The Keepers Of History

Once lost to obscurity and left in ruins, Sunder Nursery with its Mughal-era monuments has now been beautifully restored to give Delhi a new green space and yet another must-visit for history buffs.

- Satarupa Paul

It’s easy to miss the quaint lane to Sunder Nursery. The busy Mathura Road that brings you to it winds around a roundabout, in the centre of which stands the blue-domed Nila Gumbad or the Subz Burj tomb, at present tarped up for restoration. One of Delhi’s most visited sites, the magnificent Humayun’s Tomb rises imposingly beyond it. Across the road, devotees make their way through narrow lanes to the sacred dargah of Hazrat Nizamuddin Auliya. In the shadow of it all, the petite street lined by trees and veering off to the left from Humayun’s Tomb lies obscured by the famous and the glorious around. Barely 300 metres down this lane from the main road is an unpretentious sign signalling your arrival at Sunder Nursery.

History places the origins of the area that constitutes present-day Sunder Nursery to around the 16th century, during the reign of the Mughals. The Nursery was originally known as Azim Bagh and built as a Mughal garden beside the already established sites of the Nizamuddin Basti and Humayun’s Tomb. Over 100 monuments dot the landscape of the Nizamuddin-Humayun’s Tomb-Sunder Nursery area, some dating as far back as the 14th century. The Grand Trunk Road once ran through the Nursery, between Humayun’s Tomb and Purana Qila. And the Azimganj Sarai, which now falls within the premises of the Delhi Zoo at the far end of the Nursery, was built by this ancient route, possibly to house travellers, pilgrims, merchants, craftsmen and other wayfarers.