Pol or पोल (in Hindi ) refers to a specific type of gate and is a part of an outer perimeter of the premises. One of the distinguishing features of any Pol is the presence of a large wooden gate with a smaller gate framed into it for greater control on the ingress. The wall must be high and broad enough to allow the installation of such a gate.
In earlier times such Pol was heavily guarded and controlled as these were the only entry and exit points of the city. They formed part of the primary defense of any city or settlement. Pols were not unique to Jaipur rather they were common across Rajasthan and the rest of India. Such gate designs were prevalent even in places like Morocco.
So what was the unique factor? The architectural style. Each city or region had its own architectural style. Even in Jaipur, one can find variations in architectural style among such gates depending on the year in which they were built. By the way, most of the Havelis in Jaipur also had a smaller version of these Pol.
The Gates Of Jaipur
Here are a few pictures of Pol and gates in Jaipur.
Amer Fort
Amer Fort is one of the iconic places of Jaipur. Here is a picture of
New Gate, Chaura Rasta, Jaipur
New Gate built in the 1940s is synonymous with the color and architecture of Jaipur. It was the last city gates to be built during the reign of Maharaja Sawai Man Singh II.
Jaipur City Palace

Charan Mandir
This is a picture of the Pol of Charan Mandir Temple near Nahargarh Fort, Jaipur. Charan Mandir is a landmark point for the trek leading to Hathuni Kund.

Sisodia Rani Bagh, Ghat Ki Guni
Pol of Sisodia Rani Garden in the Ghat ki Guni, Jaipur. There is Pol on the other end as well.
Diggi Palace Hotel
Pol at Diggi Palace during Jaipur Literature Festival.

Another picture of the same Pol from the other side on a different occasion.

Maharaja School of Art & Craft
Maharaja School of Art and Craft is now called the Museum of Legacies. Here is a picture of the Pol from this museum.
For a change here are two pictures of Pol in black & white.
Samode Palace, Samode
Pol at Samode Palace in the village of Samod, near Jaipur.
Kheri Gate, Amer
The below picture was framed in Amer town, near Amer Fort.
These are not the most popular gates of Jaipur. The gates of Jaipur are popularly called Jaipur Gates. Read this post on popular entry gates of Jaipur – Old City Gates of Jaipur
Which gate is famous in Jaipur?
There are many famous gates in Jaipur. A few of these are the Patrika Gate, the Peacock Gate, the Lotus Gate, the Leheriya Gate, Sanganeri Gate, and Tripolia Gate. Out of all these gates, the first four gates are very popular for Instagram-worthy pictures. The rest two are more historic. Here are a few pictures of some of these gates. The peacock gate, Leheriya Gate, and the Lotus gate can be found in Jaipur City Palace.
The above gate has become a huge hit ever since it was featured on the cover page of a popular book.
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I like these gates
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Will post more… soon! Thanks for sharing your views! 🙂
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Wow, so pretty! Your blog is a living history on Jaipur.
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Thank you Shubham for the compliments! I’m honored 🙂
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Of course they may be found in many cities of Europe. Even here in Canada. The entrance to Fort Rodd. as an example. Cheers Jamie.
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Jamie, I probably should have added some more pictures to differentiate between these gates from the ones at other places. will do in next post. In any case, humans were always learning from each other through ages. Would love to know more about gates in your country! 🙂
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Well, the blog is about Jaipur ! Just sharing how people use them globally, in different forms. If one travels to the Mediterranean? Especially Greece. They are are used on private property. Perhaps not so grand as the the ones found in Jaipur, but quite unique from property, to property. Some left open, others locked and barred. Gates, are definitely an interesting subject and are used by WordPress as a prompt.
The ones at Fort Rodd date only from the turn of last century, when as a fort the British used it to defend the city of Victoria. Some of the guns remain in place and it is now purely a tourist destination, under Parks Canada. The gates are functional with a postern to enter. While many of the forts across Canada remain. They are this country’s main link to that history.
Since the first nations people did not use this type of possessive functionality. In fact they did not see “owning” any part of the planet as being rational. Yes they used traditional territory and sometimes those borders could be fluid.
The gates seen at Jaipur hark back to the Mughal occupation perhaps? Or replicated to imitate. For the domes seem to echo both the Blue Mosque and Hagia Sofia in Istanbul. Then again echoed, throughout the Moslem Empire. The exception here being Charan Mandir. with it’s simple arch.
Cheers Jamie.
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Jamie! Thank you so much for the details…Well, the post actuallt originated with the word POl which is used for certain door only. I guess the word would have originated from word “pola” which means hollow. Since the area above the door is kind of concave, it would have originated from this word. So, I feel on a second thought a little more details would have added better to this post.Yes, there are many private houses with such doors in Jaipur as well. Although you can see Mughal influence clearly in some places, since the Jaipur style is amalgamation of Rajput and Mughal architecture. In my opinion, this must be a later influence. Elsewhere in Rajasthan you can see pure Rajput style as well which is unique to this region.
Thanks for starting this conversation..Quite some learning! Always a pleasure to have your thoughts on on this blog! 🙂
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Thanks Arvi. You must also take credit, for the subjects originate here. But hey, I’ll take what I can …. Cheers Jamie.
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Have a great weekend Jamie! 🙂
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Lovely click Arv. Write some history about this. Would love to read it.
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Sure Meena. it’s already ‘brewing ‘. 🙂
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Yay. Good. 👍🏼
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🙂
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Nice clicks. It’s a coincidence that I wrote about my memories of Jaipur a few days ago… 🙂
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Thank You Maniparna! Just read a
your post. Do plan a trip again. Let me know if I can be of any help! 🙂
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Sure…thanks for saying… 🙂
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🙂
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Pols lead you to many wonders.Interesting history and images.
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Thank You. Your is interesting. Just followed you! 🙂
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These are great, Arv. I hadn’t realised that New Gate is quite so new!
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Mick New gate was last gate to be built by Jaipur royalty barely few years before Indian independence. In its original design the gate drew heavy influence from Brandenburg gate of Berlin. But it was later modified. Mick I’ll post pictures of all seven gates of walled city soon!
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Thanks, Arv. I’ll look forward to seeing those.
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Will try to post them asap… Mick! 🙂
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Lovely lovely!
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Thank you Ladyfi! 🙂
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I’m in love with Rajasthani culture. I visited jaipur and loved it. You may read my travelogue and see pictures I clicked there in my blog here https://travellingkrishnaite.wordpress.com/2015/11/28/jaipur-heart-of-rajasthan/ hope you’ll enjoy mate. 😊
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Great to see post on Jaipur! Great pictures… looks like you enjoyed your trip Shekhar. sure I enjoyed it. 🙂
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Yes a lot. Everything about jaipur is colourful. It kinda takes you back in time. 😊
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Good to know shekhar! 🙂
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Wonderful compilation!
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Thank You 🙂
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Beautiful frames. I like the such a shapes of the entrance doors so much. To me it is the entrance to the fairy tail which is so different from the place where I live… the entrance to another culture and openings.
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True Lidiia these gates are different from architecture in your country. I guess you would have seen similar gates in Morocco!
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yeah, kind of similar)
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🙂
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WoW!! Lovely pics..i always feel excited when something comes in relation to Jaipur.Love the way of explanation though i will be posting a series on Rajasthan tourism.I hope you’re next post comprises of famous gates(Pols)…👌👌🙏
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Thank You Prashant! Series on Rajasthan Tourism? That sounds interesting… What is this all about?
Sure … I’ll post on gates as well. It’s been on my mind for quite some time. Well there’s been too many things to write about 🙂
Btw where are you based?
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Presently at Delhi,i stayed at Jaipur for long & did graduation(HM) there too.I write mostly about less known places with its culture and bieng a hotelier i never forget to mention food.I missed some common & famous gates in your blog maybe you’ll write further in next but its a good read with beautiful clicks.:)
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Great to know about your Jaipur connection Prashantt! 🙂
I think we have something in common…exploring something different and offbeat! will surely write on gates soon! 🙂
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Great to see your posts bro! Looking forward for more & pleasure connecting you.👍
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Same here..
It’s mutual 🙂
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I myself lived in Jaipur for 2 years and really fascinated by your posts regarding jaipur.. Keep it up
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So nicely framed.The gates of the palaces are really stunning.
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Thanks Sayanti! They are…
I’m happy you liked them 🙂
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My pleasure.
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🙂
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A visual feast! I enjoyed looking at these photos of gates in India. Thank you for sharing these pictures.
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I’m happy to know you liked them Lori! Do visit this blog again! 🙂
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A great post, Arv. I loved looking at, and comparing, the different gates. They all have something to interest the eye and admire. As you say, city gates – or gates of notable buildings – can be found in many countries worldwide, but these gates are unique to Jaipur and exhibit their own architectural style. I’ll be sure to read your post about the seven most popular ones.
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Thanks Millie! I’m happy to know that you enjoyed pictures of these gates. These gates exist in all cities which were threatened by outside attacks.
Sure Millie I’ll hasten that impending post on gates. thanks for appreciating and sharing your thoughts Millie! 🙂
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Arv, your pictures paint thousands of words 😊😊 they’re so beautiful I love all the gates, it’s hard to choose a favorite! I know Jaipur is called The Pink City and I can just imagine how great it is day and night. 😊
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Thank You Jennifer for kind words of appreciation. well there will be some more pictures soon.
I’m sure you’ll love it seeing and experiencing it in person!
🙂
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You’re most welcome Arv! 🙂 That’s good, I’ll look forward to more pictures of yours soon! And I’m sure seeing it and experiencing it in person must be even better 🙂
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sure 🙂
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