Qutb Minar : The imposing buildings in the Qutb Minar complex (Rs 10, Monday closed) date from the onset of Islamic rule in India and are fine examples of early Afghan architecture. The Qutb Minar itself is a soaring tower of victory that was started in 1193, immediately after the defeat of the last Hindu Kingdom in Delhi. It's 72.6 m high and tapers from a 15 m diameter base to just 2.5 m at the top.

Bus No 505 from Ajmeri gate of New Delhi station will take you to Qutb Minar at Rs 10.

The tower has five distinct stories, each marked by a projecting balcony. The first three stories are made of red sandstone, the 4 th and 5 th stories are of marble and sandstone. Although Qutb ud din began construction of the tower, he only got to the 1 st storey. His successors completed it and, in 1368, Firoz Shah rebuilt the top storeys and added a cupola. An earthquake brought the cupola down in 1803 and an Englishman replaced it with another in 1829. However, that dome was deemed inappropriate and was removed later.

Today, this impressively ornate tower has a slight tilt, but otherwise has worn the centuries remarkably well. It's no longer possible to climb the tower.

Quwwat ul Islam Masjid : At the foot of the Qutb Minar stands the first mosque to be built in India, the Might of Islam mosque. Qutb ud din began construction of the mosque in 1193, but it has had various additions and extensions over the centuries. The original mosque was built on the foundation of a Hindu temple, and an inscription over the west gate states that it was built with materials obtained from demolishing 27 idolatrous temples. Many of the elements in the mosque's construction indicate their Hindu or Jain origins.

Altamish, Qutb ud din's son in law, surrounded the original mosque with a cloistered court between 1210 and 1220. Ala ud din added a court to the east and the magnificent Alai Darwaza gateway in 1300.

Iron Pillar : The 7 m high pillar stands in the courtyard of the mosque and it has been here long before the mosque's construction. A six line Sanskrit inscription indicated that it was initially erected outside a Vishnu temple, possible in Bihar, and was raised in memory of Chadragupta II, who ruled from AD 375 to 413.

What the inscription does not tell is how it was made, for the iron in the pillar is of quite exceptional purity. Scientists have never discovered how the Iron, which has not rusted after 2000 years, could be cast using the technology of time.

It was said that if you can stand with your back to the pillar and encircle it with your arms your wish will be granted; however, the pillar is now protected by a fence.

Alai Minar : When Ala ud din made his additions to the mosque, he also conceived a far more ambitious construction programme. He would build a second tower of victory, exactly like the Qutb Minar, except of would be twice as high!. By the time of his death the tower has reached 27 m and no one was willing to continue the project. The incomplete tower stands to the north of the Qutb Minar and the mosque.

Ala ud din's Alai darwaza gateway is the main entrance to the whole complex. It waa built of red sandstone in 1310 and stands just southwest of the Qutb Minar. The tomb of Imam Zamin is beside the gateway, while the tomb of Altamish, who died in 1235, is by the northwestern corner of the mosque. The largely ruined madrasa of Ala ud din stands at the rear of the complex.