Do these 3 things before closing this tab:
1Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errors2Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minute3Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsA jali is a pierced lattice screen, often carved from stone or marble, that shapes how light and air move through a building while adding a patterned surface. In a case described in Mitchell Abdul Karim Crites’s book excerpt, historic Mughal screens inspired modern commissions at Shangri La, Doris Duke’s Honolulu residence. The example links architectural craft and patronage without suggesting that every contemporary jali follows the same design path.
What is a jali?
A jali is a lattice screen formed by openings cut or carved into a material such as stone or marble. Its pattern can be decorative, but a screen also changes the experience of the space behind it by filtering light and air. The word is often associated with Mughal architecture, where carved screens became an important part of buildings’ visual and spatial design.
In “The Jali Tradition: Master Craftsmanship and Patronage,” Mitchell Abdul Karim Crites describes a Shangri La bath screen as “an elegant filter for light and air falling into the marble chamber beyond.” That description captures the architectural role: the screen is both an object of craft and a boundary that moderates the room’s relationship with the outside.
How the craft carried into twentieth-century construction
Crites’s excerpt traces a revival of stonework to the construction of New Delhi. It describes Rajasthan red sandstone and Makrana white marble being brought to the city, while master carvers from Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan were recruited to make relief panels, jali screens, railings and cladding.
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The chapter author presents a later resurgence in Mughal stone carving and hard-stone inlay as evidence that those skills had survived. This is an account of craft continuity and renewed patronage, rather than a claim that one unchanged method or style defined all subsequent work.
How Mughal forms informed Shangri La
After traveling in India in 1935, Doris Duke commissioned a Mughal-style suite at Shangri La, her residence in Honolulu. Crites’s excerpt describes two jali-related commissions that show how historic forms could inform a twentieth-century building project.
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The bath window
A white-marble jali window for the bath combined an elongated lily motif with a geometric lattice. The screen’s ornamental pattern was integrated into a working architectural opening, filtering light and air into the marble chamber.
The Jali Pavilion
Duke’s husband also requested a Jali Pavilion. Its designs drew inspiration from the monumental screens at the tomb of I’timad al-Daula in Agra. The pavilion is an example of a modern commission looking to a historic Mughal precedent; it does not establish that contemporary jali design generally relies on direct historical imitation.
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Rank #3
- Made of glass-filled polypropylene, a UV- stable material which prevents any scratches
- Low thermal expansion and contraction
- Includes a 1.5 in. border which delivers a picture frame look and can be installed either horizontally or vertically
- Heavy-duty 0.3 in. thickness
- Easy to install using color matching fastener kits for a seamless finish (sold separately)
About the book excerpt
The excerpt, published by Scroll.in on December 8, 2023, is from “The Jali Tradition: Master Craftsmanship and Patronage,” by Mitchell Abdul Karim Crites. It appears with permission from Jali: Lattice of Divine Light in Mughal Architecture, edited by Navina Najat Haidar and published by Mapin Publishing. The excerpt focuses on craftsmanship and patronage, particularly the connection between stonework and the Shangri La commissions; it does not provide a complete account of the book’s chapters or the full range of modern jali design.
Crites’s article identifies Shangri La as the Shangri La Museum of Islamic Art, Culture & Design and says it is open to the public. It does not establish current opening hours, admission arrangements or other visitor details.
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- Made of glass-filled polypropylene, a UV- stable material which prevents any scratches
- Low thermal expansion and contraction
- Includes a 1.5 in. border which delivers a picture frame look and can be installed either horizontally or vertically
- Heavy-duty 0.3 in. thickness
- Easy to install using color matching fastener kits for a seamless finish (sold separately)
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- Decorative screen panels can enhance both indoor and outdoor spaces, creating the perfect accent or focal point
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