Summer Palace of Maharaja Ranjit Singh

Constructed under the supervision of Fakir Azeez-ud-din, Sardar Lehna Singh and Sardar Desa Singh Majithia, nobles of the Lahore, this darbar cost Nanak Shahi (the currency at the time) 1,25,000. A retreat for Maharaja Ranjit Singh (1780-1838 AD), the palace spreads across 84 acres and had a garden of rare plants, trees and flowers, surrounded by a boundary wall, 14 feet high and a moat all around it.

This beautiful palace had also several equally beautiful built clusters which the British converted into clubs and libraries. The entrance of the palace called the Darshani Deori has a unique design. It has four two-storied towers in the cardinal directions. There are two tanks, one connecting the palace with water channels fitted with fountains and the other with the air-conditioning pipes circuiting the outer walls and the bathing tanks of the double-storied part of the residence. Some of the paintings and the mirror-work on the roofs can still be seen.