Each side wall of the cube bears three blind arches; the spandrels of the arches contain medallion motifs, and the central arch on each side wall is filled with a stone screen containing doorways and windows. Cornices project from the building, supported by corbels. Atop the cornices are rows of small arches, themselves topped by large merlons. Leaves surround the base of the mausoleum's dome, hiding the joint between the dome and its drum. Interior The interior is a huge single chamber that is approximately 41 m across and 60 m high. In the centre of the chamber floor is a raised platform bearing the cenotaphs of Mohammad Adil Shah, his younger wife Arus Bibi, his older wife, his favourite mistress Rhamba, his daughter, and a grandson. The cenotaphs mark the location of the actual tombs, which are found in a crypt underneath and accessed by a staircase under the western entrance of the mausoleum. Though typical of Indian Muslim tombs, this is the only instance of such a practice in Adil Shahi architecture. Mohammad Adil Shah's cenotaph is covered by a wooden canopy; Michell and Zebrowski speculate that this is a later addition. A half-octagonal room is attached to the north facade of the building, though this is also a later addition. Dome At the time of its construction, the Gol Gumbaz boasted the largest dome in the Islamic world. Its external diameter is nearly 44 m. The dome is built of brick and cemented with layers of lime. It has six small openings in its base as well as a flat section at its crown. The dome rests on a circular base, which is internally supported by interlocking pendentives, formed from eight intersecting arches that arise from the interior hall. Similar vaulting is found, though on a smaller scale, in the Jami Masjid of Bijapur and the Ibrahim Rauza. Outside of Bijapur, this pendentive support system is virtually unknown. The conceptual origin of the Gol Gumbaz's pendentives is debated, though a Central Asian influence has been suggested by multiple scholars. Around the base of the dome is a gallery, accessed by the staircases in the towers. It is known as the 'whispering gallery' since the faintest sound from here is heard across the dome, due to sound reflecting off the dome. In Art and Literature In Fisher's Drawing Room Scrap Book, 1833 is a picture of Gol Gumbaz