Kos Minars

The Kos minars are milestones built by the Mughal Rulers of India (16th-18th centuries). ‘Kos’ is a medieval measurement of distance equivalent to approximately 3 km and ‘Minar’ is a Persian word for tower.

The Kos Minars were erected on the old royal route from Agra to Ajmer via Jaipur in the west, from Agra to Lahore via Delhi in the north and from Agra to Mandu via Shivpuri in the south. The Kos Minars measure up to thirty feet in height. The network of the Kos Minars spanned nearly 3000 km, comprising about a 1000 milestones, with periodic drinking water wells and inns built for the convenience of the travelers.

The construction of the milestones was ordered by the Mughal emperor Akbar in the year 1575. Akbar’s successors, his son and grandson, Emperor Jehangir and Shah Jahan, later on added to the existing network of Kos Minars. The Kos Minars extended as far as Peshawar (in Pakistan) and to Bengal in the east.