It is here that the Rajput Maharajah Man Singh of Jaipur built his palace in 1600. Later on, Maharaja Sawai Jai Singh added an observatory here in 1710. It is one of the five observatories built by Maharaja Jai Singh to observe the stars and to make accurate forecast of the monsoon. His other observatories include the Jantar Mantar of Jaipur, and others located in Delhi, Ujjain, and Mathura.
Man Mandir Ghat is one of the oldest ghats in Varanasi. Man Mandir, the Maharajah's palace, is an exquisite structure of Rajput architecture that has aged gracefully. Depending on the day, its façade is ash grey in mid day, and golden tan in the morning. A long flight of stairs leads up the ghat. I passed through it when I was riverbank of the Ganges. I also saw it from the river when I went boating in the evening. The ghat is wide here, and at water's edge, you can see the locals taking that baths, both the ritual and the recreational.
The Man Mandir Ghat as seen from the Ganges. (16 November, 2004)
Another view of the Man Mandir Ghat. (16 November, 2004)