Taj Mahal

Year of Construction: 1631
Completed In: 1653
Time Taken: 22 years
Built By: Shah Jahan
Dedicated to: Mumtaz Mahal (Arjumand Bano Begum), the wife of Shah Jahan
Location: Agra (Uttar Pradesh), India
Building Type: Islamic tomb
Architecture: Mughal (Combination of Persian, Islamic and Indian architecture style)
Architect: Ustad Ahmad Lahauri
Cost of Construction: 32 crore rupees
Number of workers: 20,000
Highlights: One of the Seven Wonders of the World; A UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Visiting Time & Tickets

Timings: Sunrise to Sunset (Friday closed)
Fee: Rs 750 (Foreign Tourists)
Rs 510 (Citizens of SAARC & BIMSTEC Countries)
Rs 20 (Domestic Indian Tourists)
No Entry Fee for children below 15 years of age (Domestic or Foreigner)

The Taj Mahal is a white marble mausoleum located in Agra, Uttar Pradesh, India. It was built by Mughal emperor Shah Jahan in memory of his third wife, Mumtaz Mahal. The Taj Mahal is widely recognized as "the jewel of Muslim art in India and one of the universally admired masterpieces of the world's heritage".

Taj Mahal is regarded by many as the finest example of Mughal architecture, a style that combines elements from Islamic, Persian, Ottoman Turkish and Indian architectural styles.



In 1983, the Taj Mahal became a UNESCO World Heritage Site. While the white domed marble mausoleum is the most familiar component of the Taj Mahal, it is actually an integrated complex of structures. The construction began around 1632 and was completed around 1653, employing thousands of artisans and craftsmen. The construction of the Taj Mahal was entrusted to a board of architects under imperial supervision, including Abd ul-Karim Ma'mur Khan, Makramat Khan, and Ustad Ahmad Lahauri. Lahauri is generally considered to be the principal designer.



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, an important scholar, has been permitted to take measurements of the complex and 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 is the representation of the house of the queen in Paradise, and its setting was based on the palace gardens of the great nobles that lined both sides of the river at Agra India. You will explore 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.

Taj Mahal was built in 22 years (1631-1653) with the orders of Shah Jahan and it was dedicated to Mumtaz Mahal (Arjumand Bano Begum), the wife of Shah. 20.000 workers labored and 32 crore rupees were spent during the construction of the monument and it was built according to Islamic architecture. It is one of the Unesco world heritage site.

Taj Mahal Garden

The paradise-like garden is the very impressing part of the complex. The square garden is divided into four parts with two main walkways. Each of these four parts is also divided into four with narrower walkways, therefore, creating sixteen squares. The canal including a line of fountains passes in-between the main walkway. It is lined with sandstone strips and geometrical stars and then followed by larger sandstone walkway with typical Mogul geometrical designs. The north-south walkway connects the great gate to the mausoleum while the two pavilions are connected through the east-west walkway.

The raised white marble platform at the centre of the walkways, namely “chabutra” includes a pool with five fountains. The four marble banks around the pool were added later with the order of Lord Curzon in 1907.

Great Gate

“Gate of the Mausoleum” – Darwaza-i Rauza stands oblong on a platform on the southern wall as the passage between the Jilaukhana and the funerary garden. The façade from Jilaukhana proves its being the entrance and the beginning of the great mausoleum. The red sandstone structure is surrounded by octagonal towers namely minarets topped by white marble domes on the corners. The white marble is densely used in the arches of the centre while the thin margins around the rectangular panels of the corner towers are only lined. The top of the arches is ornamented with floral patterns.



The Gate does not have an outer dome. The miniature eleven domes (cupolas) between the two high columns namely guldastas, framing the entrance from the base are the topping features above the entrance. The northern entrance from the funerary garden is ornamented with another sura of the Qur’an as the only difference. The calligrapher, Amanat Khan’s signature is at the bottom left end of the frame dated Hijri 1057 (AD 1647/48). The central vault inside the gate is ornamented with stars and partial stars. The big bronze lamp was mad in the Mayo School of Arts in Lahore and was given as present by Lord Curzon in 1909. The side rooms are used for the administration by the Archaeological Survey of India. Both lower and the upper levels are not open to the visitors.

Iwan dar Iwan – the two arcaded galleries with massive multi-cusped arches and shahjahani columns with floral bases in the outer row are located on the south of the funerary garden where the poor people were welcomed by Shah Jahan in order to receive their alms in rainy season.

Riverfront Terrace

Being amongst the most impressing platforms ever built, the riverfront terrace is only 1.22 m above the level of the garden, while the height reaches to 8.7 m towards the river due to the slope. The terrace is the first structure built in Taj complex.

The red sandstone facades of the terrace are ornamented with the carvings of flower vases and palm trees framed with white marbles. The two doors by the riverfront near the towers, enabling direct access to Taj Mahal by boat are now closed. The terrace is geometrically covered with light and dark sandstone. The closer parts of the mausoleum are patterned with the combination of sandstone and marble geometrical designs.

Interesting Facts

• Before his accession to the throne, Shah Jahan was popularly known as Prince Khurram. 
• Shah Jahan fell in love with the beautiful Arjumand Bano Begum and married her, making her his third wife. 
• Arjumand Bano Begum was christened by Shah Jahan as Mumtaz Mahal, meaning the “Chosen One Of The Palace” or “Jewel of the Palace”. 
• Shah Jahan lost Mumtaz Mahal, when she died giving birth to their 14h child. 
• For the transportation of the construction materials, more than 1,000 elephants were employed. 
• As many as 28 different varieties of semi-precious and precious stones were used to adorn the Taj with exquisite inlay work. 
• Depending on what time of the day it is and whether or not there’s moon at night, Taj Mahal appears to be of different color every time. Some even believe that this changing pattern of colors depict different moods of a woman. 
• Taj Mahal was built in stages, with the plinth and the tomb taking up roughly 15 years. Building of minarets, mosque, jawab, and gateway took additional 5 years to be completed. 
• Different types of marbles used in construction of Taj Mahal were brought over from many different regions & countries: Rajasthan, Punjab, China, Tibet, Afghanistan, Srilanka, & Arabia. 
• Many precious stones and Lapis Lazuli (a semi-precious stone) were ripped off from its walls by the Britishers during the Indian rebellion of 1857. 
• Taj Mahal attracts 2-4 million visitors annually with over 200,000 from overseas.

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