The Chaukhandi tombs

Carved sandstone graves of horsemen, hunters and jewels

An early Islamic cemetery on the eastern edge of Karachi, known for the elaborate carving of its sandstone graves, in the same funerary style as the great necropolis of Makli near Thatta. The tombs are usually attributed to the Jokhio, a Sindhi tribe, and called their family graveyard, though Burfat, Jakhra and Shaikh graves are here too and Kalmati Baloch were buried among them; most were built under Mughal rule, between the 16th and 18th centuries. The graves lie north to south, which is unusual for graveyards in Sindh and Balochistan, and the finer ones are of buff sandstone that the dry climate has kept remarkably sharp. They stand singly or in groups of up to eight on a shared platform, each built up in horizontal slabs and topped by an upright stone whose northern end is often carved into a knob called a crown or a turban. Geometric patterns cover them, along with figures carved in relief: mounted horsemen, hunting scenes, weapons and jewellery. It is an easy trip out of the city and one of the best places in Sindh to see this carving close up.