main attractions
The Taj Mahal is a huge mausoleum complex commissioned in 1632 by the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan to house the remains of his beloved wife. Built over 20 years on the southern bank of the Yamuna River in Agra, India, the famous complex is one of the most remarkable examples of Mughal architecture, combining Indian, Persian and Islamic influences. At its center is the Taj Mahal, built of gleaming white marble that appears to change color depending on the daylight.
Designated in 1983 as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, it remains one of the most famous structures in the world and a striking symbol of India’s rich history.
ornamental gardens
The ornamental gardens are laid out along the lines of a classical Mughal charbagh (formal Persian garden) – a square pierced by streams, with an ornamental marble plinth at its centre. When the fountains are not flowing, the Taj is beautifully reflected in the water.
the building itself
The Taj Mahal itself stands on a raised marble platform at the northern end of the ornamental gardens, with its back to the Yamuna River. Its raised position means that the background is only the sky: a masterpiece of design. Purely decorative white 40m high minarets fit into every corner of the platform. After more than three centuries they are not quite perpendicular, but may have been designed to lean slightly outwards so that, in the event of an earthquake, they would move away from the precious Taj. The red sandstone mosque in the west is an important gathering place for the Muslims of Agra. The identical building to the east, the jawab, was built for symmetry.
The central structure
The central structure of the Taj is made of semi-transparent white marble, carved with flowers and inlaid with thousands of semi-precious stones in beautiful designs. A perfect exercise in symmetry, the four identical faces of the Taj feature massive vaulted archways embellished with hardstone scrolls and quotations from the Quran in an inlaid jasper calligraphic style. The whole structure is completed by four small domes that surround the famous bulbous central dome.
the Cenotaph of Mumtaz Mahal
the Cenotaph of Mumtaz Mahal Directly below the main dome is the Cenotaph of Mumtaz Mahal, an elaborate false tomb surrounded by an exquisite perforated marble screen inlaid with dozens of different types of semi-precious stones.
the Cenotaph of Shah Jahan
Next to it, offsetting the Taj’s symmetry, is the Cenotaph of Shah Jahan, who was buried here with little ceremony by his usurping son Aurangzeb in 1666. Light is admitted into the central chamber by finely cut marble screens. The real tombs of Mumtaz Mahal and Shah Jahan are in an enclosed basement below the main chamber and cannot be seen.
