Type: Monument - Sarai
Province: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
District: Peshawar
Period: Historic
Relative Chronology: 1526 - 1857 CE
Description: Gorkhattree is an important monument in the old city of Peshawar. The monument can be reached either from the side of Chowk-Yadgar via Ganta-ghar or from Lahori Gate. It is situated on a high spot towards the eastern fringe of the city and has a chequered history. The earliest account of Gorkhattree is given by the Mughal emperor Babar. Both Akbar and Jahangir are said to have visited this spot. This monument with the passage of time had become sacred for religious pilgrimage and the devotees flocked here from the length and breadth of the country around. In the time of shah Jahan in the year 1640 CE, his daughter Princess Jahan Ara Begum converted the site into a Sarai named Jahanabad, where a Jami Masjid and a Hamem were also built. During the reign of the Sikhs the mosque was destroyed and a temple of Gorakhanth was built on its site. The building of Gorkhatree was erected in brick masonry in the form of a square of 213.3x213.3 m. The monument as it exists today, preserves the main features of the Mughal architecture with magnificent gateways on the east and west and is bigger in dimension than Begum ki Sarai at Attock and Akbari Sarai at Shahadara, Lahore. The outer facade of the western gate is worked with panels topped in cusped pattern. The faced crowned with merlons is also provided with wooden balconies. The Sarai is enclosed with perimeter wall and marked with bastions on its four corners. Flanked by guards room and subsidiary office facilities. The gates of the building open under high arches and lead into a spacious quadrangle provided with cells on all the sides lately altered for accommodation.
Latitude: 34.016666667
Longitude: 71.583333333
Ownership: Federal Government
Legal Status: Protected by The Antiquity Act 1975 (As amended in 1992)
Title of Publication: Archaeological Sites and Historical Monuments Protected Under the Antiquities Act, 1975
Published In: Federal Department of Archaeology & Museums, Government of Pakistan, Islamabad
Year of Publication: 1987
Bibliography/Reference: Khan, Ahmad Nabi
