Tucked into a side street off Anarkali Bazaar, the tomb of Qutbuddin Aibak marks the burial place of the first Sultan of Delhi and founder of the Slave Dynasty, one of the earliest Muslim rulers of South Asia. Despite that historical weight, it sits almost unnoticed among the shops and houses of modern Anarkali, and most visitors to Lahore, and even many residents, walk past without knowing it is there.
This guide covers who Qutbuddin Aibak was, what happened to his tomb over the centuries, and how to find it.
Who was Qutbuddin Aibak?
Qutbuddin Aibak began as a Turkic slave-general under Muhammad of Ghor and rose to govern Ghor's Indian territories, eventually founding the Delhi Sultanate's first dynasty, generally known as the Slave (Mamluk) Dynasty, and ruling as its first Sultan from 1206. He is also remembered for starting the Qutub Minar in Delhi, though he did not live to see it completed.
His reign ended abruptly in 1210: Aibak died in Lahore after a fall from his horse while playing chaugan, an early form of polo, and he was buried where he fell, in what was then open ground outside the city's Lohari Gate. That area is now the built-up Anarkali neighbourhood.
What happened to the tomb
The original 13th-century grave marker did not survive intact. Later accounts describe a marble tomb structure that stood over the grave before being removed during Ranjit Singh's Sikh-era rule in the early 19th century, after which the site was left with only a protective enclosure through the British colonial period. The tomb seen today, a modest domed structure built directly over the grave, dates only to 1990, when Pakistan's Department of Archaeology and Museums acquired the surrounding houses and constructed the current building; the site had also seen restoration work in the 1970s.
Why it's easy to miss
Unlike Lahore's Mughal-era monuments, Aibak's tomb was never rebuilt on a grand scale, and centuries of urban growth in Anarkali have closed in around it, leaving a small, low-key structure on a street now named Aibak Road after him. It carries no ticket booth, no crowds and little signage beyond what marks the immediate site, which makes it one of the few historically significant monuments in central Lahore that most visitors overlook entirely.
How to find it
The tomb sits on Aibak Road, within the Anarkali Bazaar area, reachable on foot from the main bazaar or by a short rickshaw or taxi ride from nearby parts of the Mall Road area. Because it is a small structure with no major signage visible from the main bazaar roads, it helps to know the street name in advance and ask locally once you are close, since even Lahore residents in the immediate area do not always know it by name.
What to see while you're in Anarkali
Given how modest the tomb itself is, most visitors combine it with a wider look at Anarkali, one of Lahore's oldest and busiest commercial areas. Our guide to Anarkali Bazaar covers shopping and food in the surrounding streets, and it sits within easy reach of Lahore's other central sights if you are building a longer day; our Lahore itinerary can help place it in context.
Is it worth the detour?
For most travellers focused on Lahore's headline sights, the tomb is a minor stop rather than a destination in itself; the structure standing today is a 20th-century reconstruction rather than an intact Mughal or Sultanate-era monument, and there is little to see beyond the grave and its modest dome. For anyone specifically interested in the history of the Delhi Sultanate and its founder, or looking for a quiet, uncrowded historical site to add to an Anarkali visit already under way, it is worth the short detour.
Frequently asked questions
Who is buried at the tomb on Aibak Road?
Qutbuddin Aibak, the first Sultan of Delhi and founder of the Slave (Mamluk) Dynasty, who died in Lahore in 1210 after a fall from his horse during a polo match.
Is the tomb the original 13th-century structure?
No. The building seen today was constructed in 1990 over the original grave, after an earlier marble tomb was removed during the Sikh era and the site later had only a protective enclosure for many years.
Is there an entry fee to visit the tomb?
No entry fee applies; it is a small, publicly accessible monument rather than a ticketed heritage site.
Where exactly is the tomb located?
On Aibak Road, within the Anarkali Bazaar area of Lahore, close to the main commercial streets of Anarkali.
Why is the tomb so little known compared with Lahore's other monuments?
It was never rebuilt on a grand scale after the original structure was lost, and the surrounding area has grown up around it over the centuries, leaving a modest building with little signage in the middle of a busy bazaar district.
