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History
The construction of this marble
masterpiece is credited to the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan who erected
this mausoleum in memory of his beloved wife, Arjumand Bano Begum,
popularly known as Mumtaz Mahal, who died in AH 1040 (AD 1631). Her
last wish to her husband was "to build a tomb in her memory such as
the world had never seen before". Thus emperor Shah Jahan set about
building this fairytale like marvel. The construction of Taj Mahal was
started in AD 1632 and completed at the end of 1648 AD. For seventeen
years, twenty thousand workmen are said to be employed on it daily,
for their accommodation a small town, named after the deceased
empress-'Mumtazabad, now known as Taj Ganj, was built adjacent to it.
Amanat Khan Shirazi was the calligrapher of Taj Mahal, his name occurs
at the end of an inscription on one of the gates of the Taj. Poet
Ghyasuddin had designed the verses on the tombstone, while Ismail Khan
Afridi of Turkey was the do Entrance
In main gate of Taj faces the Southern
gate. The gateway is 151 feet by 117 feet and rises to a height o
Main Gate
This main gate of red sandstone and
measures 30 mt. In height. It is inscribed with verses from the Koran
in Arabic. The small domed pavilions on top are in Hindu style and
signify regality. A striking feature of the gateway is that the
lettering appears to be of the same size. The engravers have
skillfully enlarged and lengthened the letters which create an
illusion of uniformity. Well laid out gardens measuring 300 X 300 mt. In the form of a Charbagh are spread on either side of the pavement. In the centre is a platform from where tourists can capture the Taj on film.
Taj Museum To the left of the above mentioned platform is the Taj Museum. Original drawings available here show the precision with which the architect had planned this monument. He even anticipated that it would be completed in 22 years. Drawings of the interiors show the position of the graves in such precision that the foot of the graves faces the viewer from any angle. Many more such breathtaking collections are here which can also be seen. The Mosque and the Jawab
To the left of the Taj is a mosque made
of red sandstone. It is common in Islam to build a mosque next to a
tomb, as it sanctifies the area and provides for a place for worship.
This mosque is still used for Friday prayers.
An identical mosque is also built to the right of the Taj and is known as the Jawab (answer). Prayers are not held here as it faces west i.e. away from Mecca, the holy city of the Muslims. It was built to maintain symmetry.
The exterior
The Taj itself stands in a raised
platform. The four minarets at each corner of the plinth provide a
perfect balance to the tomb. The minarets measure 41.6 m high and each
has
a deliberate slant outwards so that in an unlikely event
Interior of the Taj
The interior of the mausoleum comprises
a lofty central chamber, a crypt immediately below this and four
octagonal corner rooms originally intended to house the graves of
other royal family members. |
me
maker. Muhammad Hanif was the superintendent of Masons. The designer
of Taj Mahal was Ustad Ahmad Lahauri. The material was brought in from
all over India and central Asia and it took a fleet of 1000 elephants
to transport it to the site. The central dome is 187 feet high at the
centre. Red sandstone was brought from Fatehpur Sikri, Jasper from
Punjab, Jade and Crystal from China, Turquoise from Tibet, Lapis
Lazuli and Sapphire from Sri Lanka, Coal and Cornelian from Arabia and
diamonds from Panna. In all 28 kind of rare, semi precious and
precious stones were used for inlay work in the Taj Mahal. The chief
building material, the white marble was brought from the quarries of
Makrana, in distt. Nagaur, Rajasthan.
f
100 feet. Tourists can enter the main compound by a small gate at the
side of the main gate. 
as one enters the gateway the Taj comes into full view like a chaste
dream come thorugh.
of an
earthquake, they would not fall on the tomb but away from it. The
bulbous dome of the Taj Mahal rests on an extraordinarily high drum
and rises to a total height of 44.41 meters from the base of the drum
to the apex to the finial. The central dome of the Taj is flanked on
all four angles by four very appropriate chhatris which though
sufficiently detached, appear to be attached to the dome, irrespective
of the angle of the view. There is only one point of access to the
plinth and tomb, a double staircase facing the entrance. One has to
remove shoes over here or can put on the shoe covers which are
provided at a nominal cost by the staff stationed here for the
purpose.