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Photo: Department of Archaeology & Museums, Government of PakistanField guides / Sindh / Stone Mosque with White Marble Pillars, Bhodesar
Field guide · Heritage
About 7 km north-west of Nagarparkar and close to the foot of rocky hills which encircles the Parkar peninsula for 40 km in circumference is a small 3 domed mosque known as Bhudesar Mosque which was built by Alauddin in CE 1449 under the order of Muhammad Shah.
The mosque having two inscriptions is considered as one of the earliest mosques of Pakistan. the mosque which measures 50x6 by 46-6; is enclosed by compound wall, 2-10 high, with the entrance from its eastern side. The chamber is supported by marble pillars and stone beams. the remaining structure of the mosque including the boundary wall is of local dressed sandy lime stone.
Why go
A Persian epitaph inside the mosque records its construction by Mahmud Shah bin Muzaffar Shah — Sultan Mahmud Begada of Gujarat — in 1505 CE. Begada had marched into Parkar in 1504 against the Sodhas and Khosas and failed; he returned in 1505 after his mother was attacked on the same road, and this time prevailed. The mosque was built in the aftermath. Its central dome rests on a square of about 9.2 metres a side and closely resembles the domes of the nearby Jain temples, as do its pillars and roofline ornament.
Considered one of the earliest mosques in Pakistan, and remarkable for having been built by Jain and Hindu craftsmen working in their own idiom for a Muslim patron.
About 7 km north-west of Nagarparkar, close under the rocky hills that encircle the Parkar peninsula for some 40 km, stands a small three-domed mosque built by Alauddin in 1449 on the order of Muhammad Shah. A compound wall encloses it with the entrance on the east; the chamber is carried on marble pillars and stone beams, while the rest of the structure, boundary wall included, is local dressed sandy limestone.
Stand between the mosque and the temples and look at the domes. They are the same domes.
Planning tip
Best Time to Visit, November to February. After good monsoon rain the desert briefly turns green, which is the most striking time to see it.
Getting there, Nagarparkar lies at the far south-east of Sindh, roughly 450 km from Karachi via Mirpurkhas. The Bhodesar and Gori temples are within a short drive of the town.
Allow, A full day around Nagarparkar; the distance makes an overnight stay sensible.
Straight-line distance from Stone Mosque with White Marble Pillars, Bhodesar, within 30 km.
