On the Move: The Role of Mobility in Making Makli

The early sixteenth century was a period of great socio-political foment in South Asia, with the movement of multiple Turkic groups into the Subcontinent following the dissolution of the Timurid empire (1370-1507). As during other periods of mass migration, artists, poets, and intellectuals were part of this relocation. Their presence has been noted and researched in the Mughal courts but smaller regional polities have not yet been the subject of much scholarship. Among these were the Arghuns and Tarkhans, who conquered Sindh, now in present-day Pakistan, in 1522/23, overthrowing the Sammas, a local Rajput tribe ruling since 1351. The primary material remains from this period are monuments in the vast Makli necropolis (established in the late fourteenth century). Consisting of both brick and tile tombs and elaborately carved stone funerary enclosures, these buildings constitute a significant source for identifying artisanal practices and artistic styles employed in southern Sindh during this period. As I will demonstrate, this rich archive suggests possible modes of artistic transmission and reveals the integrated nature of the design process. These practices link the necropolis with working methods operative in the wider eastern Islamic world, transregional links that were complemented by locally available materials and styles. In the interaction of the local with the transregional, the Makli necropolis illustrates the modalities and contingencies that govern place-making practices.