Dastur Khan Masjid is a large mosque close to the Astodia Gate within the southern part of the old walled city of Ahmedabad. It is named after Malik Ghani Dastur al-Mulk, a vizier of Sultan Mahmud I Begra of Gujarat. An inscription in the mosque dates it to the middle of the 15th/9th century AH.1
The mosque is an almost square building centered on a rectangular courtyard. It is elevated from the surrounding street level and is reached via a staircase on its east side. The central courtyard is surrounded on three sides by single covered aisle, and on the west (qibla) side by a pillared prayer hall two aisles deep and nine bays wide. A small dome covers every bay in the prayer hall, for a total of 18 domes. Domes cover the bays between the pillars supporting the single aisles on the other three sides of the court. The outer walls of the aisles surrounding the court are perforated marble screens (jali) that offer views onto the exterior of the mosque. The courtyard covers a subterranean cistern.
Notes:
- The inscription, which is difficult to read, clearly states "the year eight hundred..." and has been interpreted as 867 (1463 AH). See Burgess, 76.
Sources:
Burgess, James. The Muhammadan Architecture of Ahmadabad. Part I - A.D. 1412 to 1520, 76-77. Archaeological Survey of Western India, Vol 7. London: William Griggs & Sons, 1900.
