These strange objects in pinky-red stone are the work of the Maharaja Sawai Jai Singh II, the ruler and founder of the city of Jaipur in Rajasthan. Today the city’s skyscrapers surround them, but back in 1724 when they were built this area was just open countryside. They were built for astrological purposes to accurately determine local time, (then there...

The Raj Ghat is a simple slab of black marble marks the spot where, according to Hindu custom, Mahatma Gandhi was cremated on the evening of January 31, 1948. Engraved in Hindi on the slab are the words “Hey Ram” (Oh God) the last words he uttered after he was shot. Hundreds of thousands of Delhi citizens turned out for...