Patwon ki Haveli Jaisalmer: Unparalleled Architectural Wonder
It is hard not to fall in love with Patwon ki Haveli, the private residence of Patwonji, a rich trader, located in the narrow lanes of Jaisalmer. The word Haveli is of Arabic origin used extensively in India, Nepal, and Pakistan to define huge mansions.
Architecture of haveli and palaces in Jaisalmer infused with intricate details is captivating beyond words. When I first caught a glance of its façade studded with several jharokhas (balconies), my eyes remained glued for a while on the walls which seemed to be dipped in an enchanting shade of gold! Can you guess how many balconies this facade has? Read on to know the figure.
History of Patwon ki Haveli Jaisalmer
The huge mansion suddenly emerges out of nowhere dwarfing all other houses around it. The sight of its breathtaking architecture and impressive carvings on the outer walls will leave you gasping with appreciation. Huge corridors, lined with beautifully designed pillars all along will slow your pace as you tour the haveli.
Locals call it by the name Patwa Haveli. Patwa is a title of honor. It was bestowed on the Bapna family by Jaisalmer King. Guman Chand Bapna, as he was known before being decorated with the title, built five mansions in series for his sons Bahadurmal Bapna, Sawairam Bapna, Magniram Bapna, Johrawarmal Bapna and Pratapchand Bapna.
Patwon ki Haveli aka Mansion of Brocade Merchants
View of the lane from Haveli
The guide kept repeating everything here is hand crafted. No wonder why took around 60 years to build this Haveli. The colourful paintings and mirror work will melt your heart. I didn’t want to budge from the beautiful rooms.
Outer facade of Patwon ki Haveli
Unfortunately for Guman Chand Patwa, the construction wasn’t complete during his life time. It took 60 years to complete the construction from 1800 to 1860.
Though famed for trading in gold and silver threads, for making brocade outfits for members of royal family, it is rumored that money for such elaborate construction by thousands of artisans came from opium trade. His business was not limited to Rajasthan, it had spread to Iran in west and China in east. He was known for having provided financial aid to rulers of Udaipur and Jaisalmer.
Pratapchand Patwa, the youngest of the five brothers is known to have constructed the beautiful Amar Singh Temple. Include this in your of Things to Do in Jaisalmer.
The fourth apartment is still a private residence, the third apartment is converted in to antique shop and the remaining part of the apartment are government run, displays old furnishings and household items.
Living Room inside Patwon ki Haveli
The interior is equally mesmerizing. Strikingly beautiful murals, paintings, dazzling mirror work leaves you gasping for breath. A shut window confused me. I wondered if it was a painting, turned out the window itself is painted with traditional Rajasthani paintings of floral patterns in bright colors. My window at home is so drab, I sighed.
Mohini Vilas in Patwa Haveli
Window painted with floral patterns in one of the living rooms
The wall has a peacock, my daughters noticed. “We have a butterfly and sunflower on our walls,” my daughters said in chorus.
Notice how they have concealed storage space along the wall with such elaborately designed wall panels. These are pictures from Mohini Vilas in Kothari’s Patwa Haveli.
Living Room inside Patwon ki Haveli – interior wall
Silver Ceiling, mirror work, murals in Living Room inside Patwon ki Haveli
Jivan Vilas in the Haveli
Ceiling and Wall of Jivan Vilas
Living room of Jivan Vilas
Instagram-worthy Haveli
Whole of Patwon ki Haveli is instagram worthy. I visited for the first time in 2008 when insta crazy tourists didn’t exist. I don’t have a single picture of mine posing in this beautiful ambiance. Luckily I have one pic of my daughters posing in one of 60 balconies of the Jaisalmer Haveli.
My daughters posing in Balcony of Jaisalmer Haveli
Other rooms of the haveli were equally elegant and well maintained. Some of the items for their personal use in those years too are displayed.
The room with a radio. Residents would have sat huddled around it to keep abreast with what was happening in world, like we sit around TVs in our living rooms. It is called Munim Chamber. I suspect they had opium here 😉
Bedroom in Haveli – the furnishings are changed frequently, I was told. Look at that old gramophone, what an antique!
Silver chandelier in bedroom of haveli.
There were enormous pots on display which indicated food was cooked in huge quantity to feed the whole family.
Dining room – display of their utensils
We then got to the rooftop, that is the balcony of fifth floor of the haveli. Spectacular views all around and the view of Jaisalmer Fort in its full glory greeted us. Our guide told us this interesting story:
Initially this haveli had seven stories. And at one point of time this mansion was taller than the palace of Jaisalmer. The Maharaja of Jaisalmer then got the top two floors demolished, ever since the haveli has only five floors.
The picture below is the view of the Jaisalmer fort from the fifth floor of Patwon ki haveli.
View of Jaisalmer Fort from Patwon ki haveli
Each of the havelis have a courtyard, there are rooms around them. This courtyard style can be seen in Chettinad mansions too. It was interesting to note that the theme of the courtyard decor was different for all five havelis. Peacocks, fountains, murals, artwork in marble… such varieties!
Kothari’s Patwa Haveli Museum
Rajasthan tourism is doing their bit to preserve and promote Jaisalmer Haveli and Patwon ki Haveli, the oldest ones among the several built in early 19th century. Rajasthan Art and Craft has turned one of the havelis into museum. There is so much to see.
Exhibition rooms are spread on different floors. The staircase leading you from one floor to another are narrow. Some of the rooms display collections like old locks, turbans, musical instruments with good sign boards. The collections give a good glimpse of the lifestyle of the people of 19th century.
Visit Patwon ki haveli for sure, if you are traveling to Jaisalmer, Rajasthan, India.
Other sights nearby: Nathmalji ki Haveli, Gadisar Lake, Jaisalmer Fort
How to Reach: Patwon Ki Haveli is located near the Patwa complex in the heart of the city of Jaisalmer. There are plenty of public or private transports that will drop you at the Haveli. Best option would be going on foot as the streets are narrow.
Timings: Open daily from 9 AM to 5 PM.
Tickets: Foreign visitors Rs.100, Indian visitors Rs.20.
Camera Fees: Still – Rs.50, Video – Rs.100
Guide charges: Rs.100-200
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(Updated post. This was first published on Nov 17, 2008.)
When I go there next, I will definitely read your posts again. Was it a packaged tour or otherwise ?
A beautiful post Indrani.
I post mine at:
indicainq8
never been there, looks fab. but sitting cross legged in front of those plates is no longer an option. the knees do not obey those orders anymore.
This place is INCREDIBLE! What beauty both inside and out. Thank you so much for sharing!
Perfect series of pictures! They give a nice feel to the viewer, and lets one imagine life in that ambience 🙂 – though one is somewhat put off by the possibility of opium-funding 🙁
I liked the ceiling fan, chandelier and sewing machine pictures.
badly in need of money for my new flat. Thanks for the hint..!!!
it is simply awesome!
What a magnificent place that is. I would love to stay in such a work of art.
I´m so used to scandinavian style interiors so that´s why those murals feel so incredible to me. Thanks for sharing this wonderful part of your world.
What amazing architecture and the furnishing are so ornate, it’s hard to imagine living among them. All the workmen it must have taken to complete this.
I thank you for sharing your world. Grateful for the nice visit.
Hugs, Denise
Incredibly lavish place inside and out. So lavish it even made the maharaja jealous. Great post.
a very interesting post and fascinating info as well.
thank you for sharing your part of the world with all of us.
have a good week.
erin
What an amazing place! Thank you for sharing!
Greetings from West Africa,
Esther
Thank you for taking us around and inside this beautiful building. That’s an amazing story about having two floors chopped off. Great set of shots.
So beautiful you have there!
I can’t get enough of the exterior view, it looks so unreal, a bit like a M.C. Escher painting. Stunning photos, thanks for sharing.
What a dazzlingly beautiful place. So much color and detail in the decor. Thank you so much for showing it to us.
Very, very nice. I am happy you went to Rajasthan, because we can see all the lovely pictures of these places heard of, but not seen.
beautiful and the ornate interiors are stunning..amazing how these havelis were maintained then..
wow! that is beautiful!! thank you for the wonderful virtual tour of Patwon ki haveli!!
You have shown so much about Rajsthan on you blog that I have decided to visit the state soon….
such splendid architecture replete with history. thanks for sharing this.
Stunning architecture. Thanks for sharing!
Cheers!
Regina In Pictures
Unbelievably beautiful. You have the most interesting blog.
blows my mind to think of the wealth this family possessed. look at the splendour of the whole building . money was no object.
Great post, with beautiful photos…
Thank you for the story of this residence…
See You later !
That building looks magnificent, and it’s wnderufl series of photos! I can barely imagine what it must be like to be there inperson!
Amazing beauty. What a shame about that jealous king! it would be difficult to imagine the beauty of what was demolished. I could never have invented anything as beautful as what is in these photos.