Taj Mahal is a beautiful place. It is One of the most notable Mughal Empire architectural marvels, it still stands in all its beauty and finesses in Agra, Uttar Pradesh, India. The Taj Mahal is a white marble built by Mughal emperor Shah Jahan in memory of his third wife, Mumtaz. It is one of the jewel of Islamic art in a nation that is predominantly Hindu.
1. It was built to honour third wife of Shah Jahan. Construction of the Mahal began in 1632, one year after her death, and continued for just over two decades.
2. It has Islamic calligraphy inscriptions. The Arabic Calligraphic inscriptions are texts from the Quran, and they are beautifully inscribed in various places.
3. Taj Mahal is one of the Seven Wonders of the World. It is selected for new seven wonders of the world also.
4. The architecture of Taj Mahal is a combination of Islamic, Persian and Indian style. If we have to choose one building in the world with the most impressive architecture, it would undoubtedly be Taj Mahal. It is one of the most beautiful buildings in the world and there are no words that can describe the true beauty of the Taj Mahal.
5. Construction by a tremendous amount of manpower. Architect Lahauri led a team of more than 20,000 artisans in the development of the Taj Mahal. Not only people were present at work but animals too. Around a thousand elephants handled the transport of heavy building materials during the two-decade construction project.
6. The Taj Mahal calligrapher signed his work with a self-deprecating title. Countless beautifully printed lines of Muslim scripture line the walls of the Taj Mahal, each of which was transcribed from the Quran under the supervision of head calligrapher Abd-al Haqq. He also received attribution for his calligraphy, an exceptionally rare opportunity for the era.
7. The gravesite is the only part that is not perfectly symmetrical. The Taj Mahal is an obsessive dream, with meticulous symmetry across its long and wide diameters. Mumtaz Mahal’s casket is located in the exact centre of the palace crypt.
8. The Taj Mahal hide during time of war. The Taj Mahal’s status as an Indian icon has made it a vulnerable target in times of any hostility. During World War II and the collected wars waged between India, china and Pakistan throughout the 20th century, the Indian government have gone to great lengths to protect their valued landmark from attack. To this end, architects added extensive scaffolding that concealed the structure from airborne bombers.
9. The palace was designed so that everything would fall away from the tomb in the event of a collapse. The placement of the Taj Mahal’s four minarets the 130 foot tall spires at the edge of the platform was not an aesthetic choice but a strategic one. In the 17th century, it was hardly uncommon for massive architectural ventures to fall victim to their weight. To protect the crypt of Mumtaz Mahal, chief architect Ustad Ahmad Lahauri tilted the towers slightly so that they would fall away from the rest of the Taj Mahal, preventing the grave from incurring any damages.
10. Cars and buses must stay at least 500 meters away from the Taj mahal. India has a major problem with air pollution due to heavy traffic, so to protect the Taj Mahal from the harmful effects of pollution, there can be no cars and buses closer than 500 meters away from the entrance.
You must be logged in to post a comment.