Moth ki Masjid is a Lodi-era mosque located south of the residential colony of South Extension II, in the village of Masjid Moth. Translating to “Lentil Mosque”, it was built between 1505 and 1510 CE by Miyan Bhoiya, a prime minister (Wazir) under Sultan Sikander Lodi.
Legend has it that the mosque was built from the proceeds of the plentiful harvests reaped from a single lentil that Sinkander Lodi had found at the Friday mosque and presented to Miyan Bhoiya in jest. Miyan Bhoiya sowed the lentil and vowed to devote its produce to a charitable purpose. Season after season the crop multiplied, until the produce of several harvests was enough to pay for the construction of this mosque.
Over a century ago a large well sunk close to the mosque (now sealed) was discovered with an inscription on red sandstone. Although the inscription was in a poor condition, some of the text could be read and translated :
[This] mosque in the reign of.. .Majesty. ..Sultan [like] Solomon,
[Si] kandar Shah, son of Bahlol Shah Lodi, may
God perpetuate his reign ……
[Si] kandar ……
Moth ki Masjid is considered the second example, after the Bara Gumbad Mosque at Lodi Garden, of the new mosque type that developed during the Lodi period. Characterized by a smaller size, a more intimate scale, and intricate ornamentation compared to the large congregational mosques built during earlier sultanate dynasties. Its variant name, “Panchmukhi Mosque,” refers to the five-bay arrangement of the prayer hall. This mosque served as a model for the Jamali Kamali mosque at Mehrauli, built a couple of decades later between 1528 and 1536 CE.
Built on a plinth that is now about 1.8m above street level, the mosque is square in plan, measuring approximately 38m each side. Composed of an open courtyard on the east and an oblong, covered prayer hall along the west, it is accessed from the eastern side via an elaborate entrance gateway located on the axis of a narrow street. The sides of the plinth are made of sandstone ashlar masonry and are decorated with blind arched niches set into rectangular panels.
Originally, these arches would have spanned openings for basement access. Photographic documentation from the 1980s indicates that there were at least five such openings on the western side, with three in the centre and on either side. All these openings have since been sealed. Hexagonal domed pavilions (chhatris) mark the eastern corners of the plinth. The domes of the pavilions have traces of blue tile work and are supported on eight red sandstone pillars.
Right: The NE pavilion, with blue tiles still remaining
The freestanding gateway is square in plan, measuring 5m wide/deep and 7m high, and is reached via a stone staircase. While the western side of the gateway is in ruins, its eastern side still displays original carvings and polychromatic stonework.
The western elevation now exposes the inner rubble masonry of the structure that was almost certainly once clad in red sandstone, evidence for which can be seen towards the base of the gateway.
Two L-shaped staircases, one on either side of the gateway and separated from it by masonry walls, provide access to the roof. The north and south walls are embellished with strips of white marble stone embossed with Arabic inscriptions.
The gateway leads into an open courtyard, measuring 38m x 29m, encircled by a low stone wall. The eastern elevation of prayer hall building is divided into five bays, each with identical arched openings. The two bays on either side of the central bay are composed of three recessed ogee arches. The central bay is composed of a taller projecting portal clad in red sandstone; its inner two arches are identical to those of the adjacent bays.
Two additional ogee-arch openings on either end of the east elevation lead to staircases that access the upper levels and the roof. The roof has three domes, with the larger central dome rising about 20m above the courtyard level.
The prayer hall is rectangular in plan, measuring 41m x 9m. The interior mirrors the five bays on the eastern elevation, with each bay also represented by a niche.
The central bay contains the mihrab niche, with a central arch in red sandstone carved with Quranic inscriptions.
Over the central bay, squinches support the transition from the square ground plan via an octagonal drum to the dome. The bays immediately flanking the central portal have very shallow domes, while the end bays have higher domes. The north and south walls have window openings at ground level, with balconies supported by stone brackets projecting above the windows.
Double-storied octagonal towers, supported on circular stone bastions up to the ground level of the mosque, project from the prayer hall at the western external corners. Roof access to the towers can be found via staircases at either end of the main building.
A combination of rubble and ashlar masonry has been employed in the construction of the mosque. The use of rubble has been restricted to the portions that were finished with stone cladding, and dressed stone has been used in areas that were left exposed.
The remains of red sandstone cladding, yellow sandstone, white marble, and intricate calligraphic carvings on the gateway indicate that it must have once been elaborately embellished. Small hints of this still exist, such as the remains of blue tile cladding on the pavilions (chhatris) at the eastern corners of the courtyard, now heavily encroached upon.
The loss of embellishment that is so apparent is probably due to the mosque falling into disuse. In 1876, Carr Stephen describes the mosque as being used for residential purposes by the villagers of Mubarakpur. The prayer hall was coated in soot from cooking fires, with mud partitions dividing the internal space into small rooms.
The Moth ki Masjid is a significant Lodi era structure, representing a new mosque type developed under the Sultanate. Identified by its relative simplicity of form and smaller size, this style of mosque created a more intimate spatial atmosphere in contrast to the large-scale congregational mosques preceding it.
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