Category:Hindu forts in India

Durg (IAST: दुर्ग), sometimes called Hindu forts, are one of the structures discussed in historic Sanskrit texts on architecture. They differ from Mughal forts and other Indo-Islamic forts in several ways. The traditional Hindu architecture favors symmetry. The gateway of Hindu forts have sculpted toranas in contrast to the arched entrances in Indo-Islamic and Mughal forts. The gateways of Hindu forts are typically found at least in four cardinal directions when feasible, these entrance and nearby fort walls often have reliefs or sculptures of Hindu deities such as Durga, Chandi, Ganesha, Hanuman, Brahma, avatars of Vishnu, Shiva and others. In contrast, the historic Indo-Islamic forts do not include Hindu deities, are either plain or show geometric patterns, Persian or Arabic inscriptions. After the 12th-century, many Hindu forts were conquered and either converted or built anew as Islamic/Mughal forts. The conquered and reused historic forts show signs of iconoclasm and the use of different materials of construction in sections of the fort.