagar District.  The place became very famous during the reign of Chalukya kings of Badami. The Chalukya king of Kalyani Sri Thrailokya Malla Somwswarudu (1042 A.D. to 1063 A.D.) built Kesava Swamy Temple.  From then this place was known as Kesavapuram. Earlier it was called as Mayapuram, Mathsyapuram and dhurithapuram etc. the main deity of this temple is Sri Kesava Swmay and the sculpture here is very attractive. There is an evidence of Jaina Kalamukha and shiva religions spread here. Every year festival of this temple will be celebrated on the day of Radhasapthami and people participate in this event on a large scale. Sri Chenna Kesava Swamy is the pr...

Gollatha Temple is a holy shrine for Jains located near Alvanpalli village, Jadcherla Mandal of Mahabubnagar District, Telangana State, India. Alvanpalli (Gollathagudi) village is located about 10 km from Jadcherlatown and nearly 30 km from the district headquarters of Mahabubnagar. It is well accessible by road.  According to the department of archaeology and museums, there are only two ancient structures in the country built of bricks. While one lies in total ruin at Gollatha Gullu in Alwanpally in Jadcherla, the other is the oldest Hindu temple built during the Gupta period located at Bhitargaon, Kanpur district in Uttar Pradesh. The Gollatha Gullu, near the is a unique temple and stands amid an empty space with a wall around it and a locked gate. Built entirely of bricks, this temple stands as a model for brick technology of the time, according to ancient texts. A familiar blue board lets us know that it is under the protection of the archaeology department, but it is obviousl...

Rock art is a form of landscape art that includes designs that have been placed on boulder and cliff faces, cave walls and ceilings, and on the ground surface. Petroglyphs are rock carvings (rock paintings are called pictographs) made by pecking directly on the rock surface using a stone chisel and a hammerstone.  Of all the questions with regard to rock art the most problematic is its dating. For the relative dating of rock art the following aspects are taken into consideration.  They are: 1. Thematic content 2. Superimposition 3. State of preservation 4. Colour scheme 5. Archaeological evidence. 1. Thematic content The thematic content in the rock art of Telangana mainly consists of animal figures such as deer species, humped bull (Bos indicus), hare, rabbit , mangoose, porcupine, dog, tiger etc., and birds such as peacock, human and anthropomorphic figures, hand prints and geometric figures. The thematic content of the paintings and also the petroglyphs, is useful for under...

Hero stones, also known as Veeragallu, are a type of memorial stone that are commonly found in the Telugu region of India. They are typically erected in memory of a brave warrior or hero who died in battle or while defending their community. The history of hero stones in the Telugu region can be traced back to the early medieval period, with the earliest known examples dating back to the 5th century CE. These early hero stones were primarily made of granite and were typically adorned with intricate carvings and inscriptions detailing the deeds and accomplishments of the person being honored.Over time, the tradition of erecting hero stones spread throughout the Telugu region and became a common practice among various communities. The inscriptions on these stones were usually in the form of poetry, and many of them are considered to be important historical records of the culture and society of the time.In addition to honoring warriors and heroes, hero stones were also used to commemorate...

Mudumal Niluvu Raallu are an arrangement of menhirs that dates back to 5000 BC located in Mudumal village, Krishna Mandal, Narayanpet district of Telangana State, India.  Spread across nearly 89 acres, there are close to 80 tall menhirs of 10 to 14 feet height, accompanied by nearly 3,000 alignment stones. Historians and archeologists believe as the only megalithic site in India, where a depiction of star constellation has been identified. This site has three kinds of burial set-ups which indicate presence of a social division and the practice of revering the departed souls. The Menhirs also offer insight into how observant and scientific the community was as the Menhirs appear to be tracking the sun’s movement. Based on the kind of shadow cast and based on the location of the sun at sunrise the people in those days might have determined seasons and planned agriculture activities. Experts have found an inscription of the Ursa Major constellation on a flat rock here. “This is the on...

The Turquoise Throne (Telugu: Vaiḍhurya simhasanam) was originally covered with an gold and turquoise enamel was a famous jewel-studded throne of Warangal which became royal throne Takht-i-Firoza (Hindustani: Takht-e-firoza) of the Bahmani Sultans of Deccan in India.  March 23, 1363 : Warangal goldsmiths had a reputation for jewellery making. It was a gift by Musunuri Kapaya Nayaka, then king of Warangal. Over a period of time, this throne became one of the most important icons of the Bahmani royalty and heritage Telangana region was liberated by Musunuri Nayaks in the early 1330s. Nearly after three decades, the King of Telangana (or Warangal) Kapaya Nayaka came up with a proposal that caught the imagination of the Bahmani sultan. Kapaya Nayaka agreed to present the Bahmani with such a wonderful gift that is worthy only to be offered to a great king if they accept a truce and fix a frontier between the two kingdoms. This came after Nagadeva, son of Kapaya Nayaka was brutally kille...

1350 AD – 1518 AD : Bahmani Sultanate / Kingdom (1347 AD - 1527 AD) Founder : Zafar Khan or Hasan Gangu or Allauddin Hassan or Ala-ud-Din Bahman ShahCapitals : Kalaburgi /Aḥsanabad now Gulbarga (1347–1425), Muhammadabad now Bidar (1425–1527) Religion: Sunni Islam Languages : Persian, Marathi, Deccani Urdu, Telugu, Kannada Hassan Gangu founded the Bahmani Kingdom. Allauddin Hassan was born in 1290 A.D. into the noble family of Ghor. Political turmoils ruined the family, which forced him to go to Multan. From Multan he came to Delhi where on the banks of the Yamuna he was met by a brahmin astrologer, Gango Pandit, who invited him to be his guest. Gango Pandit,to support Hassan gave him a piece of land, a pair of oxen and two labourers to assist him. While working in the fields one day, Hassan discovered a treasure and informed the Pandit immediately,. The Pandit, a royal astrologer, who was close to Mohammed Bin Tughlak,the heir prince,was impressed by Hassan’s honesty and informed him a...

1518 - 1687 : Qutb Shahi dynasty or Golconda or Golkonda Sultanate Founder : Sultan Quli Khawas Khan Hamdani or Sultan Quli Qutb-ul-Mulk Capitals : Golconda (1519 - 1591), Hyderabad (1591 - 1687) Languages: Persian, Telugu, Deccani Urdu Religion: Shia Islam Qutb Shahis were descendants of Qara Yusuf from Qara Qoyunlu of Hamadan province of Persia, originally a Turkoman Muslim tribe. The dynasty's founder, Sultan Quli Khawas Khan Hamdani was born in Hamadan Province, Iran. 1496 : He originally served the Bahmani sultan Mahmood Shah Bahmani II, and was awarded the title Qutb-ul-Mulk (Pillar of the Realm) as military chief and was made the tarafdar of Golconda in 1496. After the collapse of Bahmani Sultanate, he eventually took control of Golconda and the Qutb Shahi dynasty was established in 1518 AD by Sultan-Quli Qutb-ul-Mulk, better known though less correctly referred to in English as "Quli Qutb Shah". 1518 AD - 1543 AD : Sultan Quli Qutb-ul-Mulk Sultan Quli Qutb Shah wa...

Kaulas or Kowlas Fort is located in Kaulas Village, Jukkal mandal, Kamareddy District, Telangana State, India , at the border of three states – Telangana, Karnataka and Maharashtra. Kaulas or Koulas village, which holds the illustrious past like a jewel in the crown, presently a gram panchayat, falls under Jukkal mandal. However, locals say that the fort has been empty for decades now but sees many visitors. In the past there kingdoms Kaulas, Bodhan and Nizamabad were called Indur. Spread across 6 sq km with two entrances, Kaulas is perhaps one of the largest royal forts in the state. The mega fort sits majestically on the outskirts of Kaulas village, less than 1 km from the main village, and is surrounded by the Kaulas nala (stream). According to historians, it was built in Indra IV’s period of the Rashtrakuta dynasty in their political capital and was later captured by the Chalukyas of the Kalyani dynasty in the third quarter of the 10th century before it was captured by the Kakatiya...

1687 AD - 1724 AD : Mughal Empire (1526–1857) Founder : Babur (reigned 1526–1530), a Central Asian ruler who was descended from the Turco-Mongol conqueror Timur (the founder of the Timurid Empire) on his father's side, and from Genghis Khan on his mother's side. Capitals: Agra (1526–1530; 1560–1571; 1598–1648), Delhi (1530–1540; 1554–1556; 1639–1857), Lahore (1586–1598), Fatehpur Sikri (1571–1585) The four sons of Shah Jahan (ruled 19 January 1628 –31 July 1658) all held governorships during their father's reign. In 1632, Shah Jahan captured the fortress at Daulatabad, Maharashtra and imprisoned Husein Shah of the Nizam Shahi Kingdom of Ahmednagar. Golconda submitted in 1635 and then Bijapur in 1636.  1636 : Shah Jahan appointed Aurangzeb as the viceroy of the Deccan in 1636 and forced the Qutb Shahis to recognize Mughal suzerainty,  In 1644, Aurangzeb's sister, Jahanara, was burned when the chemicals in her perfume were ignited by a nearby lamp while in Agra. This ...