Jantar Mantar, Jaipur.

	Jantar Mantar, Jaipur
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Jantar Mantar, the incredible brick curves, slants, circles and pillars of Jai Singh's astronomical observatory, overlaid with sherbet-yellow gypsum, are solidly planted in the southern courtyard of the palace complex.

A total of eighteen instruments were erected between 1728 and 1734 by Jai Singh; some are triangular, some are circular or semicircular, and all are very large. Although the Maharaja was influenced by the works of foreign astrologers and the advice of his teachers - one of whom was his mother - many of the devices were of his own invention.

It's a good idea to pay (Rs30-50) for the services of a guide to explain how the observatory works. The instruments are built so that shadows fall onto marked surfaces, identifying the position and movement of stars and planets, telling the time, and even predicting the intensity of the monsoon.

The time calculated is unique to Jaipur, between ten and forty-one minutes (depending on the time of year) behind

Indian standard time, but is used to calculate the Hindu (lunar) calendar. Probably the most impressive of Jai Singh's constructions is the sundial, Samrat Yantra.

Its slanting centerpiece, or gnomon , reaches a height of 27m, casting shadows onto curved stone faces that are graduated in hours. Each hour is divided into thirty parts, so the time calculated is accurate to within two minutes.

A more original device, the Jaiprakash Yantra , consists of two hemispheres laid in the ground, each composed of six curving marble slabs with a suspended ring in the centre, whose shadow marks the day, time and zodiac symbol. This is vital for the calculations of auspicious days for marriage; when unfavorable planets are in influential positions, for example between August and October, marriages have always been avoided.

Daily 9am-4.30pm; Rs2, free Mon, Rs50 extra for camera, Rs100 extra for video.