Published October 12, 2025
The Lahore Fortress is one of the city’s most majestic treasures, penetrated by centuries of stories and splendor. Yet, among its many wonders, the outer image wall feels like its own world – a mosaic of color and history that extends as far as the eye can follow. In his luminous book, Picture Wall of Lahore Fort: The Longest Mosaic Kashi Wall in the World, re -Kinder Prof. Kanwal Khalid these memories and answer long -term questions hanging around in this remarkable landmark.
Visitors of the Lahore -Fortet were in addition to being overdue by storm and monumental scale in the fort itself even fascinated by the number of small images [comparatively speaking]that include illustrations of animals, humans, imaginary beings, depictions of love, hunting, life, war, demons and dragons. In fact, it was a cornucopia of images, both real and unreal that raised more questions than it could answer.
From 1948 I remember that I was lucky to visit the fort many times during my childhood with my family. My younger brother and I had become familiar with all Forte and Corners of the Fort, which used to be far more visiting-friendly at the time. One of our favorite vanishing actions [from the family] was to walk down the tower stairs in the Akbari square. We walked down unobstructed until we reached the door that allowed us to get out and see the fort from what was once a river base. This was the space between the outer despair and the fort behind, which was built later.
Here, the countless images on the outer wall on the different levels would fascinate both of us. Some we were able to look closely while the large number were out of our immediate reach. However, the overall influence hypnotized us with images and color. The wall was simply dazzling and at that time they looked freshly finished. Our eyes would move from image to picture and try to find something that we could clearly understand. The animals thrilled us when we named them, and then there were so many that we had no idea. The wall has actually fascinated people for more than 400 years. It carries the viewer from the real world to the unknown world.
It was much later that I became an architect and teacher. It was a complete pleasure to complete my classes inside the Lahore Fort, how could there be a better setting? We roamed around the fort and somehow ended up always in the quiet room, between the wall and the fort, and looked up at the pictures on the wall. Here I usually lost the students who were fascinated and curious as they walked often ran from picture to picture. The picture wall was a great stimulus for creativity, discovery and imagination. The wall fulfilled this feature of educating my young students and this was the best I had hoped. It might have been the purpose of the wall all the time, not only to dazzle, but to educate and provoke the imagination to greater and greater heights.
The earliest scientific work on the wall was done by Dr. Jean Phillippe Vogel, a Dutch indologer in 1920, who spent many years in India with the archaeological study of India (ASI) in different positions. It has taken a hundred and four years before a similar work appears, a great credit to the author.
Prof Dr. Kanwal Khalid has now helped us understand this walk, a puzzle, as she calls it. With her groundbreaking book Picture Wall of Lahore Fort: The Longest Mosaikkashi wall in the world, she has provided a historical analysis of the various and several representations of the flora and fauna in Northern India. She has brought to the subject of an academic brilliance, and an analytical mind with persistence to hold on to a clue until it is satisfactorily resolved. She has also pointed out the contours of future research work on the subject. The book is determined by tremendous value for students, scholars and researchers.
She has fulfilled a dream from her students’ days back in the 1990s and has now not only studied the image wall, analyzed it, but also published her scientific findings in favor of current and future generations. Dr. Khalid brings clarity with intelligent interpretation of symbols and elaboration of the meaning, both hidden and clear.
Punjab was once a large highway that crossed scholars from China in search of Buddhist learning and philosophy. Alongside scholars came the traders and mendicants and exchanged goods and knowledge with the very literary society of the time. People with learning and craftsmen from Punjab wore the memories of it long long and expressed themselves accordingly. Dr. Kanwal points to this collective memory when she draws attention to the dragons that made up part of the Chinese belief system but were not found or spoken in India.
The designer and craftsmen during the period were obviously sensitive to their own surroundings and surroundings, but they were also aware of the influences outside the subcontinent.
The book is beautifully produced, well illustrated, convincingly argued, yet a light reading. Not only Lahoris, but all those who are interested in the concrete and intangible heritage of Lahore will benefit from this collection of art and stories. Students and scholars, researchers and preservatives, craftsmen and artists will find this book a huge treasure for their learning in the present as well as for their work in the future.
The Conservation Project for Lahore Fort’s Image Wall and the Publishing of This Book has been carried out by Aga Khan Cultural Service Pakistan, Walled City of Lahore Authority, World Bank, Punjab Tourism for Economic Growth, the Norwegian Embassy, the German Embassy and the US Embassy.
Prof Pervaiz Vandal is an architect and historian
All facts and information is the author’s sole responsibility
