The Madison daily leader. [volume] (Madison, S.D.) 1890-current, 1893-05-24
1T SA CITY OF JANE
A BEAUTIFUL BUT DESERTED PAL
ACE IN NORTHERN INDIA.

the Barbaric Splendor Enjoyed by q
Noble Race of Hindoo Kings Who Lived
Long. Long Before Modern Times.
The renowned and now deserted city
OF Amber. in northwestern India. -four
ished with its countless thousands Of in
habitants and untold wealth and splen-
dor in the time of the Ptolemys.
It Is situated In a mountain nook,
about Eve miles from the present city Of
Jeypoor. and Ii one of midas jeweled
possessions for antiquarians.
The great Amber palace Ia built of
solid red sandstone and ~yariegated Jey-
poor marble and inlaid with costly gems.
Il has stood for centuries as IL now
stands. upon an elevated mountain slope
overlooking q picturesque lake and sur
rounded by steep and rugged fortified
peaks, with the walled and long since
doomed and ruined city below.
The palace Ia q mastery structure OF
Hindoo architecture. solid and secure,
yet ornamental and beautiful Entrance
is gained through a massive and strongly
fortified gate which leads into spacious
central court richly adorned with rare
carvings. mighty trees and Towering
shrubbery.
The grand diwan-i-am or audience hall
ID reached from the spacious court by q
massive fight of carved marble steps.
This hall il q noble example Of Raj-ut-
art. with it's double rows Of shining mar
BILE columns supporting a massive entab-
lature. above which are latticed galleries
Of marble worked in rare designs.
The ceiling is of sculptured freestone,
while the floor is made up Of huge slabs
Of polished marble.
II was upon this floor that the ancient
kings and mobiles of this once royal city
witnessed many gorgeous scenes OF gayety
and cruelty. Here they applauded the
royal tits and sports. and here they re-
viewed the many fierce conflicts between
men and beasts and between royal Ben
gal tigers and noble fighting elephants
in the grand courtyard below.
1t was also upon this spacious floor
that the kings and queens of this ancient
realm gathered together at sunrise every
morning for many centuries to witnessthe
sacrifice of a living human being on that
huge. black. blood besmeared stone altar
in the small royal temple just over there
to the right of this marble hall.
Here they would sit on their gold
woven rugs and hear the dying means
and see and smell the smoke of these
sacrificed victims, in order to appease
las they devoutly believed and believe to
this day. the divine Shiva's wrath.
It is here that one may see every morn
ing in the year an innocent goat burned
alive as a substitute for a human being
as an offering 10 heaven to appease the
~destroyer's anger. How very like our
early biblical history.
From this hall. echoing with memo
ries both gay and sad. we wander
through spacious halls and galleries,
deliberately carved apartments, up and
down long rows Of splendid stairs,
through sculptured gateways covered
with mosaics and doors inlaid in ivory
and precious stones. until we reach the
highest terrace in the palace,
This was exclusively devoted to the
raiah's personal apartments, contrary to
our modern rules Of sanitary arrange
ments. for now VIC place our servants in
the airiest and best ventilated rooms and
remain ourselves in the lowest, dampest
and unhealthiest parts of our houses.
These kingiy apartments are beauti-
fully constructed with marble lattice
windows and pavilions, gilt and carved
ceilings and spacious arched porticoes.
,On our left is the joy mandir, or hall
of victory. adorned by panels of alabas-
ter inlaid with flowers in alto relieve
and ceiling glittering with mirrored and
spangled work. for which Amber was
long renowned, and for which Jeypoor.
its successor, is now justly celebrated.
Opposite this grand hall of victory is
the sukh nawas. or hall of pleasure, with
its doors of sweet scented sandalwood in
laid with ivory and its gorgeous paint
ings Of pleasures on earth and in heaven.
Here are groves from which issue cool,
clear streams Of pure mountain water,
which is perfumed and made to run in
| carved channels the whole length of the
| marble floor to cool the heated atmos.
phere and the gay occupants of this hall.
Adjoining this beautiful hall are the
sumpruous bathing apartments and the
deep. cool pleasure caverns, surrounded
by ferns and rare flowers, where the
kings and queens of this ancient castle
babe defiance to old Soils burning ray!
during midas hottest days.
Here they whiled away their happ,
days amid love and pleasure in an atmos
phere rendered sweet by the aroma O
costly incense. listening to the strains o
Indian music. gazing now and then up
on the beautiful girls as they performed
in scanty attire-as they do to this day
the famous nautch dance of India.
Next to these pleasure halls and grove
are the spacious apartments once occu
pied by the harem-an Indispensable ad
iunct to all eastern palaces.
It was here that the mighty mahara
jah. icy Singh. in the early part of tn
eighteenth century ruled supreme il
this jeweled spot ON earth among hi
hundreds of carefully chosen wives Xix
King David of old.
!, From every hall and terrace, from ey
erv arched PAVILION and cavern lattice