Introduction
The Taj Mahal (also "the Taj") is considered the finest example
of Mughal architecture, a style that combines elements from Persian,
Ottoman, Indian, and Islamic architectural styles.
In 1983, the Taj Mahal became a UNESCO World Heritage Site and was
cited as "the jewel of Muslim art in India and one of the
universally admired masterpieces of the world's heritage." While the white domed marble mausoleum is its most
familiar component, the Taj Mahal is actually an integrated complex
of structures. Building began around 1632 and was completed around
1653, and employed thousands of artisans and craftsmen. The Persian
architect, Ustad Ahmad Lahauri is generally considered to be the
principal designer of the Taj Mahal.

The mausoleum of the Taj Mahal.
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In 1983, the Taj Mahal became a UNESCO World Heritage Site
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Interactive Satellite Map of the Taj Mahal
Below is an interactive Google Earth
satellite map of the Taj Mahal area.
Use the buttons on the map to zoom in; drag the map with your mouse to
move around.
Construction
The Taj Mahal was built on a parcel of land to the south of the
walled city of Agra. Shah Jahan presented Maharajah Jai Singh with a
large palace in the center of Agra in exchange for the land. An area
of roughly three acres was excavated, filled with dirt to reduce
seepage and leveled at 50 meters above riverbank. In the tomb area,
wells were dug and filled with stone and rubble as the footings of
the tomb. Instead of lashed bamboo, workmen constructed a colossal
brick scaffold that mirrored the tomb. The scaffold was so enormous
that foremen estimated it would take years to dismantle.

According
to the legend, Shah Jahan decreed that anyone could keep the bricks
taken from the scaffold, and thus it was dismantled by peasants
overnight. A fifteen kilometer tamped-earth ramp was built to
transport marble and materials to the construction site. Teams of
twenty or thirty oxen were strained to pull blocks on specially
constructed wagons. An elaborate post-and-beam pulley system was
used to raise the blocks into desired position. Water was drawn from
the river by a series of purs, an animal-powered rope and bucket
mechanism, into a large storage tank and raised to large
distribution tank. It was passed into three subsidiary tanks, from
which it was piped to the complex.

Ground layout of the Taj Mahal
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The plinth and tomb took roughly 12 years to complete. The
remaining parts of the complex took an additional 10 years and were
completed in order of minarets, mosque and jawab and gateway. Since
the complex was built in stages, discrepancies exist in completion
dates due to differing opinions on "completion". For example, the
mausoleum itself was essentially complete by 1643, but work
continued on the rest of the complex. Estimates of the cost of the
construction of Taj Mahal vary due to difficulties in estimating
construction costs across time. The total cost of construction has
been estimated to be about 32 million Rupees at that time which now
runs into trillions of Dollars if converted to present currency
rates.

The Taj Mahal was constructed using materials from all over India
and Asia. Over 1,000 elephants were used to transport building
materials during the construction. The translucent white marble was
brought from Rajasthan, the jasper from Punjab, jade and crystal
from China. The turquoise was from Tibet and the Lapis lazuli from
Afghanistan, while the sapphire came from Sri Lanka and the
carnelian from Arabia. In all, twenty eight types of precious and
semi-precious stones were inlaid into the white marble.
A labour force of twenty thousand workers was recruited across
northern India. Sculptors from Bukhara, calligraphers from Syria and
Persia, inlayers from southern India, stonecutters from Baluchistan,
a specialist in building turrets, another who carved only marble
flowers were part of the thirty-seven men who formed the creative
unit. Some of the builders involved in construction of Taj Mahal
are:
- The main dome was designed by Ismail Afandi (a.ka. Ismail
Khan),[23] of the Ottoman Empire and was considered as a premier
designer of hemispheres and domes.
- Ustad Isa of Persia (Iran) and Isa Muhammad Effendi of Persia
(Iran), trained by Koca Mimar Sinan Agha of Ottoman Empire, are
frequently credited with a key role in the architectural
design,[24][25] but there is little evidence to support this
claim.
- 'Puru' from Benarus, Persia (Iran) has been mentioned as a
supervising architect.[26]
- Qazim Khan, a native of Lahore, cast the solid gold finial.
- Chiranjilal, a lapidary from Delhi, was chosen as the chief
sculptor and mosaicist.
- Amanat Khan from Shiraz, Iran was the chief calligrapher. His
name has been inscribed at the end of the inscription on the Taj
Mahal gateway.[27]
- Muhammad Hanif was a supervisor of masons and Mir Abdul Karim
and Mukkarimat Khan of Shiraz, Iran (Persia) handled finances and
management of daily production.

The base of the Taj is a large, multi-chambered structure
Image Source
Myths
Ever since its construction, the building has been the source of
an admiration transcending culture and geography, and so personal
and emotional responses to the building have consistently eclipsed
scholastic appraisals of the monument.
A longstanding myth holds that Shah Jahan planned a mausoleum to
be built in black marble across the Yamuna river. The idea
originates from fanciful writings of Jean-Baptiste Tavernier, a
European traveller who visited Agra in 1665. It was suggested that
Shah Jahan was overthrown by his son Aurangzeb before it could be
built. Ruins of blackened marble across the river in Moonlight
Garden, Mahtab Bagh, seemed to support this legend. However,
excavations carried out in the 1990s found that they were discolored
white stones that had turned black. A more credible theory for the
origins of the black mausoleum was demonstrated in 2006 by
archeologists who reconstructed part of the pool in the Moonlight
Garden. A dark reflection of the white mausoleum could clearly be
seen, befitting Shah Jahan's obsession with symmetry and the
positioning of the pool itself.
No evidence exists for claims that describe, often in horrific
detail, the deaths, dismemberments and mutilations which Shah Jahan
supposedly inflicted on various architects and craftsmen associated
with the tomb. Some stories claim that those involved in
construction signed contracts committing themselves to have no part
in any similar design. Similar claims are made for many famous
buildings. No evidence exists for claims that Lord William Bentinck,
governor-general of India in the 1830s, supposedly planned to
demolish the Taj Mahal and auction off the marble. Bentinck's
biographer John Rosselli says that the story arose from Bentinck's
fund-raising sale of discarded marble from Agra Fort.
In 2000, India's Supreme Court dismissed P.N. Oak's petition to
declare that a Hindu king built the Taj Mahal. Oak claimed that
origins of the Taj, together with other historic structures in the
country currently ascribed to Muslim sultans pre-date Muslim
occupation of India and thus, have a Hindu origin. A more poetic
story relates that once a year, during the rainy season, a single
drop of water falls on the cenotaph, as inspired by Rabindranath
Tagore's description of the tomb as "one tear-drop...upon the cheek
of time". Another myth suggests that beating the silhouette of the
finial will cause water to come forth. To this day, officials find
broken bangles surrounding the silhouette.
The Controversy Surrounding the Origins of the Taj Mahal
The Taj Mahal, located near the Indian city of Agra, is one of
the world's greatest architectural treasures. The almost
supernatural beauty of the Taj Mahal and its grounds transcends
culture and history, and speaks with a voice of its own to visitors
from all over the world of feelings that are common to all humanity.
There are two stories of how the Taj came to be.
The Taj's Love Story
It has been called the most beautiful temple in the world,
despite the fact that it was built at the cost of much human life.
The Taj Mahal is a real monument of one man's love for a woman. The
story is a sad one, told many times. But it never hurts to tell it
again.
In 1631, when his wife died in childbirth, the emperor Shah Jahan
brought to Agra the most skilled craftsmen from all Asia and even
Europe, to build the white marble mausoleum that is the Taj Mahal.
He intended to build a black marble mausoleum for himself, and the
link between the two was to be a silver bridge. This fantastic plan
suffered a dramatic and permanent setback when the Shah himself
died.

Image Source
Its stunning architectural beauty is beyond description,
particularly at dawn and at sunset when it seems to glow in the
light. On a foggy morning, it looks as though the Taj is suspended
in mid-air when viewed from across the Jamuna river.
This is, of course, an illusion. The Taj stands on a raised
square platform with its four corners truncated, forming an unequal
octagon. The architectural design uses the interlocking arabesque
concept, in which each element stands on its own and perfectly
integrates with the main structure. It uses the principles of
self-replicating geometry and a symmetry of architectural elements.
If you don't want the huge crowds to distract you from your view,
try arriving just as it opens or is about to close. A few minutes
alone in the perpetually echoing inner sanctum will reward you far
more than several hours spent on a guided tour. Especially if your
tour guide is Murbat Singh, who makes it his job to find a new comic
slant on the Taj story every time he tells it.
To really do the Taj Mahal justice, you should plan to spend at
least a full day in the grounds, to see this stunning piece of
architecture at dawn, midday, and at dusk. The colours and
atmosphere of the gardens and the Taj itself constantly change
throughout the day. Under moonlight the marble glows.
The Taj's Other Story
BBC reports:
If you have ever visited the Taj Mahal then your guide probably
told you that it was designed by Ustad Isa of Iran, and built by the
Moghul Emperor, Shah Jahan, in memory of his wife Mumtaz Mahal.
Indian children are taught that it was built in 22 years (1631 to
1653) by 20,000 artisans brought to India from all over the world.
This story has been challenged by Professor P.N. Oak, author of
Taj Mahal: The True Story, who believes that the whole world has
been duped. He claims that the Taj Mahal is not Queen Mumtaz Mahal's
tomb, but an ancient Hindu temple palace of Lord Shiva (then known
as Tejo Mahalaya), worshipped by the Rajputs of Agra city.

Copyright by World-Mysteries.com
In the course of his research, Oak discovered that the Shiva
temple palace had been usurped by Shah Jahan from then Maharaja of
Jaipur, Jai Singh. Shah Jahan then remodelled the palace into his
wife's memorial. In his own court chronicle, Badshahnama, Shah Jahan
admits that an exceptionally beautiful grand mansion in Agra was
taken from Jai Singh for Mumtaz's burial. The ex-Maharaja of Jaipur
is said to retain in his secret collection two orders from Shah
Jahan for the surrender of the Taj building.
The use of captured temples and mansions as a burial place for
dead courtiers and royalty was a common practice among Muslim
rulers. For example, Hamayun, Akbar, Etmud-ud-Daula and Safdarjung
are all buried in such mansions.
Oak's inquiries begin with the name Taj Mahal. He says this term
does not occur in any Moghul court papers or chronicles, even after
Shah Jahan's time. The term 'Mahal' has never been used for a
building in any of the Muslim countries, from Afghanistan to
Algeria.
'The usual explanation that the term Taj Mahal derives from
Mumtaz Mahal is illogical in at least two respects. Firstly, her
name was never Mumtaz Mahal but Mumtaz-ul-Zamani,' he writes.
'Secondly, one cannot omit the first three letters from a woman's
name to derive the remainder as the name for the building.'
Taj Mahal is, he claims, a corrupt version of Tejo-mahalaya, or
the Shiva's Palace. Oak also says that the love story of Mumtaz and
Shah Jahan is a fairy tale created by court sycophants, blundering
historians and sloppy archaeologists. Not a single royal chronicle
of Shah Jahan's time corroborates the love story.
Furthermore, Oak cites several documents suggesting that the Taj
Mahal predates Shah Jahan's era:
- Professor Marvin Miller of New York took samples from the
riverside doorway of the Taj. Carbon dating tests revealed that the
door was 300 years older than Shah Jahan.
- European traveller Johan Albert Mandelslo, who visited Agra in
1638 (only seven years after Mumtaz's death), describes the life of
the city in his memoirs, but makes no reference to the Taj Mahal
being built.
- The writings of Peter Mundy, an English visitor to Agra within
a year of Mumtaz's death, also suggest that the Taj was a noteworthy
building long well before Shah Jahan's time.
Oak also points out a number of design and architectural
inconsistencies that support the belief that the Taj Mahal is a
typical Hindu temple rather than a mausoleum.
Many rooms in the Taj Mahal have remained sealed since Shah
Jahan's time, and are still inaccessible to the public. Oak asserts
they contain a headless statue of Shiva and other objects commonly
used for worship rituals in Hindu temples.
Fearing political backlash, Indira Gandhi's government tried to
have Oak's book withdrawn from the bookstores, and threatened the
Indian publisher of the first edition with dire consequences.
The only way to really validate or discredit Oak's research is to
open the sealed rooms of the Taj Mahal, and allow international
experts to investigate.
Sources:
Links
Books and Video
The Complete Taj Mahal (Hardcover)
by Ebba Koch (Author)
The Taj Mahal is the epitome of Mughal art and one of
the most famous buildings in the world. Yet there have been few
serious studies of it and no full analysis of its architecture and
meaning.Ebba Koch is the only scholar who has been permitted to
take measurements of the complex. She has been working on the
palaces and gardens of Shah Jahan for thirty years and on the Taj
Mahal itself—the tomb of the emperor's wife, Mumtaz Mahal—for a
decade.
The tomb represents the house of the queen in
Paradise, and the author shows how its setting was based on the
palace gardens of the great nobles that lined both sides of the
river at Agra. She leads the reader through the entire complex of
the Taj Mahal, with an explanation of each building and an account
of the mausoleum's urban setting, its design and construction, its
symbolic meaning, and its history up to the present day.
The book features hundreds of new photographs plus
drawings by the Indian architect Richard Barraud that include plans
and reconstructions of Agra and the Taj complex as they looked in
Shah Jahan's time. |
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Taj Mahal
by Amina Okada (Author), Mohan C. Joshi (Author), Jean-Louis Nou
(Photographer)
The photographs in the book are of a very
high standard and have been taken when there is an absence of
visitors - a level the average sightseer can never achieve. The
special lighting and techniques used for the internal photography
makes you feel as though you are actually there. Added to this
there is a very informative narrative on the history of and how the Taj Mahal was built. It is certainly a wonderful memento and am
sure it will whet the appetite of future visitors.
Color close-ups of semi-precious stones inlaid in white marble,
intricate carvings, decorative patterns, and calligraphy enchant
the readers. These artistically taken pictures draw the reader's
attention to detail that a regular tourist may have easily missed
during visit to the Taj. In fact these pictures are such fine
quality and detail as to distract the reader from the well-written
text that accompanies them.

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