Qutub Minar Complex, Delhi

I found the Qutub Minar and the Quwwat-ul-Islam Mosque next to it, located in the outskirts of Delhi, to be an even more intriguing site than the Taj Mahal. The boring facts are as follows: The Qutub Minar was started in 1199 AD by Qutub-ud-Din Aibak and completed by the sultan's successor and son-in-law, Iltutmish. It is made of red and buff sandstone. The minaret is 72.5 m high and has 379 steps from the bottom to the top. The Minar is tapering with the diameter of the base is 14.3 m while at the top floor it is2.7 m. The Qutub Minar is still the highest stone tower as well as one of the finest Islamic structures ever raised in India.
More interestingly, the Quwwat-ul-Islam Mosque, which was built by Qutub-ud-Din Aibak in AD 1198, is the earliest mosque built by the Delhi Sultans. It consists of a rectangular courtyard enclosed by cloisters, erected with the carved columns and architectural members of 27 Hindu and Jain temples. These 27 temples were demolished in order to construct the mosque.
Within the mosque complex is also the Iron Pillar, which dates back to 4th century AD. The pillar bears an inscription, which states that it was erected as a flagstaff in honor of the Hindu god, Vishnu, and in the memory of the Gupta King Chandragupta II (BC375-413). The pillar is made of 98 per cent wrought iron but has stood 1,600 years without rusting or decomposing. The Taj Mahal is a structure aasociated with romance. I associate the Qutub Minar with the corruption of absolute power.