Jantar Mantar




Quick Fact

Location Parliament Street, Connaught Place
Metro Station Patel Chowk
Open All days
Timings Sunrise to Sunset
Entry Fee Rs5 (Indians), Rs 100 (foreigners)
Photography Charges Nil (Rs25 for video filming)
Best Time To Visit October to March

Jantar Mantar, as it is popularly known, is a noteworthy astronomical observatory, the name Jantar Mantar depicting the expression ‘instrument for calculation’. This location houses a colossal Samrat Yantra at its periphery with an amazing instrument called Jai Prakash to the south of that Samrat Yantra.

Jantar Mantar’s Jai Prakash section has two conclave hemispherical structures which are used for determining the geocentric positions of the sun and various other celestial bodies. This famous structure was constructed out of brick rubble and plastered with lime finish. The visitor can also see various other compass instruments inside this awesome location, apart from Samrat Yantra and Jai Prakash. The other instruments include Ram Yantra, Niyati Chakra and Misra Yantra, all these astronomical gadgets of civil construction can be used for arriving at the geocentric position of various planets from the sun’s shade they create at a particular point of time.

This great structure of historical importance, Jantar Mantar is today mired by new office buildings, while this place is looked upon by modern day scholars for ascertaining the positions of the heavenly bodies for astronomical studies.

History

Maharaja Jaisingh II of Jaipur was the one who created Jantar Mantar observatory, when he received directions from the Mughal emperor Muhammad Shah to revise the calendar and tables of astronomy. With this structure, Maharaja Jaisingh completed the job in 1910 AD. However, it was found by researchers that the year of construction of this structure is ought to be 1710 AD, keeping the time of completion of other four that the Jaipur Maharaja had constructed in that period.

Jantar Mantar had been helpful for astronomers and astrologers in those days to gauge the planetary positions and the transit of their exact time during the day, which is done today by the observatories equipped with sophisticated telescopic instruments.

What to See

The structures referred as Samrat Yantra, Ram Yantra, Jayaprakash Yantra, Mishra Yantra etc, each of them having specific purpose of observation of the lords of sky, are important pieces to see in Jantar Mantar at Delhi.

Samrat Yantra is the supreme instrument in this observatory, which is an equal hour sun dial. It is constructed in giant size in the form of a triangle of 70 feet height with 114 feet base and 10 feet thickness, having 128 foot length in its hypotenuse part structured parallel to earth’s axis, pointing towards north pole, while on both sides of this triangular structure, there is a quadrant with calibrations for observing hours, minutes and seconds, which is the basic sun dial in this observatory.

The Jayaprakash Yantra is constructed with hollowed out hemispheres on conclave surfaces of each Yantra. There are markings with Crosswires stretched between points on their rim from this Yantra and also from inside the Ram Yantra, an observer can observe the position of a star by making observations of various calibrations and markings.

For arriving at the midday hour of various cities, the Mishra yantras are made available here for the mathematicians who were able to find when it was noon in those cities spread all over the world. It is learnt that these structures were not developed by Maharaja Jai Singh II, but by someone else in later years.
These are the essential attractions one should see in Jantar Mantar.

How to Reach Jantar Mantar

By Air

Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport has facility for prepaid Taxies and Coach Transfer both air conditioned and non A/C, taking the traveller to the Qutub Minar complex from Airport.

By Rail

New Delhi Railway Station connected with all the parts of the country has kiosks for prepaid taxies and auto rickshaws, besides DTC buses plying from the Railway Station to Qutub Minar complex.

By Road

There are Inter State buses operated from all the major parts of Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh to reach Delhi.

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