Type: Monument - Building
Province: Punjab
District: Lahore
Period: Historic
Relative Chronology: 1857 - 1947 CE
Description: The Government College is a public university located in the downtown area of Lahore. Under the British Raj Government College was opened on 1 January 1864 in a portion of the Palace of Raja Dhyan Singh Haveli. The institution was affiliated with the University of Calcutta for examination. Along with the establishment of the college, Gottlieb Wilhelm Leitner (professor of Arabic and Islamic Law at Kings College in London) was nominated as principal of college. Later, he was instrumental in the foundation of University of the Punjab, established in 1882. The Lahori brick is combined with sparing use of black Chiniot stone in the first floor columns as well as in the borders lining the openings. Pointed arches on the facade are accented with simple moldings, and the building is topped by a steeply sloping roof. According to Kannahiya Lal, the slate for the roof covering was acquired from Dalhousie Mountain hundreds of kilometers away. The center of the GCU main building is marked with an enormous entrance tower, a most impressive element representing the image of Government College. Placed on a 4.5 m high podium, and accessible from the garden by a wide flight of stairs, the tower rises to a total height of 53.6 m. Divided into four distinct storey, it is terminated in the form of a spire. The battered sides of the octagonal tower carry quaint dormer windows, with its enormous clocks visible from great distances. The classrooms are accessed from a deep verandah which also provides protection from the strong Punjab sun. The most prominent part of the building is the Main Hall (now called Dr. Abdus Salam Hall). It consists of a central nave and aisles running along the 4 sides. The nave has double height. The 4 aisles are double storeyed and they form a gallery on the upper floor. The main entrance to the hall is through a porch on the West side. Another entrance on the South faces the oval ground. This is an arched opening with grand and traditionally carved wooden door. After entering through this magical opening, a passage leads into the hail. Inside the hall, where the aisles cross each other at corners, big rooms have been provided. The hail is a wonderful example of composed mannerism that depicts harmony, symmetry and balance. The main conical-type clock tower at the facade is square at the base. The first two storeys are square and a squinch arch is placed to convert the square plan into octagon. The first two storeys are followed by two storeys of octagonal plan with arched openings and triangular projections.
Latitude: 31.572918944
Longitude: 74.307814250
Ownership: Government of Punjab
Legal Status: Protected by The Punjab Special Premises (Preservation), Ordinance, 1985
Title of Publication: British Colonial architecture of Pakistan (Government College University Lahore)
Published In: https://architecturalanatomyblog.wordpress.com/2017/05/10/british-colonial-architecture-of-pakistan-
Year of Publication: 2021 (Retrieved)
Bibliography/Reference: Moazam
