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Imperial Gazetteer of India, v. 17, p. 173.

Y1IĀND TlI TĀI, UKA 173 so called from its overhanging a lake. To the north of this enclosure stands the oldest mosque on the hill, built of fragments of Jain temples by Dildwar Khan in 1405. Next come the Jama Masjid and tomb of Hoshang Shah, the two finest buildings in the fort now standing. The great mosque is a splendid example of Pathan architecture, of simple grandeur and massive strength. It was founded by Hoshang Shah and completed in the year 1454 Opposite is a mound of d6bris, in which the remains of a magnificent marble tomb have been discovered, pro- bably that of Mahmad Khilji I. When complete, it must have sur- passed every other building on the hill. Beside it stand the foundations of the Tower of Victory, seven storeys high, raised by Mahmad in 1443 in commemoration of his victory over Rand Kambha of Chitor. The nature of the victory may be gathered from the fact that the Rana erected the famous tower on Chitor fort in 1448, in memory of his success on the same occasion. The tomb of Hoshang Shah stands beside his mosque. It is a magnificent marble-domed mausoleum, which in its massive simplicity and dim-lighted roughness is a suitable resting-place for a great warrior. Not far beyond stands the mosque of Malik Mugdis, the father of Mahmcid I. It was built in 1432 from the remains of other buildings, and, though somewhat damaged, is still a very fine building, both in its proportions and delicate finish, The remaining buildings of importance are the palaces of Bdz Bahadur and Rf pmatļ. The former stands about half a mile from the scarp of the hill, the latter on its very edge. The view from the roof of Rūpmati's palace is a magnificent one. Below flows the broad stream of the sacred Narbadā, its fertile valley lined with fields of wheat and poppy, while to the south the long line of the forest-covered Sdtpuras stretch ridge behind ridge down to the valley of the Tapti river beyond. Among these hills the sacred peak of Bawangaja (see BARWANI) stands con- spicuous. [C. Harris, The Ruins of Mandoo (1860); Bombay Gazetteer, vol. i, part ii, pp. 352-84; Captain Barnes, journal of the Bombay Branch, Royal Asiatic Society, vol. xxi, pp. 355-91.] Mandvi Tāluka.-North-eastern Idluka of Surat District, Bombay, lying between 21° 12' and 21° 27' N. and 72° 59' and 73° 29' E., with an area of 279 square miles. The river Tdpti forms the southern boundary. There are 136 villages and one town, MANDVI (population, 4,142), the head-quarters. The population in lgor was 42,450, com pared with 53,942 in 1891• This is the most thinly populated tdluka in the District, and the density, 152 persons per square mile, is much below the average. Land revenue and cesses in 1903-4 amounted to over 1•8 lakhs. The western part of the tāluha is the most fertile and prosperous; in the east the population gradually becomes scanty and unsettled, and cultivation disappears. The climate is the worst in Surat ICI 2