Travel Diaries

The Taj Mahal is a mausoleum made of ivory-white marble located in the Indian city of Agra on the Yamuna River's south bank. Shah Jahan, the Mughal emperor who ruled from 1628 to 1658, ordered it built in 1632 to house the tomb of Mumtaz Mahal, his beloved wife. In the entire spectrum of Indo-Islamic architecture, the Taj Mahal is regarded as the pinnacle of architectural achievement. Concave and convex, solids and voids, and light shadows are all rhythmically combined to create its acknowledged architectural beauty; arches and domes, for example, further enhance the visual appeal. The Historical Context The fifth Mughal emperor, Shah Jahan, had a great affection for his wife, Mumtaz Mahal. Shah Jahan was devastated when she passed away after childbirth in 1631. He made the decision to construct the most exquisite tomb ever seen in her honour. The Taj Mahal was constructed by more than 20,000 craftspeople and workers from India and elsewhere. Materials such as valuable stone...