AKBARS PALA.CE. 61 



vouch for the truth of either statement ; hut if those- 

 at Agi'a were the original gates, they would hardly 

 have been consigned to a lumber room in the Fort^ 

 where nobody ever set eyes upon them. 



Akbar's palace overlooks the Jumna, and is still 

 in tolerable state of preservation. It consists of a 

 number of buildings and detached pavilions in white 

 marble, and richly ornamented with carving and 

 mosaics, reminding one somewhat of the Alhambra^ 

 the same Moorish arches, open-work galleries, bal- 

 conies, and slender columns, fit only to grace the- 

 palaces of fairyland. All within breathes mystery, and 

 many a curious tale is told of the famous " bath of 

 mirrors," the design of which is extravagantly fan- 

 tastic ; walls and vaulted ceilings of the different 

 compartments and passages, which the baths consist 

 of, are completely covered with bits of mirror inter- 

 mixed with bright-coloured glass, and arranged in the 

 most intricate designs, representing flowers, &c. The 

 water falls in a broad sheet into a marble pool over 

 brilliant lamps, and the fountains are so constructed 

 as to be lighted up from within. Most of the 

 chambers and spacious halls are connected by open 

 courts and gardens filled with fountains and the scent 

 from thousands of flowers. There is also the throne 

 room, and a courtyard paved with squares of black 



