Safdarjung's Tomb

Safdarjung's Tomb stands at the junction of Lodi Road and Aurobindo Marg in New Delhi, close to the Safdarjung airfield. It was raised in 1754 for Safdarjung, Nawab of Awadh, who served as wazir to Emperor Ahmad Shah Bahadur and held more real power than the emperor until rivals drove him from Delhi in 1753. After his death his son Shuja-ud-Daula obtained leave to build the tomb, designed by Bilal Muhammad Khan at a cost of around three lakh rupees.

Built of sandstone and marble, it follows the pattern of earlier imperial tombs such as the Taj Mahal, with eight rooms arranged around a domed central chamber and a garden divided into four quarters. It was the first time a noble outside the imperial family built himself such a tomb garden, a sign of how far Mughal authority had faded. It is often described as the last monumental garden tomb of the Mughal era.