Hiran Minar in Fatehpur Sikri

Ancient India never fails to baffle us. While visiting Fatehpur Sikri one cannot miss the not so popular but grand tower of this glorious city “Hiran Minar”. Beautiful but a strange piece of Mughal architecture, the Hiran Minar made in brick, is also popularly known as (Deer tower). It is located in the northern side of Fatehpur Sikri inside the palace of Akbar. One gets a bird’s eye view of the whole of city from the top.

Two stories revolve around this unique monument of Mughal era. First that Akbar built Hiran Tower in the memory of his favorite elephant Hiran and that he was buried under this Minar. Some say that this tower was built by Jahangir in 1606 to honor the memory of a pet hunting antelope named Mansraj. Alternatively, it is also believed that this tower served as a mile post and a light house for the night travelers, on the protruding tusks were hung lamps for generating light at night. It is also called the “Akash Deep” of Fatehpur Sikri. Speculations are endless.

The Exteriors of Hiran Minar in Fatehpur Sikri

Hiran Minar is located in open plains. The base of the tower is a square built in about 22 sq. meters area, then the tower has an octagonal platform up to about 1.2 meters tall which becomes circular straight till the top. The total height of the whole tower is 21.34 meters. The dome is of crown shape and has a circular balcony supported by stone corbels.


This tower is decorated with an alternate row of hexagons and six point stars on the round surface of its exterior. Originally, real elephant tusks were protruding from the center of each star, these are now replaced with stone tusks. From a distance it looks like iron spikes coming out. It is believed that real elephant tusks represent the grandeur and novelty of Mughal Empire.

The Interiors of Hiran Minar in Fatehpur Sikri

In the entrance is a flat door which leads to a staircase. Inside of Hiran Minar are 53 steps of spiral staircase which will take you to the top. History says that this tower was contacted with the palaces around and it was used as a harem for the women and the queens to watch the lake sports, beast fights and wrestling games played in the grounds below.