Monumental Matters: The Power, Subjectivity, and Space of India’s Mughal Architecture

229 Pages·2011·1.64 MB·English

by  Santhi Kavuri-Bauer

monumental matters
monumental
mat ters
The Power, Subjectivity, and Space
of India’s Mughal Architecture
Santhi Kavuri-Bauer
Duke University Press | Durham and London | 2011
© 2011 Duke University Press
All rights reserved
Printed in the United States of America on acid-free paper ∞
Designed by April Leidig-Higgins
Typeset in Garamond Premier Pro by Copperline Book Services, Inc.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data appear on the
last printed page of this book.
In memory of my father,
Raghavayya V. Kavuri

contents

Acknowledgments ix
Introduction 1
1 Breathing New Life into Old Stones:
The Poets and Artists of the Mughal Monument
in the Eighteenth Century 19
2 From Cunningham to Curzon:
Producing the Mughal Monument in the Era of
High Imperialism 49
3 Between Fantasy and Phantasmagoria:
The Mughal Monument and the Structure
of Touristic Desire 76
4 Rebuilding Indian Muslim Space from the
Ruins of the Mughal “Moral City” 95
5 Tryst with Destiny:
Nehru’s and Gandhi’s Mughal Monuments 127
6 The Ethics of Monumentality in
Postindependence India 145
Epilogue 170
Notes 179
Bibliography 197
Index 207

acknowledgments
This book is the result of over ten years of research, writing, and discus-
sion. Many people and institutions provided support along the way to the
book’s final publication. I want to thank the UCLA International Institute and
Getty Museum for their wonderful summer institute, “Constructing the Past
in the Middle East,” in Istanbul, Turkey in 2004; the Getty Foundation for
a postdoctoral fellowship during 2005–2006; and the Graham Foundation
for Advanced Studies in the Fine Arts Grant Award for a subvention grant
toward the costs of publishing this book. I would also like to thank my home
institution, San Francisco State University (SFSU), for providing me with a
Presidential Award for Professional Development in 2007, and SFSU deans
Keith Morrison and Ron Compesi for making my professional leaves possible
and for their encouragement.
My mentors at UCLA were a constant source of support for my research.
Robert L. Brown, my dissertation advisor, offered me his enthusiasm, trust,
and unwavering encouragement. Irene Bierman-McKinney’s passion for Is-
lamic architecture and her innovative approaches to its study helped me dis-
cover my love for Mughal architecture and shaped this project. I also thank
Donald Preziosi, Swati Chattopadhyay, Robert Nelson, and Tapati Guha-
Thakurta for their guidance at different stages of my research and writing.
In India the American Institute of Indian Studies (AIIS) facilitated my
travel and provided me with a place to stay and exchange ideas with fellow
researchers while in New Delhi. At the Indian National Trust for Art and
Cultural Heritage (INTACH) I wish to thank Jahnwij Sharma and Ashis
Banerjee. Dr. R.C. Agrawal at the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), and
the staff at AIIS helped open both front and back doors at the Mughal monu-
ments. Mr. R.K. Dhiksit and Mr. R.L. Kohli in the Agra Office of the ASI
afforded me the rare opportunity to observe the behind the scenes activities
at the Taj Mahal and the Agra Fort. The staff at the National Archive, the
Nehru Memorial Library, and the Delhi State Archives extended their help
and guidance in accessing collections. I also thank Purnima Mehta, Amita
Baig, Adnan Khan, O.P. Mahour, and Radheshyam Gola.