Hawa Mahal

Hawa Mahal meaning 'palace of winds' is a summer residential palace of the royal family of Jeypore. It was built in 1917-1923 by Maharaja Ram Chandra Dev IV at Beach Road, Visakhapatnam. It is considered one of the most iconic historical buildings of the city. It is owned by the Maharaja of Jeypore. Hawa Mahal was designed to extract maximum beneffrom of the cool sea breeze. This palace, a unique two storied symmetrical stone building has twin octagonal projections on either side. Segmented arched openings frame the wooden windows within. To ensure cool comfort within, Burma teak and high Madras roofing have been employed extensively. The Central porch of the main structure has semi-circular arched verandahs and the rectangular wooden windows with ventilators leading into the palace. Two iron grilled staircases in the north side provide access to the first floor. In the bygone days of royalty, the palace witnessed many a grand arrival by the royal family, their honoured guests and huge entourage on elaborately decorated elephants and horses as they converged here for the summers