About Taj Mahal

The Taj Mahal (/?t??d? m?'h??l, ?t??? -/ TAHJ m?-HAHL, TAHZH -?, Hindi: [ta?d? 'm??(?)l]; lit. 'Crown of the Palace') is an ivory-white marble mausoleum on the right bank of the river Yamuna in Agra, Uttar Pradesh, India. It was commissioned in 1631 by the fifth Mughal emperor, Shah Jahan (r. 1628–1658) to house the tomb of his beloved wife, Mumtaz Mahal; it also houses the tomb of Shah Jahan himself. The tomb is the centrepiece of a 17-hectare (42-acre) complex, which includes a mosque and a guest house, and is set in formal gardens bounded on three sides by a crenellated wall.



Construction of the mausoleum was completed in 1648, but work continued on other phases of the project for another five years. The first ceremony held at the mausoleum was an observance by Shah Jahan, on 6 February 1643, of the 12th anniversary of the death of Mumtaz Mahal. The Taj Mahal complex is believed to have been completed in its entirety in 1653 at a cost estimated at the time to be around ?5 million, which in 2023 would be approximately ?35 billion (US$77.8 million).



The building complex incorporates the design traditions of Indo-Islamic and Mughal architecture. It employs symmetrical constructions with the usage of various shapes and symbols. While the mausoleum is constructed of white marble inlaid with semi-precious stones, red sandstone was used for other buildings in the complex similar to the Mughal era buildings of the time. The construction project employed more than 20,000 workers and artisans under the guidance of a board of architects led by Ustad Ahmad Lahori, the emperor's court architect.



The Taj Mahal was designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1983 for being "the jewel of Islamic art in India and one of the universally admired masterpieces of the world's heritage". It is regarded as one of the best examples of Mughal architecture and a symbol of Indian history. The Taj Mahal is a major tourist attraction and attracts more than five million visitors a year. In 2007, it was declared a winner of the New 7 Wonders of the World initiative.



The Taj Mahal is a monument to love and grief, built by Mughal emperor Shah Jahan to honor his wife Mumtaz Mahal:

Love story

Shah Jahan fell in love with Mumtaz Mahal at first sight in the Agra bazaar, and married her in 1612. Mumtaz Mahal's name means "jewel of the palace".

Death

Mumtaz Mahal died in 1631 while giving birth to their 14th child, Gauhara Begum. Shah Jahan was so grief-stricken that he avoided royal affairs for a week, and stopped listening to music and dressing lavishly for two years.



Construction

Shah Jahan commissioned the construction of the Taj Mahal in 1632. The mausoleum was completed in 1648, and the surrounding buildings and gardens were finished in 1653. The Taj Mahal was built by 20,000 artisans and 1,000 elephants.



Features

The Taj Mahal is a white marble mausoleum with a huge dome, four minarets, and a jewel-inlaid cenotaph of Mumtaz Mahal. The complex also includes a mosque, guest house, and formal gardens. The Taj Mahal is known for its intricate floral designs and calligraphy from the Quran.

The Taj Mahal is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of the seven wonders of the world.



The Taj Mahal is an ivory-white marble mausoleum on the south bank of the Yamuna river in the Indian city of Agra. It was commissioned in 1632 by the Mughal emperor, Shah Jahan (reigned from 1628 to 1658), to house the tomb of his favourite wife, Mumtaz Mahal.



It was built by the fifth Mughal emperor, Shah Jahan in 1631 in memory of his third but the most favourite wife, in fact a soul-mate Mumtaz Mahal, a Muslim Persian princess. She died while accompanying her husband in Burhanpur in a campaign to crush a rebellion after giving birth to their 13th child.

A story that, although ended back in 1631, continues to live on in the form of Taj Mahal and is considered a living example of eternal love. It's the love story of Shah Jahan and Mumtaz Mahal, two people from the course of history who set an example for the people living in today and the future to come.

Done by M.Satvika uha 8th A2