India Guide
Uttar Pradesh
Bara Imambara
Address: Near Hardinge Bridge in the west of Lucknow
Price: Rs300, ticket includes Hussainabad Imambara
Opening time: Daily 6am–6pm, closed during annual Muharram processions
Chief among several crumbling relics of the nawabs of Avadh in "old" Lucknow, the Great or Bara Imambara boasts one of the largest vaulted halls in the world – 50m long and 15m high. Flat on top, slightly arched inside, and built by Asaf-ud-daula in 1784 without the aid of a single iron or wooden beam, the roof was constructed using a technique known as kara dena, in which bricks are broken and angled to form an interlocking section and then covered with concrete – here several metres thick.
The arcaded structure is approached through what must have been an extravagant gate, now pockmarked and on the verge of collapse. Two successive courtyards lead from the gates to the unusually festive-looking Imambara itself. Steps lead up to a labyrinth of chambers known as bhulbhulaiya – the "maze".