Riverfront Gardens and City Walls of Mughal Agra: A Study of Their Locations, Extent and Subsequent Transformations Using Remote Sensing and GIS

Abstract

Analysing old maps and correlating patterns with remote sensing (RS) images have been a useful technique for identifying features of cultural heritage. The present work has conducted a geospatial analysis of Mughal Agra by comparing historical maps and satellite imagery. This paper make two distinct contributions: (1) it expands existing findings on the riverfront Mughal city by identifying the position and footprint of all the riverfront complexes (by complex we mean property that have or had Mughal mansions, gardens or tombs) marked in a Mughal map of 1720, and (2) it makes original contribution by delineating the two-tiers of city walls and further attempts to comprehend the spatial transformations of the city since the Mughal period. This exploration resulted in recognizing traces of many lost historical built forms like city walls, gateways and riverfront complexes those of which have transformed, integrated, camouflaged or sometimes lost within the urban fabric of the present city of Agra.