Page:The Seven Cities of Delhi.djvu/197

Shahjahanabad been a terrace, about a hundred yards long and ten wide, on which there stood an enclosure, with sandstone screens around, called the " Gulalbari." This term, however, was also given to the private enclosures of the emperor, and it may have referred to the balustrade which surrounded, at a little distance, the Diwan Am, and outside which the courtiers of lower rank had to stop,unless summoned within it. The Hall of Public Audience stands opposite the gateway; the sixty pillars were once covered with polished limewash, with paintings and gilded flowers such as still adorn the Diwan Khas. The emperor sat on his raised throne, attendants standing beside him with peacock fans and flaps to drive away the flies ; below the throne sat the prime minister on a marble seat; he alone spoke to the emperor, and transmitted the petitions. The pillars of the hall were hung with brocades; satin canopies concealed the roof;silk carpets were spread on the floor; and, on three sides of the hall, there was pitched a gorgeous red tent supported by silver-plated poles, and lined with flowered chintz. Round the raised throne, at a little distance,there was a balustrade covered with gold or silver plate, as the importance of the occasion demanded, and outside this railing the great nobles stood, their 147