Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters

Take your next trip with Atlas Obscura!

Our small-group adventures are inspired by our Atlas of the world's most fascinating places, the stories behind them, and the people who bring them to life.

Visit Adventures
Trips Highlight
Puglia Italy - Matera
Italy • 8 days, 7 nights
Southern Italy: Castles, Caves & Coastal Treasures in Puglia
from
Turkmenistan Gates of Hell Darvaza crater
Turkmenistan • 10 days, 9 nights
Turkmenistan & the Gates of Hell
from
View all trips
Top Destinations
Latest Places
Most Popular Places Random Place Lists Itineraries
Add a Place
Download the App
Top Destinations
View All Destinations »

Countries

  • Australia
  • Canada
  • China
  • France
  • Germany
  • India
  • Italy
  • Japan

Cities

  • Amsterdam
  • Barcelona
  • Beijing
  • Berlin
  • Boston
  • Budapest
  • Chicago
  • London
  • Los Angeles
  • Mexico City
  • Montreal
  • Moscow
  • New Orleans
  • New York City
  • Paris
  • Philadelphia
  • Rome
  • San Francisco
  • Seattle
  • Stockholm
  • Tokyo
  • Toronto
  • Vienna
  • Washington, D.C.
Latest Places
View All Places »
Pinal Airpark
Note the chrysanthemum crests.
Hachiman Bridge
Clarendon War Memorial.
Clarendon War Memorial
This fried chicken is one of Bangkok’s most famous.
Gai Tord Jae Kee
Latest Places to Eat & Drink
View All Places to Eat »
This fried chicken is one of Bangkok’s most famous.
Gai Tord Jae Kee
Chefs Aruss Lerlerstkull and Atcharaporn Kiatthanawat lean into regional traditions.
Charmgang
The khao soi at Gedhawa comes with a rich, coconutty broth.
Gedhawa
At Nai Mong Hoi Thod, the oyster omelet is worth waiting for.
Nai Mong Hoi Thod
In this deceptively simple dish, top-quality ingredients are paramount.
Kor Panich
Recent Stories
All Stories Video Podcast
Most Recent Stories
View All Stories »
Haleakalā National Park’s summit region, shrouded in the pre-dawn fog.
Beware the Legends Behind These National Park Souvenirs
3 days ago
For Aguilar-Carrasco, nature is a powerful reminder of the interconnectedness of all life.
How Can National Parks Be Made Accessible to All? AO Wants to Know.
4 days ago
Podcast: Finding ‘The Great Gatsby’ in Louisville
5 days ago
Here’s which treats you can safely lug home without risking a fine.
Dear Atlas: What International Food Can I Legally Bring Into the U.S.?
6 days ago

No search results found for
“”

Make sure words are spelled correctly.

Try searching for a travel destination.

Places near me Random place

Popular Destinations

  • Paris
  • London
  • New York
  • Berlin
  • Rome
  • Los Angeles
Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters
Sign In Join
Places near me Random place
All Pakistan Ranikay Hiran Minar
AO Edited

Hiran Minar

A tower built by an emperor for an antelope.

Ranikay, Pakistan

Added By
Tawsam
Email
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list
Hiran Minar   Asimbaloch01 on Wikipedia
Hiran Minar   Asimbaloch01 on Wikipedia
Pavilion   Muhammad Ashar on Wikipedia
Titular Tower   Muhammad Ashar on Wikipedia
Pavilion, Gate, Tank   Bhaur at Wikipedia
Tower, 1910   Wikipedia
Dusk   Muhammad Ashar on Wikipedia
  Aown Ali
  Aown Ali
  Aown
  Aown Ali
  Aown Ali
  Aown Ali
  Aown Ali
  Aown Ali
  Aown Ali
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list

About

Jahangir was a Mughal emperor who, like all good Mughal emperors, loved to hunt antelope. He also loved his cherished pet Mansraj (meaning "Light of the Mind") who was an antelope. Something was bound to go wrong.

And wrong something did indeed go, when Jahangir was hunting with friends on his game preserve near Sheikhupura when he espied an antelope that proved to be a tempting quarry. The whys and wherefores — errant shot? mistaken identity? logistical difficulties of cervine pet ownership? — have been lost to the mists of time, but what is certain is that poor Mansraj was cut down that day in 1606.

Stricken by the loss, Jahangir paid tribute to the memory of his pet by constructing the 100-foot-tall Hiran Minar (meaning "Deer Tower"). The top of the tower includes a place to inter Mansraj's remains, while the perimeter of the tower features holes that were most likely used to mount the heads of animal trophies taken by the emperor. An odd way to honor an animal friend killed in a hunting mishap? Sure, but grief does strange things to a man.

In 1634, Jahangir's successor Shah Jahan visited his father's favorite hunting preserve and decided to add to the complex by constructing a large water tank and octagonal pavilion to the east of the memorial tower (for context, this was two years after Shah Jahan started building the Taj Mahal -- guy liked to build). The rectangular water tank measures 750 feet by 895 feet and features a sophisticated series of channels and catchment basins to maintain the water level. Brick ramps in the middle of each side of the tank provide access to the water for animals living in the preserve.

The octagonal pavilion, which served as a royal retreat, sits in the middle of the tank and is accessible via an arched stone bridge that leads directly from the pavilion to the tower. Despite being upstaged by these newer structures, the original tower still provides the name for the site as a whole, and Hiran Minar remains a testament to a heartwarming — if slightly eccentric — interspecial friendship.

Related Tags

Mausoleums Pet Cemeteries Towers Hunting

Know Before You Go

The monument is located off Sheikhupura Hafizabad Road, a few kilometers from Sheikhupura city

Community Contributors

Added By

Tawsam

Edited By

RHyzer, aownali, explorepakistan07

  • RHyzer
  • aownali
  • explorepakistan07

Published

January 15, 2016

Edit this listing

Make an Edit
Add Photos
Sources
  • http://www.khanapakana.com/article/3a88a02a-ae9d-4b60-912b-94a97c67c153/hiran-minar-deer-tower-lahore-pakistan
  • http://www.orientalarchitecture.com/pakistan/sheikhupura/hiran-minar.php
  • http://www.mughalgardens.org/html/sheikhupura_hiran.html
  • http://www.worldheritagesite.org/sites/t1281.html
  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hiran_Minar
  • https://www.explorerpakistan.com/top-most-attractive-places-to-visit-in-sheikhupura.html
Hiran Minar
Ranikay
Pakistan
31.743033, 73.952986
Visit Website

Nearby Places

Badshahi Mosque

Lahore, Pakistan

miles away

Lahore Fort Elephant Path

Lahore, Pakistan

miles away

Shab Bhar Masjid

Lahore, Pakistan

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Pakistan

Pakistan

Asia

Places 34
Stories 9

Nearby Places

Badshahi Mosque

Lahore, Pakistan

miles away

Lahore Fort Elephant Path

Lahore, Pakistan

miles away

Shab Bhar Masjid

Lahore, Pakistan

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Pakistan

Pakistan

Asia

Places 34
Stories 9

Related Places

  • Barnsley, England

    Tankersley Old Hall Ruins

    The ruins of a significant 16th-century building once appeared in a 1969 film.

  • Tower of the Scipios

    Tarragona, Spain

    Tower of the Scipios

    An elaborate Roman funerary monument dedicated to the family of Scipio.

  • Tour de l’Échangeur

    Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo

    Tour de l'Échangeur

    Also known as the Limete Tower, la Tour de l'Échangeur can be seen from almost everywhere in Kinshasa.

  • The Tower of Memories.

    Wheat Ridge, Colorado

    Tower of Memories

    A seven-story 1920s mausoleum outside Denver houses thousands of remains.

  • Hemingway’s typewriter.

    Havana, Cuba

    Finca Vigía

    The house that birthed The Old Man and The Sea is now a museum devoted to the old man who wrote it.

  • Salé, Morocco

    Sidi Ben Achir Cemetery

    An immense coastal necropolis with an outstanding view of the nearby kasbah

  • The last surviving semaphore tower.

    Cobham, England

    Chatley Heath Semaphore Tower

    This five-story sentinel is the sole surviving semaphore tower in Britain.

  • Though the dam crest is long gone, the tower still stands.

    Nyborg, Denmark

    Den Hvide Jomfru (The White Maiden)

    Legend speaks of a banished noblewoman allegedly walled inside this little tower.

Aerial image of Vietnam, displaying the picturesque rice terraces, characterized by their layered, verdant fields.
Atlas Obscura Membership

Become an Atlas Obscura Member


Join our community of curious explorers.

Become a Member

Get Our Email Newsletter

Follow Us

Facebook YouTube TikTok Instagram Pinterest RSS Feed

Get the app

Download the App
Download on the Apple App Store Get it on Google Play
  • All Places
  • Latest Places
  • Most Popular
  • Places to Eat
  • Random
  • Nearby
  • Add a Place
  • Stories
  • Food & Drink
  • Itineraries
  • Lists
  • Video
  • Podcast
  • Newsletters
  • All Trips
  • Family Trip
  • Food & Drink
  • History & Culture
  • Wildlife & Nature
  • FAQ
  • Membership
  • Feedback & Ideas
  • Community Guidelines
  • Product Blog
  • Unique Gifts
  • Work With Us
  • About
  • FAQ
  • Advertise With Us
  • Advertising Guidelines
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy
  • Terms of Use
Atlas Obscura

© 2025 Atlas Obscura. All Rights Reserved.