Monday, January 2, 2012

Castle Mandwa, Shekhawati

Castle Mandwa at Mandwa in the Shekhawati Region was build in 1755 by Thakur Nawal singh, a descendant of Rao Shekha, the founder of Shekhawati. In those days this was fortress and now it is converted into a luxury hotel.



Two imposing gateways lead to the central courtyard where cannons stand as a reminder of the past when they were used to repel the enemy.



The palace in the fort hosts beautiful fresco paintings. Mostly vegetable pigments were used for coloring. Some of the main ingredients are kajal for black, lime for white, neel for blue, geru for red, kesar for orange, yellow clay for yellow. Family portraits, antique cannons and arms add to the charm of this palace.

51 comments:

  1. Imposing structure ..Colorful interiors are inviting..

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  2. Wonderful post .The second picture is gorgeous.
    Wish you and yours A Happy New Year ,Rajesh .

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  3. A hotel filled with history, super nice! :-)
    Year of the Dragon

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  4. The second photo is exquisite, Rajesh!

    Kay, Alberta, Canada
    An Unfittie’s Guide to Adventurous Travel

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  5. Nice to know about this place .

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  6. Amazing structure. Happy New Year!

    Museum

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  7. Marvelous shot.

    Redefining Oblivion wishes you a Very Happy, Healthy, Prosperous and Purposeful 2012, and beyond.

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  8. an impressive fortress. it must quite an experience to stay in this hotel.

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  9. Beautiful palace!
    happy new Year to you and your family:)

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  10. Extraordinary! My city is so new, there's nothing more than a few decades old in it.

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  11. Another great post!! Boom & Gary of the Vermilon River, Canada.

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  12. What a beautiful, amazing place, Rajesh! I do love the fresco paintings! Amazing! Great look at your world for the new year!

    Sylvia

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  13. What an interesting post, I really enjoyed learning what is the natural source for the different colours.;))
    Happy New Year, may 2012 be a prosperous one for you and yours.;)
    xoxo

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  14. Very beautiful place inside and out. Happy New Year.

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  15. A lovely fort and palace. Great to see the interior and thank you for the information on the paints used. From the photo alone, it looked like intricate tile work.

    A wonderful New Year to you with many more pictures of the historical wonders of your country!

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  16. Thanks for these sights.

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  17. The charming interior is a surprise, the exterior looks so run down.

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  18. Colorful work around the photographs is awesome!

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  19. Beautiful photos. Have a fabulous week.

    Liz @ MLC
    Liz @ MCN

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  20. Very beautiful designs and nice to learn they use vegetable pigments for colouring. Happy New Year to you and your family, may 2012 be a better year for all of us. :)

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  21. Yes, the interiors look very interesting though the outside has a worn down look, thanks to loss of colour!

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  22. Anonymous12:27

    Wow - what a fabulous, ornate interior!

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  23. Berautiful. Shekhawati is a very important area. All Shekhawats are from that region. A very happy New Year to you and your family.

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  24. shekhawati is called open air art gallery...i have been wanting to visit this region for long time...lets see when it happens!!

    http://sushmita-smile.blogspot.com/

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  25. Gorgeous buildings and the paintings in the room are amazing. Thanks for sharing.

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  26. Very beautiful, Rajesh! Thanks for all the beautiful buildings of your great country, you showed us. May this new year bring you fortune and above all happiness!

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  27. what a beautiful castle :-) great walls pictures too :-) Visiting from Mellow Yellow Monday, hope that you can return the visit too.

    http://www.mommies2ks.com/2012/01/a-gift-card-for-my-kids-school-bus-driver.html

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  28. This is an awesome post indeed.Great clicks too.Keep up your good work.

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  29. That's quite a conversion.

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  30. a yard that has a worn beauty.
    ROG, ABC Wednesday team

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  31. Quite a contrast between the outside and inside. Happy New Year,

    Leslie
    abcw team

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  32. Lovely. Never heard of this place before.

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  33. Nice pictures. A beautiful castle.

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  34. Very imposing on the outside but so delicate and beautiful on the inside. Great post for Y.

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  35. I adore all of the temples and other structures you have shared with us this year, but this one is something new and awesome. Loved learning about the use of vegetable pigments for the colors. What a might fortress this was and continues to be even if it is a fancy hotel. My, would I love staying there for a night....$$$$$$$! Great post this week. genie

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  36. What a beautiful place to visit! Beautiful shots.

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  37. A wondrous and magnificent palace. Your commentary on the vegetable pigments used for paints was very interesting and new to me. Seems I always learn something visiting your blog!

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  38. Beautiful and the use of the vegetable pigments is so interesting -- I am glad you listed them. It is lovely to think about how those natural materials can be used to make such remarkable art.

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  39. A much better use now there are no enemies to repel. I'd love to stay there, even if only to see all the frescos (such an interesting process).

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  40. Wish you and your family a very Happy New Year.
    You are welcome at my new posts-
    http://urmi-z-unique.blogspot.com
    http://amazing-shot.blogspot.com
    Absolutely gorgeous pictures. I liked the second picture very much.

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  41. As usual,a great place and great photos.

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  42. Beautiful, lovely photos..

    Visiting for MYM!!! Here's my share- hope you can stop by:)

    http://www.loveablecassandra.com/2011/12/little-artist-in-the-making.html

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  43. Thanks for all the appreciation.

    Many such palaces are converted into heritage hotels or museums so that they can be maintained by respective groups.

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  44. Wow..Amazing place..Excellent pictures..:-)

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  45. Very beautiful place, love the interiors - very charming.

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  46. Amazing frescos....so beautiiful :)

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  47. Good set of photos.

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  48. Anonymous11:12

    just awesome .......

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  49. Thank you for appreciation. It is a heritage hotel now.

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