Mandore

Mandore lies about 15 km from Jodhpur and was the seat of the Rathore rulers of Marwar before Rao Jodha founded Jodhpur in 1459. Once Mehrangarh Fort was built, the old town was abandoned as harder to defend, but its gardens and monuments remain. Local belief links it with Mandodari, the wife of Ravana in the Ramayana.

The main sight is a group of royal cenotaphs in red sandstone. Rather than the usual domed chhatris, these rise up to four storeys with columns and pyramid-shaped roofs modelled on temple shikharas, and are covered in carving. Nearby, the Hall of Heroes holds sixteen statues honouring Rajput warriors, each cut from one piece of rock, and a shrine said to house three hundred million gods is crowded with painted images. The Mandore Garden Government Museum displays finds from the area.