1. Which Mughal ruler commenced the palace-cum-fort complex at Fatehpur Sikri in 1572?
2. In how many years was the Fatehpur Sikri complex completed?
3. The Buland Darwaza was built by Akbar to commemorate his victory in which region?
4. The half-dome portal style used in the Buland Darwaza was borrowed from which country?
5. The decorative technique of inlaying walls with floral designs of semi-precious stones is known as:
6. Under which ruler did the practice of building entirely in marble with pietra dura decoration begin, though it became popular under his successor?
7. Humayun's tomb, considered a precursor of the Taj Mahal, was built at Delhi towards the beginning of whose reign?
8. The architectural device that enabled a bigger dome to be built with a smaller one inside it, first seen in Humayun's tomb, is called:
9. The Moti Masjid, built entirely in marble like the Taj Mahal, is located in which fort?
10. The Jama Masjid at Delhi, noted for its lofty gate and slender minarets, was built by:
11. Consider the following statements regarding Sher Shah's contribution to architecture:
(I) He built a famous mausoleum at Sasaram in Bihar.
(II) He built a mosque in the old fort at Delhi.
(III) His buildings mark the climax of Mughal architecture.
Which of the above is/are correct?
12. The Golden Temple (Harmandir) of the Sikhs at Amritsar was built on which architectural principle?
13. Which Mughal fort, built in red sandstone, was the most famous fort constructed by Akbar?
14. The climax of Mughal fort-building was reached at Delhi with the construction of:
15. Two master painters who accompanied Humayun to India from the court of the Shah of Iran established a painting workshop under whose reign?
16. Which two painters are named as famous artists of Akbar's court?
17. Mughal painting reached its climax under which ruler, known for his discriminating eye?
18. Which painter was particularly renowned for portrait painting and paintings of animals under Jahangir?
19. European painting was introduced at the Mughal court by Portuguese priests during whose reign, leading to the adoption of the principle of foreshortening?
20. Consider the following statements about painting under Aurangzeb:
(I) He took great personal interest in patronising court painters.
(II) His lack of interest led to a dispersal of artists to other parts of the country.
(III) This dispersal helped develop painting in Rajasthan and the Punjab hills.
Which of the above is/are correct?
21. The Rajasthan style of painting combined the themes of the western Indian/Jain school with the forms and styles of:
22. By whose reign had knowledge of Persian become so widespread in north India that he dispensed with keeping revenue records in the local language (Hindawi) alongside Persian?
23. Who was the leading historian and stylist of Akbar's reign, credited with setting a prose-writing style emulated for generations?
24. Faizi, the leading Persian poet of Akbar's reign, was related to Abul Fazl as his:
25. Which translation project was carried out under Faizi's supervision?
26. Which city served as the main centre for the production of Sanskrit works during this period, where scholars from across the country congregated?
27. The Padmavat, which used the attack of Alauddin Khalji on Chittor as a Sufi allegory, was written by:
28. Which poet composed in Bengali and also translated works from Persian?
29. The most influential Hindi poet of the period, who venerated Rama and wrote in an eastern Uttar Pradesh dialect, was:
30. Which Mughal noble produced a blend of Bhakti poetry with Persian ideas of life and human relations?
31. Consider the following pairs of poets and their languages:
(I) Eknath and Tukaram – Marathi
(II) Tulsidas – Hindi
(III) Alaol – Bengali
Which of the pairs given above is/are correctly matched?
32. Akbar patronised which musician of Gwaliyar, credited with composing many new ragas?
33. Recent research shows Aurangzeb banished which of the following from his court, while still permitting the other?
34. During whose reign in the eighteenth century did some of the most important developments in Indian classical music take place?
35. Who completed the compilation of the Sikh scriptures known as the Adi Granth?
36. Guru Arjun Das was imprisoned and put to death by which Mughal emperor on the charge of aiding a rebel prince?
37. Consider the following statements regarding conflicts between Guru Har Govind and Shah Jahan:
(I) A dispute arose when a royal hawk flew into the guru's camp.
(II) A conflict occurred over the guru's attempt to build a new city near Jallandhar.
(III) Royal officials seized two horses intended for the guru, which were later stolen back by his follower Bidhi Chand.
Which of the above is/are correct?
38. Which historian described the conflicts between Guru Har Govind and the Mughals as being of an "inconsequential nature," attributing them to personal and political rather than religious factors?
39. Dara, the liberal eldest son of Shah Jahan, got which text translated into Persian with the help of Brahmans of Kasi?
40. Dara's anthology of the Vedas declared them, in comparison to the Quran, to be:
41. The saint Dadu, born in Gujarat but active mainly in Rajasthan, preached a path best described as:
42. Tukaram, the leading exponent of the Bhakti movement in Maharashtra, was associated with the worship of Vithoba at which centre?
43. Who asserted exclusive Brahman privileges and held that only two varnas, Brahmans and Shudras, remained in the Kali age?
44. Ram Das, who put forward a philosophy of activism and was equally vehement in asserting Brahman privileges, was the spiritual guru of:
45. The most renowned figure of Muslim orthodox revivalism, who opposed the pantheistic concept of tauhid, was:
46. Shaikh Ahmad Sirhindi belonged to which Sufi school, introduced in India during Akbar's reign?
47. Which emperor imprisoned Shaikh Ahmad Sirhindi for claiming a status beyond that of the Prophet, releasing him only after his retraction?
