Ranikot Fort is a historical fort near Sann, Jamshoro District, Sindh. Ranikot Fort is also known as The Great Wall of Sindh and is believed to be the world’s largest fort with a circumference of approximately 35 km. Its walls are made of gypsum and lime cut sandstone. Since 1993, it has been on the tentative list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites. You need a four wheel drive jeep to see all of Ranikot, and can also camp overnight with the tour guides.
“The size of Ranikot defies all reasons. It stands in the middle of nowhere, defending nothing,” writes Isobel Shaw.
The fort was built in the first quarter of the 19th century. The fortification wall, which follows the natural contours of the hilly area, has solid semi-circular bastions at intervals. The fortification wall runs on three sides of the area, while on the northern side the lofty peaks of the higher hillocks serve as a wall. A small fortress, about 5-6 miles inside the main gate, appears to have been the royal residence for the ruling family of Mirs. The double door gate lies on the south of the fortress. Inside the gate two niches are decorated with floral designs and carved stones. The whole architecture of the fort is restricted to stone and lime.
When you enter in the fort, you will find ditches, building structure, bastions, ammunition depots, streams, hills, ponds, pools, valleys, fossils, watchtowers, fortresses. The watchtower and a mosque are later modifications. There are three graveyards, with one graveyard with four hundred graves. On of the graves’ sandstone, there are engraved motifs of sunflowers and peacocks. Sometimes local residents call one of the graveyards as the “Romans graveyard”. Animal skeletons and prehistoric fossils can be found on the top of Lundi Hills.
Getting In and Around
You need a four wheel drive jeep to see all of Ranikot, and can also camp overnight with the tour guides. The entry to the Fort is through the Sann Gate. Climb up on both sides for a panoramic view of the landscape. Further down the road there is a small fortress, “Meeri”, housing the royal quarters. From there, one can see “Shergarh”, another fortress, up in the mountain. After driving and walking some more, head over to Mohan Gate. There are a number of canyons inside the fort, and small rain-streams used by the Gabol villagers residing inside the fort. The ‘paryun jo talao’ (the pond of fairies) pond is quite deep and the stones around it are slippery.
Beside Sann and Mohan Gates, there are two additional gates ‘Amri Gate’ and ‘Shahpar Gate’.
History
The original purpose and architects of Ranikot Fort are unknown. Some archaeologists attribute it to Arabs, or possibly built by a Persian noble under the Abbasids by Imran Bin Musa Barmaki who was the Governor of Sindh in 836. Others have suggested a much earlier period of construction attributing to either the Sassanians Persians or sometimes the Greeks. Despite the fact that a prehistoric site of Amri is nearby, there is no trace of any old city inside the fort and the present structure has little evidence of prehistoric origins.
Archaeologists point to 17th century as its time of first construction, but now Sindh archaeologists agree that some of the present structure was reconstructed by Mir Karam Ali Khan Talpur Baloch and his brother Mir Murad Ali Baloch in 1812.
How to Get There
Fly:
Fly to Karachi or Sukkur. Then drive to Ranikot. Train:
Take a train to Sann Railway Station.
Railway Schedule Bus:
Find a local bus to Sann from Karachi. Drive:
From Karachi: Drive to Sann along the N-5 highway. Turn to Ranikot Rd on the left – takes 6 hrs.