Moti Masjid’s marble courtyard remains behind locked doors at Red Fort

Moti Masjid’s minars, domes and arches rise above the Red Fort’s red-sandstone walls, but the small white-marble mosque has remained closed to visitors for years.

Built by Aurangzeb near the royal bath inside the fort, it was not included in Shah Jahan’s original plan. Shah Jahan, whose living quarters were within the fort, travelled to Jama Masjid outside the complex for special Friday prayers. His son later created this more private place of worship within the palace-fort.

The mosque is unusual in Delhi for both its patron and its material. Mughal-era monuments are widespread in the city, but buildings commissioned by Aurangzeb are comparatively rare; Delhi also has few major monuments made entirely of marble. Moti Masjid’s surfaces are carved with floral and vine patterns, including on its ceiling.

Its locked entrance now keeps the courtyard largely unseen. A visitor at the site was seen bending toward the narrow gap at its doors, trying to glimpse the marble interior.