The Taj Mahal was built by Indian emperor Shah Jahan as a mausoleum for his wife Mumtaz Mahal, who died in childbirth. The structure blends Hindu, Muslim, and Central Asian culture and took over 20 years and 20,000 workers to complete. The opulent building is made of white marble and features a mosque, tomb, and decorative gardens.
The magnificent Taj Mahal stands on the Yamuna River as a testament to the undying devotion of an Indian emperor to his wife, Mumtaz Mahal. Shah Jahan built the mausoleum, mosque and monument to honor his deceased wife with opulent decorations, religious piety and unsurpassed beauty. With its distinctive tapering dome, delicate minarets and gleaming white marble facade, the Taj Mahal has remained ‘the jewel of India’.
The strong 17th-century Mughal empire blended the culture of Hindus, Muslims and other Central Asians. Shah Jahan ruled with peaceful authority compared to previous Shahs. He felt inspired by his second wife, Mumtaz Mahal, to treat his subjects justly. Just before she died in childbirth at 17, she made him promise to build her a grand structure to commemorate her beauty and spiritual devotion to her.
Beginning in 1631, the Shah gathered numerous advisers, architects, calligraphers and religious leaders to advise him on the materials and design of the great building that would come to be known as the Taj Mahal. It took over 20 years, 20,000 workers and tons of marble and sandstone to complete the national treasure in the city of Agra. This massive enterprise harnessed the mined gems and precious rocks of the Indian landscape to highlight the natural splendor of the empire.
The Taj Mahal itself combines decorative gardens, a Muslim mosque and tomb with vaulted domes and an arched doorway. The rectangular foundation, made of reddish sandstone, contrasts with the opalescent white marble in front of the central dome, walls and minarets. The Shah probably designed the structure to apparently alter color depending on the shade of the sun or moonlight that hit its surface.
Intent on perfection, the Shah finally completed one of the architectural wonders of the world in 1648. With the river reflecting his grand image, the Taj Mahal seamlessly blends Islamic arts, Persian aesthetics and innovative design. It is decorated with inlaid real gemstones that sparkle in the light filtering through open lattices, and calligraphic lines from the Quran are engraved throughout.
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