The Taj Mahal (the monument which changes its colour)

 

The greatest architectural achievement of whole range of Indo-Islamic architecture is the Dream in Marble, the Taj (1647-48) at Agra. Apart from its romantic appeal, the Taj is a masterpiece of architectural style in conception, treatment  and execution, all alike. The conception as usual takes the form of a garden tomb  but situated as it is on the banks of river Yamuna, it is enclosed only on three sides. The solid foundations and substructure of the terrace of the Taj amply bear out the remarkable engineering skill and perfection of building technique. It has been established that the terrace on the river front has been raised on  well foundations with fillings of rubble masonry in between. The majestic entrance gateway is again a monument in itself.  Its façade consists  of  a lofty vaulted arched recess set within a rectangular frame with similar but smaller alcoves in two storeys on each side and an octagonal turret surmounted by a domed pavilion at each corner. The profuse inlay of white marble and precious stones into the red sandstone surface and the elegantly executed inscriptions inlaid with black marble on white marble surface impart a charming elegance to the whole structure.

(Graves of Mumtaj Mahal and Shahjahan)

The Taj itself is situated in the centre of a marble terrace between two buildings of similar design, a mosque on the west, being itself a monument of sufficient charm and beauty and its exact replica used as a mihmankhana (Guest room) on the east for maintaining symmetry. The four white marble minarets, rising in four storeys and crowned by shapely domes which stand majestically at the corners of the terrace , add to the dignity of the entire setting. Architecturally, the mausoleum is very similar in general design to Humayun’s tomb (in Delhi); it is, for example also square in plan externally, with flattened corners, while the façade on each side contains a huge vaulted arched recesses in two storeys on each side. Internally, too, it consists of an octagonal hall forming the 

cenotaph chamber enclosed at each corner             

by two-storyed compartments connected together by corridors and passages. The octagonal hall has a vaulted ceiling constituting the lower part of the beautiful double  dome. The perfectly shaped slightly bulbous dome itself, placed in the centre on a lofty drum, is extremely elegant and Persian in character, while around it, on each corner of the roof, are four pleasing cupolas whose hemispherical domes are of Indian design but still quite graceful. All these different parts have been combined to form a perfectly balanced composition, of great architectural merit in itself. But what has made the Taj astoundingly beautiful and dream-like is the chaste white marble of pure texture and delicate grain used in its construction and the lavish and sumptuous embellishment in the form of surface decoration of varieties—highly artistic pietra dura ornamentations in floral and arabesque patterns, extremely elegant marble-carvings in low relief, delicate traceries of marble railings and beautifully executed inscriptions in black marble inlay on white surface.     

The Taj Mahal has relegated to the background a little known and small but architecturally quite an impressive mosque, called Fatehpuri Masjid (circa, 1648), just outside the main entrance of its enclosure. Standing at  the west end of a lofty basement comprising engrailed arched cells, the rest of its forming an open court, which is fenced on all sides by an ornamental galleried balcony supported on brackets, and having at each front corner a domed octagonal turret, the mosque consists of a prayer-hall of three chambers, fronted with a series of engrailed arched openings, the central one of which is covered by a single bulbous dome and the side ones with shouldered roofs. Architecturally, the mosque is a monument of fine proportions and perfectly balanced composition. Its corner octagonal furrets rising above the prayer-hall, the artistic parapet between them and above deep cornice supported on brackets, the varying height of the façade, the shallow paneling of engrailed archs covering the whole of  the exterior and above all, its somewhat unusual but extremely pleasing elevational aspect, have made this mosque one of the best monuments in the chaste and pure late Mughal style.

The Taj Mahal situated at Agra (city and district) in Uttar Pradesh state of India.

The Taj Mahal changes its colour according to the rays of the Sun.

The Taj Mahal looks very much beautiful in the night of Full moon.

The Taj Mahal was built by Mughal emperor Shahjahan in the memory of his third wife Arjumand Bano begum (famous name, Mumtaj Mahal).

The Taj Mahal was first included in the seven wonders of the world and now listed in UNESCO’s World Heritage Sites.