Jali: Lattice of Divine Light in Mughal Architecture

Jali: Lattice of Divine Light in Mughal Architecture

Navina Najat Haidar • Mapin Publishing Pvt. The

ISBN-10: 9385360744 · ISBN-13: 978‑9385360749 · 2023

Live offer for this book: 6 live copies of this book from $71.05 (as of 2026-09-09).

Dimensions: 11.9 × 9.8 × 1 in

Canonical book record

Completeness 45

Cover quality: good

2manybooks editorial

A jali is a perforated or latticed stone screen, with ornamental patterns that draw on the compositional rhythms of geometry and calligraphy. In the parts of India, western Asia and the Mediterranean where solar rays are strongest and brightest, ustads (or master artisans) were able to evolve an aesthetic language of light, giving it form and shape through lattices of stone and other materials. Jalis share a common aim of bringing filtered light into enclosed spaces, while providing protection and privacy. The expansive volume covers more than two hundred jalis across India, from the temple-inspired designs of the Gujarat Sultanate to imperial symbolism and Sufi allusions in Mughal jalis, the innovations and adaptations of jalis across Rajasthan and central India and, further south, calligraphy in pierced stone in the Deccan. With contributions by Mitchell Abdul Karim Crites, George Michell, and Ebba Koch, this lavishly illustrated publication reveals the poetry etched in these stone screens.

Book metadata

Marketplace observations

6 live copies of this book from $71.05 (as of 2026-09-09).

Contributors

Community tags

Inferred themes

Machine-inferred from catalog text. Not verified subjects.

Stored catalog notes

Community signals

Have: 12 · Like: 6 · Rating: 4.0 / 5 (8)