Purana Qila also known as Old fort is the oldest fort in Delhi. It was built by both Humayun and Sher Shah Suri between 1540 and 1555 AD.
The fort is spread over 1.5 km. The external walls of the old fort are very high and rise upto a height of 18metres.
The main entrance of the fort is from the west side gate which is known as the Bada Darwaza. The South Gate of the fort is known as the Humayun Gate. The third gate is called the Talaqi Gate or the forbidden gate.
These gates are double-storeyed structures made of sandstone having two huge semi-circular bastion towers. These gates are decorated with white and coloured-marble inlays and blue tiles. In the past decades, the purana qila was the venue of important theatre productions, cultural events, and concerts. Everyday after sunset a sound and light show is presented here which tells about the history of Delhi.
During the excavations carried out by Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), they unearthed Painted Grey Ware culture (PGW) dating back to 1000 B.C. This links the setup of the city to time of Pandavas from Mahabharata era.