Jantar Mantar, New Delhi

For other uses, see Jantar Mantar (disambiguation).

Jantar Mantar
Native name Hindi: जंतर मंतर
Misra Yantra at Jantar Mantar
Type	Observatory
Location	New Delhi, India
Elevation	220.6 meters
Founder	Maharaja Jai Singh II
Built	1724
Website	Official website

The Jantar Mantar in 1858, damaged by fighting during the Indian Rebellion of 1857.

The Jantar Mantar is located in the modern city of New Delhi. It consists of 13 architectural astronomy instruments. The site is one of five built by Maharaja Jai Singh II of Jaipur, from 1723 onwards, as he was given by Mughal emperor Muhammad Shah the task of revising the calendar and astronomical tables. There is a plaque fixed on one of the structures in the Jantar Mantar observatory in New Delhi that was placed there in 1910 mistakenly dating the construction of the complex to the year 1710. Later research, though, suggests 1724 as the actual year of construction.

The primary purpose of the observatory was to compile astronomical tables, and to predict the times and movements of the sun, moon and planets. Some of these purposes nowadays would be classified as astronomy.

Completed in 1724, the Delhi Jantar Mantar had decayed considerably by 1867.

Purpose of Individual Structures

There are three instruments within the observatory of Jantar Mantar in New Delhi: the Samrat Yantra, the Jayaprakash, and the Misra Yantra.

Samrat Yantra: The Samrat Yantra, or Supreme Instrument, is a giant triangle that is basically an equal hour sundial. It is 70 feet high, 114 feet long at the base, and 10 feet thick. It has a 128-foot-long (39 m) hypotenuse that is parallel to the Earth's axis and points toward the North Pole. On either side of the triangle is a quadrant with graduations indicating hours, minutes, and seconds. At the time of the Samrat Yantra's construction, sundials already existed, but the Samrat Yantra turned the basic sundial into a precision tool for measuring declination and other related coordinates of various heavenly bodies.
Jayaprakash Yantra: The Jayaprakash consists of hollowed out hemispheres with markings on their concave surfaces. Crosswires were stretched between points on their rim. From inside the Ram, an observer could align the position of a star with various markings or a window's edge.
Misra Yantra: The Misra Yantra was designed as a tool to determine the shortest and longest days of the year. It could also be used to indicate the exact moment of noon in various cities and locations regardless of their distance from Delhi – quite remarkable! The Mishra yantras were able to indicate when it was noon in various cities all over the world and was the only structure in the observatory not invented by Jai Singh II.

Other observatories

Between 1727 and 1734 Jai Singh II built five similar observatories in west-central India, all known by the name Jantar Mantar. They are located at

While the purpose of the Jantar Mantars was astronomy and astrology (Jyotish), they are also a major tourist attraction and a significant monument of the history of astronomy.

Picture gallery

West tower of Samrat Yantra
Center tower Samrat Yantra
East tower Samrat Yantra
Rama Yantra (North of the two Rama Yantras)
Inside view of Rama Yantra 2 of Jantar Mantar
Jantar Mantar was official of 1982 Asian Games. Coins minted in 1982 to commemorate the Asian Games.

References

Introduction www.jantarmantar.org.
Awake (2005). Jantar Mantar An Observatory Without Telescopes. Awake,86 (13),18-20.
Jantar Mantar British Library

External links

Landmarks of Delhi

Religious sites	Bahá'í Lotus Temple Akshardham Jama Masjid Sis Ganj Gurudwara Gurudwara Bangla Sahib Nizamuddin Dargah Laxminarayan Temple

Parks, Gardens	Buddha Jayanti Park Delhi Ridge Lodi Gardens

Architectural sites	Adham Khan's Tomb Bara Gumbad Jantar Mantar Purana Qila Qutub Minar Red Fort Shisha Gumbad Tomb of Humayun Tomb of Safdarjung Tughlaqabad Fort

Notable buildings	Rashtrapati Bhavan India Gate Sansad Bhavan

Plazas	Connaught Place

Topics Hindu temples Museums Neighborhoods Power stations Universities

Delhi topics

History

Government
and localities

Buildings and
landmarks

Economy

Stock Exchange Association

Transport

Air	Indira Gandhi International Airport Safdarjung Airport

Rail	Anand Vihar Terminal Delhi Junction Hazrat Nizamuddin New Delhi Sarai Rohilla Delhi Light Rail Transit Delhi Metro Delhi Monorail Delhi Suburban Railway

Road	Delhi Transport Corporation Inter State Bus Terminals Delhi BRTS

Culture

Sports

Teams	Delhi cricket team Delhi Daredevils Hindustan Football Club New Delhi Heroes FC Delhi United S.C. Delhi Waveriders Delhi Smashers Delhi Dynamos FC Delhi football team Delhi Defenders Delhi Giants Delhi Wizards Garhwal F.C. Dabang Delhi Simla Youngs F.C.

Stadiums	Ambedkar Stadium Chhatrasal Stadium Delhi University Stadium Dr. Karni Singh Shooting Range Ferozshah Kotla Harbax Singh Stadium Indira Gandhi Arena Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium Jamia Millia Islamia University Ground Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium Karnail Singh Stadium Dhyan Chand National Stadium Siri Fort Sports Complex SPM Swimming Pool Complex Talkatora Stadium Thyagaraj Sports Complex Yamuna Sports Complex

Games	1951 Asian Games 1982 Asian Games 1987 Cricket World Cup 1989 Asian Athletics Championships 1996 Cricket World Cup 2010 Commonwealth Games 2010 Hockey World Cup 2011 Cricket World Cup Nehru Cup Delhi Half Marathon

Education

Districts

National Capital
Region (NCR)

Jantar Mantar, New Delhi

Purpose of Individual Structures

Other observatories

Picture gallery

See also

References

Further reading

External links