Taj Mahal

Taj Mahal is a mausoleum complex in Agra, Uttar Pradesh, India's westernmost state. The Taj Mahal was built by Mughal emperor Shah Jahn (reigned 1628–58) to honour his wife Mumtaz Mahal, who died in childbirth in 1631 after being the emperor's inseparable companion since their marriage in 1612. It is located in the eastern part of the city, on the southern (right) bank of the Yamuna River, and is India's most famous and widely recognised structure. The Taj Mahal is about 1.6 kilometres west of Agra Fort, which is also on the right bank of the Yamuna.

 

The famous complex in Agra, India, was built over a 20-year period on the southern bank of the Yamuna River and is one of the most outstanding examples of Mughal architecture, which combined Indian, Persian, and Islamic influences. The Taj Mahal, which is made of gleaming white marble that appears to change colour depending on the light, is at its heart. It has been a UNESCO World Heritage site since 1983, and it is still one of the world's most famous structures and a stunning symbol of India's rich history. 20,000 artisans worked on the project, which was overseen by a board of architects led by Ustad Ahmad Lahauri, the emperor's court architect.

 

From the early 16th century to the mid-eighteenth century, the Mughal dynasty ruled most of northern India. Following the death of his father, King Jahangir, in 1627, Shah Jahan triumphed over his brothers in a bitter power struggle and was crowned emperor at Agra in 1628.

 

Arjumand Banu Begum, better known as Mumtaz Mahal, was his right-hand woman, whom he married in 1612 and regarded as his favourite of his three queens.

 

Mumtaz Mahal died in 1631, shortly after giving birth to the couple's 14th child. Shah Jahan, who was known for commissioning numerous impressive structures during his reign, ordered the construction of a magnificent mausoleum across the Yamuna River from his royal palace in Agra.

 

Construction on the structure began in 1632 and lasted for the next two decades. Ustad Ahmad Lahouri, an Indian of Persian ancestry who would later be credited with designing the Red Fort in Delhi, was most likely the chief architect.

 

More than 20,000 workers from India, Persia, Europe, and the Ottoman Empire were brought in to construct the mausoleum complex, along with 1,000 elephants.

 

 

Earlier Mughal structures were mostly made of red sandstone, but Shah Jahan encouraged the use of white marble inlaid with semi-precious stones. Buildings under his patronage were refined to new heights.

 

The Taj Mahal's tomb is the focal point of the entire complex. It is a large, white marble structure with a symmetrical building with an iwan (an arch-shaped doorway) topped by a large dome and finial standing on a square plinth.

 

A massive pishtaq or vaulted archway frames each side of the iwan, with two similarly shaped arched balconies stacked on either side. The stacked pishtaq motif is repeated on the chamfered corner areas, resulting in a symmetrical design on all sides of the building. The tomb is surrounded by four minarets, one at each corner of the plinth facing the chamfered corners. The false sarcophagi of Mumtaz Mahal and Shah Jahan are housed in the main chamber, while the actual graves are on a lower level.

 

The marble dome that atop the tomb is the most spectacular feature. The dome is nearly 35 metres tall, which is close to the length of the base, and is accentuated by the cylindrical "drum" it sits on, which is about 7 metres tall. A lotus design adorns the top, which also serves to emphasise its height. The dome's shape is emphasised by four smaller domed chattris (kiosks) placed at its corners, which mirror the main dome's onion shape. The dome has an asymmetrical shape. Their columned bases provide light to the interior of the tomb by opening through the roof.

 

The designer's penchant for symmetry can be seen in the minarets, which are each more than 40 metres tall. They were built to function as working minarets, which are traditional elements of mosques and are used by the muezzin to summon the Muslim faithful to prayer. Two working balconies encircle each minaret, effectively dividing it into three equal parts. A final balcony at the top of the tower is topped by a chattri that matches the design on the tomb.

 

 

The Taj Mahal's exterior decorations are among the best in Mughal architecture. The decorations are proportionally refined as the surface area changes. Paint, stucco, stone inlays, and carvings were used to create the decorative elements. Some of the decorative elements in the complex are Qur'anic passages.

 

"O Soul, thou art at rest," reads the calligraphy on the Great Gate. Return to the Lord in peace with Him, and He will return to you in peace.” The calligraphy is mostly made up of florid thuluth script inlaid in white marble panels made of jasper or black marble. To reduce the skewing effect when viewed from below, higher panels are written in a slightly larger script.

 

Sandstone buildings have white inlays, while white marbles have dark or black inlays. The marble buildings' mortared areas have been stained or painted in a contrasting colour, resulting in a complex array of geometric patterns. In tessellation patterns, contrasting tiles or blocks are used on the floors and walkways.

 

White marble dados with realistic bas relief depictions of flowers and vines adorn the tomb's lower walls. The marble has been polished to highlight the carvings' exquisite detailing. Pietra dura inlays of highly stylized, almost geometric vines, flowers, and fruits adorn the dado frames and archway spandrels. Yellow marble, jasper, and jade inlay stones are polished and levelled to the surface of the walls.

 

 

The Taj Mahal's interior chamber goes far beyond traditional decorative elements. The inlay work is a lapidary of precious and semiprecious gemstones rather than pietra dura.

 

At ground level, eight pishtaq arches define the space, and each lower pishtaq is crowned by a second pishtaq about halfway up the wall, similar to the exterior. The four upper arches form balconies or viewing areas, and each balcony's exterior window is adorned with an intricate marble screen or jali. Light enters through roof openings covered by chattris at the corners, in addition to the light from the balcony screens. Eight marble panels are carved through with intricate pierce work to form the octagonal marble screen or jali that surrounds the cenotaphs.

 

Graves are not to be lavishly decorated according to Muslim tradition. As a result, Mumtaz and Shah Jahan's bodies were buried beneath the inner chamber in a relatively plain crypt with their faces turned right, towards Mecca. The cenotaph of Mumtaz Mahal is situated in the exact centre of the inner chamber, on a rectangular marble base measuring 1.5 by 2.5 metres. The casket and the base are both intricately inlaid with precious and semiprecious gems. Mumtaz is identified and praised in calligraphic inscriptions on the casket. Traditional Mughal funerary icons, the pen box and writing tablet, are found on both men's and women's caskets.

 

 

The complex is built around a large charbagh (Mughal garden) measuring 980 square feet. Each of the four quarters of the garden is divided into 16 sunken parterres or flowerbeds by raised pathways. A raised marble water tank with a reflecting pool in the centre of the garden, halfway between the tomb and the gateway, reflects the image of the mausoleum on a north-south axis.

 

Babur, the first Mughal emperor, introduced the charbagh garden, a design inspired by Persian gardens, to India. It represents the four rivers of Jannah (Paradise) and the Paradise garden, which is derived from the Persian paridaeza, which means 'walled garden.' Paradise is described as an ideal garden of abundance in mystic Islamic texts from the Mughal period, with four rivers flowing from a central spring or mountain, dividing the garden into north, west, south, and east.

 

The majority of Mughal charbaghs are rectangular, with a central tomb or pavilion. The Taj Mahal garden is unique in that the main feature, the tomb, is situated at the far end.

 

 

On three sides, crenellated red sandstone walls surround the Taj Mahal complex; the side facing the river is open. Several additional mausoleums, including those of Shah Jahan's other wives and a larger tomb for Mumtaz's favourite servant, are located outside the walls. The wall is punctuated by domed chattris and small structures that may have served as viewing platforms or watchtowers, such as the Music House, which is now a museum.

 

The main gateway (darwaza) is a massive marble structure that harkens back to earlier Mughal emperors' Mughal architecture. Its pishtaq arches incorporate the tomb's calligraphy, and its archways mirror the shape of the tomb's archways. It has floral motifs in bas-relief and pietra dura inlaid decorations. The vaulted ceilings and walls feature elaborate geometric designs similar to those found in the complex's other sandstone structures.

 

Two grand red sandstone buildings face the sides of the tomb and are located at the far end of the complex. The western and eastern walls run parallel to the backs of the buildings. The western structure is a mosque, while the other is the jawab (answer), which is thought to have been built for architectural balance but could have also served as a guesthouse.

 

 

The Mughal empire reached its pinnacle of power during Aurangzeb's long reign (1658-1707). His militant Muslim policies, which included the destruction of many Hindu temples and shrines, however, weakened the empire's long-term strength and led to its demise by the mid-eighteenth century. Shah Jahan was deposed by his son Aurangzeb and imprisoned at Agra Fort shortly after the Taj Mahal was completed.

 

Aurangzeb buried Shah Jahan next to his wife in the mausoleum after he died. The Jat rulers of Bharatpur invaded Agra in the 18th century and attacked the Taj Mahal. They removed the two chandeliers hung over the main cenotaph, one made of agate and the other of silver, as well as the gold and silver screen. The gold shield that covered the 4.6-metre-high finial at the top of the main dome was also removed during the Jat despoliation, according to Kanbo, a Mughal historian.

 

During the two centuries following Shah Jahan's death, the Taj Mahal was neglected and deteriorated as Mughal power crumbled. Lord Curzon, the British viceroy, ordered a massive restoration project at the end of the nineteenth century, which was completed in 1908. He also had the large lamp in the interior chamber commissioned, which was modelled after one found in a Cairo mosque. The garden was remodelled at this time, and European-style lawns were installed, which are still in use today.