Gujarat
Khushboo Gujarat Ki (The Fragrance of Gujarat)
MightyHikers
Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj & Chhatrapati
Shambhaji Maharaj ki jai……
Rani ki Vav Temple (Patan) (Gujarat):
LOCATION: 654 kms from Mumbai, 789 kms from Pune .
BEST TIME TO VISIT: Any time throughout year.
Introduction:
Rani ki Vav is one the architectural marvels which
have got a prominent place not only in the history and architectural books but
also on 100 rupees note of India. Rani ki Vav is located in Patan in Gujarat
and until you see Rani ki Vav in real life it would be extremely difficult to
relate to the grandeur of this architecture. Rani ki Vav is not only a stepwell
but it is also referred to as the Inverted temple.
In Gujarati Vav means stepwell and in English Rani means queen which literally translates to The Stepwell of Queen. I heard of names like Agrasen ki Baoli then you can replace the word Baoli to Vav in Gujarati and the meaning remains the same. Baoli in Rajasthani is called stepwell.
Logic behind building Stepwells built in India?
Stepwells were mainly created in the dry and arid regions of Gujarat & Rajasthan to store water. The water table was low in these areas and hence they had to dig a little deeper to get the water. To reach the water normal steps used to be created so that people can take the staircase and reach the well to fetch water. In the initial days, the step wells were not ornate.
Over the period of time, the stairs/steps were made stronger by expanding them over length and breadth.
Over the centuries the design of these step wells became more complex with various levels and steps.
Since it was believed to be auspicious to create a step well and many step wells were created to commemorate the dead, the design of the well became more ornate. The kings built more complex step-wells with complex architecture and designs on the well. The step wells became a symbol of opulence and a medium to show architectural prowess over the years.
construction
Rani ki Vav was constructed using the Maru-Gurjara style of architecture which was prevalent during the Chaulukya period. Maru Gurjara style of architecture consists of high plinths and highly decorated walls. The walls had carvings of figures of Gods and Goddess, rosetta ceilings and balconies open to all directions.
The builders first dug trenches in the earth to go deeper to find the water and while doing so they constructed a staircase so that it becomes easier to reach the well. The walls of the trench were also built so that the structure don’t collapse from the sides. To make the structure strong the architects and builders also added buffer structure behind the walls of Rani ki Vav so that it can withstand the pressure of the earth. The wall which is visible from outside is extremely thick and is hidden inside the earth.
The builders also spilt up the walls to create terraces which were later converted into Pillar pavilions. This was done to provide further strength to the structure and also acted as a resting place and place where villagers will come and sit and chat for hours.
Also, multiple steps would be created and the main advantage of it is to create walls with smaller heights thus giving the structure more strength.
In a similar fashion, multiple layers and pillar pavilion was constructed for Rani ki Vav. There were 7 layers in Rani ki Vav however now only 5 layers exist.
Architecture
Rani ki Vav is spread over 12 acres of land and the Rani ki Vav is 64 meters long, 20 meters wide and 27 meters deep. The 4th layer is the deepest layer with space for storing water.
Rani ki Vav is designed like an inverted temple which the 7th Layer is the core of the temple. Gods are adorned on the wall of the Rani ki Vav which we will discuss in detail here later. There are four spacious pavilions, 500 Primary sculptures of Gods & 1000 secondary sculptures. Due to the presence of deities and water being worshipped earlier, it is believed to be also a temple. The sidewalls of rani ki vav are ordained with multiple figures of Gods whose approximate size is 3 ¼ feet.
Water entered through the opening of the Circular Well and depending on the season a particular layer will get filled up with water. During the rainy season and during floods water would fill up to Layer 3 or Layer 4 and during the dry and arid season water would recede to Layer 6 or 7 when people had to go all the way down to get water.
When you stand at the top of the Rani ki Vav( near layer 1) you will be able to see the layers clearly and the use of staircase at various places. However since it’s a huge structure they constructed small stairs or supplementary stairs which connected the 4th to the 7th floor, this was done so that the people don’t have to take the main staircase to navigate between the layers which can be time taking and tiresome as well. You will be able to see small pyramid-like stairs on every floor on Rani ki Vav which connects various floors. These small stairs not only helps to navigate the structure easily but looks beautiful when seen from far.
Initially, there were 292 pillars out of which only 226 are remaining. The First and second stages don’t have any pillars anymore due to damages, however when you reach Layer 3 and below of Rani ki Vav stepwell, you will be able to see the pillars decorated with deities and also apsaras. The pillars of Stage 3 and above are well protected from damage. The side panels of Rani ki Vav have deities whereas the pillars are ordained with Apsaras.
The Kund of Rani ki Vav stepwell is one of the largest you could see in any stepwell and is one of the prominent structures of Rani Ki vav. The Kund of Rani Ki Vav is approximately 7 meters in length, 6 meters in breadth and 3 meters deep. The Kund is connected with the well so that any excess water of the well can fill it up during the rainy season. It also helped to stop the flooding of the well and the structure overall and provided easy access to water for the locals during the rainy season. The kind also acted as a water reservoir to store water during the dry season.
We couldn’t see it, however, research and documents show that’s the slabs on the floors of the Kund area of Rani ki Vav shows various markings and numbers written on them to align the slabs. This clearly shows the care it has been taken to build the stepwell of Rani ki Vav.
Also if you look at the structure you will see horizontal, vertical or criss-cross marks which looks like chisel marks on the walls of the Rani Ki Vav stepwell. These are called Masonry marks which you can find in many historical structures. These marks are done by the masons to show which parts they have worked on so that they can get be paid accordingly.
You will be able to see approx. two-story-high structure builds on top of the reservoir. This was done as an afterthought of building the Rani ki Vav stepwell as the builders felt that the depth of the reservoir can make the entire structure of the Rani ki Vav Stepwell weak, hence they added these pillars and frames.
The pillars are not different from what we find in other parts of the Rani ki Vav stepwell. The historians conclude that since the designs and the construction of the Pillars are similar hence it was constructed during the same time as building Rani ki Vav stepwell. Due to these additional pillars, you will not be able to see the well or the reservoir from any angle and hence the beauty of the reservoir nor the well cant be seen. The builders had designed a very ornate well and reservoir, however since these pillars were added later in Rani ki Vav the designs couldn’t be seen.
The main part of Rani ki Vav is the well which can only be seen now from the other side of the stepwell. The well is approximately 28 meters in-depth and the diameter is 10 meters. The wall of the well is ordained with beautiful sculptures however due to the building of the pillars to reinforce the structures it is not visible from the fourth level. The well was fed by the river Saraswati from all sides and once the well got filled up, the water used to overflow to the Kind area.
How to reach Rani Ki Vav Temple
By Road: Mehsana (55 Km), Gandhinagar (110 Km) and Ahmedabad (128 km) through road network.
By Train: Patan Junction, which is around 4 km from Rani Ki Vav and it takes about 10 Minutes to reach.
By Air: Ahmedabad Airport is located at a distance of approximately 128 km from Rani Ki vav Temple and it takes about 3 hours to reach.
Opening Hours
Opening Time :07:00:00 am
Closing Time : 09:00:00 pm
Entry Fee:(Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan, Sri Lanka,
Pakistan, Maldives and Afghanistan) and BIMSTEC Countries (Bangladesh, Nepal,
Bhutan, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Myanmar) (SAARC COUNTRY): Rs.35 per head (Cash
Payment).
Other Foreign Visitor: Indian Rs. 550/- per head (Cash
Payment)
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