Jagat Shiromani Temple

The Jagat Shiromani Temple stands in the village of Amer near Kheri Gate, below Amber Fort, about 11 km north of central Jaipur in Rajasthan, India. It is a Vaishnava temple built in the early 17th century by Maharani Kanakwati, wife of Raja Man Singh I, in memory of their son Kunwar Jagat Singh, who died young. Construction is traditionally dated to the period between 1599 and 1608, and it belongs to the Kachwaha Amer era, when the dynasty ruled from Amer before the move to Jaipur. The temple is built of white marble and local stone on a raised platform reached by a steep flight of steps, with a carved gateway, a porch, a mandapa and a sanctum topped by a shikhara. Its columns, toranas and walls carry fine relief carvings of gods, goddesses, dancers, musicians and scenes from Hindu epics, as well as floral and animal motifs, and these are widely regarded as among the best examples of Rajput temple sculpture in the region. The central image is of Vishnu, and a black stone statue of Krishna is said to be the same one worshipped by the Rajput princess Mirabai, with the original reportedly brought from Chittorgarh. A small shrine of Garuda faces the main temple. The site is an active place of worship and not a museum, so there is no curated sequence, and visitors move through the porch and mandapa in the order of the ritual space. Restoration has been undertaken by the Rajasthan archaeology department and local trusts to stabilise carved panels and repair the platform, and the stone shows weathering, but the carving remains crisp. The temple lies a short walk from the Anokhi Museum and the lower approach road to Amber Fort, so it works well as an early stop before the fort.