Place · Jaisalmer haveli · India
Salim Singh ki Haveli, Jaisalmer
Also known as Salim Singh Haveli, Mehta Haveli
The late 18-early 19th century Salim Singh ki Haveli at Jaisalmer, Rajasthan — the sandstone-carved private mansion of Salim Singh Mehta (1769-1824), the powerful and oppressive Diwan (prime minister) of the Jaisalmer princely state under Rawal Mulraj II. The haveli's distinctive peacock-shaped upper storeys and 38 jharokha balconies make it one of Jaisalmer's three iconic havelis (with Patwon ki Haveli and Nathmal ki Haveli). Salim Singh is the Diwan whose alleged pursuit of the Paliwal village headman's daughter in c.1825 triggered the overnight abandonment of Kuldhara and 83 surrounding Paliwal villages across the Jaisalmer-Barmer desert. Salim Singh himself was assassinated in 1824 by Rajput nobles who resented his autocratic rule. ASI protection since 1982.
- Function
- Authority & administration
- Patron dynasty
- Jaisalmer princely state
- Confidence
- Established / referenced
- Location
- 26.908, 70.913
Connections (4)
- FolkloreKuldhara
Kuldhara and Salim Singh ki Haveli in Jaisalmer are historically and legendarily linked through Salim Singh Mehta (1769-1824), the oppressive Diwan of the Jaisalmer princely state whose alleged pursuit of the Paliwal village headman's daughter around 1825 is said to have triggered the overnight abandonment of Kuldhara and 83 surrounding Paliwal settlements. Before leaving, the Paliwal elders are said to have cursed the land so no one else could ever settle there. Salim Singh himself was assassinated in 1824 by Rajput nobles resentful of his autocratic rule and extraction of forced tribute. His haveli at Jaisalmer, with its peacock-shaped upper storeys and 38 jharokhas, is the architectural reminder of the diwan whose oppression emptied the Paliwal desert settlements.
- Site withinJaisalmer Fort
Salim Singh ki Haveli sits within the Jaisalmer old city, 300 metres east of the Jaisalmer Fort's First Fort Gate. Along with Patwon ki Haveli and Nathmal ki Haveli, Salim Singh ki Haveli is one of the three iconic havelis that form the Jaisalmer-fort-and-haveli architectural ensemble, each built by prominent 18-19th century Jaisalmer merchants and administrators.
- Companion in the same setPatwon ki Haveli, Jaisalmer
Salim Singh ki Haveli, Patwon ki Haveli and Nathmal ki Haveli together constitute the three iconic havelis of historic Jaisalmer. Built between 1805 and 1885 by the city's most prominent merchants and administrators, the three havelis form a unified sandstone-carved architectural ensemble that remains the chief heritage of the Jaisalmer old city alongside the hilltop Jaisalmer Fort.
- Companion in the same setNathmal ki Haveli, Jaisalmer
Salim Singh ki Haveli and Nathmal ki Haveli were both built as residences of Jaisalmer state's Diwans — Salim Singh Mehta in the late 18th century and Nathmal in 1885. Though separated by nearly a century, they share the same yellow-sandstone jaali-carved architectural idiom and together with Patwon ki Haveli constitute the three iconic havelis of historic Jaisalmer.
Sources
Standard reference; ASI records; Jaisalmer princely state chronicles.
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