Tomb of Mirza Jani Beg

Thatta, Pakistan

Mirza Jani Beg (d. ca. 1599/1007 AH) was a member of the Tarkhan Dynasty and was the last independent ruler of Sindh before it was annexed by the Mughals under Akbar in 1591/999 AH. His tomb is variously dated to years from 1599 through the first decade of the 1600s. It is an octagonal structure made of brick, originally with a conical dome that has fallen. It stands on a high sandstone plinth within a courtyard; the courtyard wall has a carved mihrab in the western wall. The face of the tomb consists of lines of glazed blue brick alternating with unglazed red, an unusual striped pattern not known elsewhere in Sind. The four sides have semi-domed recesses, along with arched doorways with carved geometric patterns and panels with Arabic inscriptions in white and dark blue tile above. The interior of the tomb is covered in tiles in a floral pattern, considered some of the finest in Sind. Three graves, two of marble and one of stone, sit in the interior.