When was the Taj Mahal founded? Taj Mahal: History of an architectural gem

The Taj Mahal mausoleum located in Agra is one of the most recognizable landmarks not only in India but throughout the world. The construction was built by Emperor Shah Jahan in memory of his third wife, Mumtaz Mahal, who died during childbirth. The Taj Mahal is considered one of the most beautiful buildings in the world, as well as a symbol eternal love. In this article I will tell you about the history of this miracle, as well as the most interesting facts and events associated with it.

Taj Mahal is the most outstanding example of Mughal architecture, combining elements of Persian, Islamic and Indian architectural styles. In 1983, the Taj Mahal was included in the list of objects world heritage UNESCO. It is essentially an integrated complex of structures, the central and iconic component of which is a white domed marble mausoleum. Construction began in 1632 and was completed in 1653, and day and night, thousands of artisans and craftsmen worked to create this miracle. A council of architects worked on the construction, but the main one was Ustad Ahmad Lahauri

Let's start from the very beginning, namely with what inspired the emperor to build such a miracle. In 1631, grief befell Emperor Shah Jahan, the ruler of the Mughal Empire at the height of its power. His third wife, Mumtaz Mahal, died while giving birth to their 14th child. A year later, construction began, which Shah Jahan decided on, driven by his irrepressible grief and strong love for his dead wife.

The main mausoleum was completed in 1648 and the surrounding buildings and garden were completed 5 years later. Let's proceed to the description of each of the structural elements of the complex in detail

Mausoleum Taj Mahal

The tomb is the architectural center of the Taj Mahal complex. This huge structure white marble stands on a square pedestal and consists of a symmetrical building with an arched opening, headed by a large dome. Like most Mughal tombs, the main elements here are of Persian origin.


Inside the mausoleum there are two tombs - the shah and his beloved wife. The height of the building is 74 meters, including the platform, and there are 4 minarets in the corners, slightly tilted to the side. This was done so that in the event of a fall, they would not damage the central building.


The marble dome that adorns the tomb is the most breathtaking part of the Taj Mahal. Its height is 35 meters. Due to its special shape, it is often called an onion dome. The shape of the dome is emphasized by four smaller domed figures placed at the corners of the tomb, which follow the onion shape of the main dome.

The domes are topped with gilded figures in the traditional Persian style. The crown of the main dome was originally made of gold, but in the 19th century it was replaced by a replica made of bronze. The crown is titled with a month in typical Islamic style, its horns point upwards.

The minarets, each 40 meters high, also display perfect symmetry. They were designed to function - a traditional element of mosques that calls the Islamic believer to prayer. Each minaret is divided into three equal parts by two working balconies encircling the tower. All decorative design elements of the minarets are also gilded.

Exterior
The exterior design of the Taj Mahal can undoubtedly be ranked among the best examples of world architecture. Since the surface of the structure is different in different areas, the decoration is chosen proportionally. The decorative elements were created using various paints, plasters, stone inlays and carvings. In accordance with the Islamic ban on the use of anthropomorphic forms, decorative elements are grouped into symbols, abstract forms and floral motifs.

Throughout the complex, passages from the Koran are also used as decorative elements. At the gate at the entrance to park complex The Taj Mahal has four verses from the 89th sura of the Koran "Dawn", addressed to the human soul:
“O thou soul at rest! Return to your Lord contented and satisfied! Enter with My servants. Enter My Paradise!"

Abstract forms are used throughout, especially in plinths, minarets, gates, mosques, and even on tomb surfaces. At the lower levels of the tomb, realistic marble figures of flowers and vines are applied. All these images are polished and inlaid with stones such as yellow marble, jasper and jade.

Interior

The interior of the Taj Mahal goes far from traditional decorative elements. used inside a large number of precious and semi precious stones, A inner hall- an ideal octagon, which can be accessed from any side of the structure. However, only the south door on the garden side is used.
The inner walls are 25 meters high with a ceiling in the form of an inner dome adorned with the sun. Eight large arches divide the interior space into proportional parts. Four central arches form balconies and viewing platforms with a viewing window carved in marble. In addition to these windows, light also enters through special openings at the corners of the roof. Like the outside, everything inside is decorated with bas-reliefs and inlays.

Muslim tradition forbids the decoration of graves. Consequently, the bodies of Mumtaz and Shah Jahan were placed in a simple crypt, with their faces turned towards Mecca. Both the base and the coffin itself are carefully inlaid with precious stones. The calligraphic inscriptions on the tombstone praise Mumtaz. The rectangular rhombus on the lid of her tomb was supposedly designed to be written on. The cenotaph of Shah Jahan is located next to Mumtaz, and is the only asymmetric element in the entire complex, as it was completed later. It is larger than the wife's coffin, but decorated with the same elements.

Shah Jahan's tomb bears a calligraphic inscription that reads: "He set off on a journey from this world to the abode of Eternity on the night of the twenty-sixth day, the month of Rajab, 1076."

Taj Mahal Gardens
We turn to the description of the magnificent garden adjacent to the architectural complex. The Mughal garden is 300 meters long. The architects came up with raised paths that divide each of the 4 parts of the garden into 16 deepened beds. The water channel in the center of the park is lined with marble, with a reflecting pond located in the middle, between the tomb and the gate. It reflects the image of the tomb. The emperor was inspired to create a garden after seeing the same luxuries from the Persian sheikhs. The Taj Mahal garden is unusual in that the main element, the mausoleum, is located at the end of the garden. Early sources describe a garden with an abundance of vegetation, including exquisite varieties of roses, daffodils, hundreds of fruit trees. But over time, the Mughal empire weakened, and there was no one to guard the gardens. During the reign of the British Empire, the landscaping of the garden was modified, and it began to resemble an ordinary lawn in the center of London.

adjoining buildings
The Taj Mahal complex is bounded on three sides by jagged red sandstone walls, while the side that runs along the river is left open. Outside the walls of the central structure, there are several additional mausoleums where the rest of Jahan's wives are buried, as well as a large grave of Mumtaz's beloved servant. These structures are built of red sandstone, typical of the tombs of the Mughal era. Nearby is the Musical House, which is now used as a museum. The main gate is a monumental structure built of marble. Its archways follow the shape of those of the tomb, and the arches are decorated with the same elements as the tomb. All elements are carefully planned from a geometric point of view

At the far end of the complex are two large buildings from the same red sandstone, located on both sides of the tomb. They are absolutely identical, the building on the left was used as a mosque, and the identical building on the right was built for symmetry, but may have been used as a boarding house. These buildings were completed in 1643.



History of the construction of the Taj Mahal
Here I will talk about interesting facts from the history of the construction of the complex. The Taj Mahal was built on a piece of land south of the city of Agra. Shah Jahan gave Maharaja Jai ​​Singh Grand Palace in the center of Agra in exchange for this land. Large-scale earthworks were carried out on the territory of the complex. A huge pit was dug and filled with mud to reduce the flow of the soil. The site itself was raised 50 meters above the river level. When constructing the foundation of the tomb, deep wells were dug, which were filled with rubble for drainage and foundation support. Instead of scaffolding from bamboo, the workers built huge brick pillars surrounding the tomb - this greatly facilitated further work. Later, it took years to dismantle these scaffolds - they were so huge. In order to speed up this process, Shah Jahan allowed the peasants to use these bricks for their needs.

A fifteen-kilometer trench was dug in the ground to transport marble and other materials to the construction site. Bundles of 20-30 oxen pulled large blocks on specially designed carts. A system of special reservoirs was built to supply water from the river to the canal and to the complex itself. The pedestal and tomb of the Taj Mahal were built in 12 years, while the rest of the complex took another 10 years to complete. The total cost of construction was approximately 32 million rupees at that time.

For the construction of the complex, materials from all over Asia were used. More than a thousand elephants were used for transportation. In total, twenty-eight types of precious and semi-precious stones were set in white marble. 20 thousand workers from northern India were involved in the construction. Most likely they did the hardest work in slave conditions, since even today people in India work as slaves - for example, the article "Child Labor in India". Sculptors from Bukhara, calligraphers from Syria and Persia, stone carvers from Balochistan, Turkey, Iran were also involved.

Shortly after the completion of the Taj Mahal, Shah Jahan was overthrown by his own son Aurangzeb and arrested at the Delhi Fort. After his death, he was buried in a mausoleum next to his beloved wife. By the end of the 19th century, parts of the building fell into disrepair. The Taj Mahal was looted by British soldiers and officials who carved precious materials from the walls of the building. Then Lord Curzon conceived a large-scale reconstruction, which ended in 1908. At the same time, the famous garden was also modified, giving the lawns a British style.

In 1942, the government erected scaffolding in an attempt to disguise the Taj Mahal from attack by Luftwaffe and Japanese airmen. air force. The same action was taken during the India-Pakistan Wars of 1965 and 1971. This had an effect, and the structure remained unharmed.

The complex is currently threatened by pollution. environment. Due to the pollution of the Jumna River, there is a threat of its shallowing and soil erosion. Cracks began to appear in the walls of the tomb, and the mausoleum began to subside. Due to air pollution, the building began to lose its whiteness, a yellow coating appeared, which has to be cleaned every year. The Government of India is taking urgent measures to shut down hazardous industries in Agra and expand the protected area, but this has not yet had an effect.

The Taj Mahal is India's top tourist attraction, attracting between 2 and 4 million tourists annually, more than 200,000 of them from abroad. There is a special entry price for Indian citizens, many times lower than for foreigners. The complex brings a lot of money to the state treasury, replenishing the budget. Most tourists visit the complex from October, during the cooler season. Due to measures to protect nature, buses are not allowed here, from special remote parking lots, an electric tram brings tourists

The Taj Mahal is included in the list of the New Seven Wonders of the World, as a result of a worldwide vote held in 2007. The monument is open to the public from 6:00 to 19:00 weekdays, with the exception of Friday, when prayers are held in the mosque. For security reasons, only water in transparent bottles, small video cameras, photo cameras, Cell phones and small handbags

The girl that the Indian prince Jahan once saw in the market was so beautiful that he immediately brought her to the palace, making her his beloved wife: Mumtaz Mahal managed to captivate her husband so much that he did not look at other women until her death. At the same time, she did not sit at home, she always accompanied him on military campaigns and was the only person in the world whom he trusted and with whom he often consulted.

This gives reason to assert that the story that Mumtaz was of plebeian origin is a myth far from reality. In fact, she had a noble origin, was the daughter of a vizier and was a distant relative of Jahan's mother, and therefore received extremely a good education(otherwise, the young woman would hardly be able to give constructive advice).

Together they lived for about seventeen years, during which time Mumtaz gave birth to her husband fourteen children, and died during the birth of the last child. First, she was buried in the city in which she died, in Burkhan-Nur, and six months later her remains were transported to one of the most prosperous cities in India, Agra. It was here that the inconsolable widower decided to build a tomb for his wife, which, in terms of beauty, should have become worthy of Mumtaz and, by its very appearance, would tell the descendants of an incredible love story.

In which city to build the mausoleum of the Taj Mahal (“taj” means “crown”, “mahal” - “palace”), it was decided almost immediately: the suburb of Agra, one of the most beautiful and developed cities in India, located on the banks of the river, was best suited for this. manner. In order to be able to build a mosque on the chosen territory, Shah Jahan had to exchange this site for a palace located in the center of Agra.

He did not have to regret this: this area near the city was not only extremely beautiful and picturesque, but also turned out to be seismically stable - in the years that have passed since the completion of construction work, earthquakes have failed to cause serious damage to the structure.

The main building was designed by Turkish architect Ismail Afandi from Ottoman Empire, and his compatriot Usatada Isa is considered the creator of the architectural image of the monument - it was their projects that Jahan liked the most. The choice of the ruler turned out to be successful: the erected Taj Mahal (Agra) turned out to be one of the most outstanding monuments in the world, successfully combining the styles of Indian, Persian and Islamic directions, and was recently recognized as one of the wonders of the world.

Construction of the tomb

The construction of the Taj Mahal began in 1632 and the construction lasted twenty-one years (while the tomb was completed ten years earlier). To build this unique complex, more than 20 thousand workers from all over India, as well as architects, artists, sculptors from nearby countries were involved in the construction work.

The area near the city (Agra) with a size of 1.2 hectares was dug up, after which, in order to reduce the flowability of the soil, the soil was replaced on it. The level of the site planned for the construction of the mosque was raised 50 meters above the shore. After that, the workers dug wells, filled them with rubble stone, thus obtaining a foundation, which, moreover, was supposed to play the role of a kind of pillow during earthquakes and would not allow the complex to collapse.

Interesting fact: instead of bamboo forests the architects decided to use brick scaffolding: it was easier to work with heavy marble. stone forests looked so impressive that the architects were afraid that it would take several years to dismantle them. Jahan found a way out by announcing that any resident of Agra could take the required number of bricks for himself - and the scaffolding was dismantled in a few days.

In order to deliver building materials to the mosque, the Hindus built a gently sloping earthen platform, along which bulls dragged luggage that was on specially designed carts. They were delivered to the city from all over India (and not only). The most important building material - white marble was brought to the city from Makrana and Rajasthan, located at a distance of 300 km from Agra.

Raised marble blocks to the desired height with the help of special devices. The water needed for construction work was first extracted from the river, after which it was poured into the reservoir, from where it rose into a special reservoir and was directed through pipes to the construction site.

architectural complex

All buildings architectural complex Taj Mahal, Agra from a geometric point of view were extremely carefully planned. The central building of the complex is a mausoleum that tells about the love story of the ruling couple of India. Surrounding this wonder of the world on three sides are battlements erected from red sandstone, thus leaving the view open only from the side of the river.

The tomb of the Taj Mahal, Agra is surrounded by several more tombs in which other wives of the ruler were buried (they were also built from red sandstone, which was often used in the construction of crypts of that time). Not far from the main mausoleum is the Musical House (now there is a museum).

The main gate, like the main building, is made of marble, the entrance is decorated with an openwork white portico, on top - the eleventh dome, on the sides there are two towers with white domes. On both sides of the central tomb were built of red sandstone, two large structures: the building on the left was used by the inhabitants of Agra as a mosque, and the right served as a boarding house. They were built for balance - so that nothing would collapse during an earthquake.

In front of the mausoleum there is a luxurious park, the length of which is 300 meters. In the middle of the park, there is an irrigation canal lined with marble, in the center of which a pool was built, in which the mausoleum is completely reflected (paths lead from it to four minarets).

According to the descriptions of eyewitnesses, in the old days Agra and its park struck with an abundance of vegetation: roses, daffodils, a huge number of garden trees grew here. After India was under british empire, its appearance has changed significantly - and it began to look like an ordinary English lawn.

What does the tomb look like?

The main building of this architectural complex, which is located in the city of Agra, is the Taj Mahal mausoleum built of white marble. It is best viewed from the river, since the wall has not been installed on this side.

It looks especially chic at dawn: the tomb is reflected in the water, creating the illusion of unreality and, if you look at it from the opposite bank, you get the impression that this miracle is floating in the predawn fog, and the rays that have appeared create an amazing play of color on the walls.

Such airiness and a feeling of “hovering” to the mausoleum are given, first of all, by unusual proportions, when the height of the building has the same dimensions as its width, as well as a huge dome, which seems to carry away smaller elements of the structure – four small domes and minarets.

The mausoleum of the Taj Mahal, Agra tells the world about great story love between Jahan and Mumtaz Maha, and has incredible beauty. The height and width of the mausoleum is 74 meters. The facade of the tomb is square in shape, while semicircular niches are built into it, giving the massive building a weightless look. The mausoleum is crowned with a marble dome 35 meters high, shaped like an onion.

The top of the dome is decorated with a month, the horns of which are directed upwards (until the 19th century it was golden, and then it was replaced with an exact copy made of bronze).

At the corners of the tomb, emphasizing the shape of the main dome, there are four smaller vaults that completely repeat its shape. At the corners of the mausoleum, at a slight slope in the opposite direction from the tomb, there are four towers (minarets) decorated with gilding, about 50 m high (the slope was provided at an early stage of construction work so that they could not harm the main structure if they fell).

The walls of the Taj Mahal (Agra) are painted with a fine pattern and built of white marble with gems inserted into it (28 types of precious stones in total). Especially a lot of decorating elements can be seen on the pedestals, gates, mosques, as well as at the bottom of the mausoleum.

Thanks to the unique marble, the mausoleum looks different throughout the day: during the day the tomb is white, at dawn it is pink, and on a moonlit night it becomes silvery. Previously, the entrance doors were made of pure silver, but later, like many other valuable decorative elements, they were stolen (by whom - history is silent).

Inside view

Inside, the Taj Mahal (city of Agra) looks no less remarkable than the outside. The entrance to the mausoleum is decorated with a gallery with graceful columns. The hall inside the tomb is an octagon, which can be accessed from either side of the tomb (now this can only be done from the side of the park). Inside the hall, behind a marble screen, there are two sarcophagi made of white marble, which in reality are false tombs, since the graves themselves are under the floor.

On the cover of the sarcophagus of the ruler's wife, inscriptions praising her are engraved. The only asymmetric element in the entire complex is Jahan's sarcophagus, which was installed after his death: the ruler's coffin is slightly larger than the coffin of his wife. The height of the walls inside the building is 25 m, and the ceiling decorated with the sun is made in the form of an inner dome.

The entire space inside the hall is divided by eight arches, above which you can read quotes from the Koran. Four middle arches form balconies with windows through which light enters the hall (besides these windows, the sun's rays enter the room through special openings in the roof). The second floor of the mausoleum can be reached by one of the two side stairs. The walls inside the tomb are everywhere decorated with mosaics of gems, which form various symbols, plants, flowers, letters.

Death of Jahan

After the completion of the construction of the Taj Mahal, Agra, the son of the ruler, Aurangzeb, overthrew his father from the throne and put him in prison, in which the former ruler spent several years (according to one of the legends, her windows overlooked the tomb of his beloved wife he built).

After the death of Jahan, the son fulfilled the will of his father and buried him next to his wife. Thus ended the love story, capturing the memory of itself for centuries in a unique structure that still stands today.

Taj Mahal built on the banks of the Jamna River, two kilometers from the city of Agra, which from 1526 to 1707 (along with Delhi) was the capital of the Mughal Empire. This monument-mausoleum tells about the tender love of the ruler of the Mughal dynasty for his wife, the beautiful Mumtaz Mahal (nee Arjumanad Banu Begam), the niece of a strong and influential courtier at the court of the Indian ruler.

The name of Arjumanad Banu Begam is surrounded by legends and secrets. In 1612, at the age of nineteen, she married Prince Khurram, who later became Padishah Shah Jahan. During the wedding ceremony, the groom's father, the formidable Jangir, called his daughter-in-law and his wife's niece - "Palace Decoration" (Mumtaz Mahal).

The young couple loved each other dearly. The French physician, philosopher and traveler Francois Bernier, who lived in India for twelve years, noted in his notes that Shah Jahan was so in love with his young wife that he "did not pay attention to other women while she was alive." But he, like any eastern ruler, had a harem - and a big one.

In 1629, a year after his accession to the throne, Shah Jahan left Agra with an army and headed south to punish the governor of the rebellious Deccan. The uprising was crushed, the governor was removed, but Shah Jahan returned alone to Agra. Mumtaz Mahal, who was never separated from her husband, died in his arms during this campaign, giving birth to his fourteenth child. His grief was so great that he wanted to commit suicide.

At first, Mumtaz was buried in the city of Burhanpur (the territory of the present state of Madhya Pradesh), since Shah Jahan's army camped there. And only six months later the coffin with her body was transported to Agra, where subsequently a mausoleum was erected over her grave, which (according to Shah Jahan's plan) was to become a symbol of the beauty of his deceased wife.

The construction of the five-domed building of the mausoleum, surpassing in size and luxury all the others that were then in India, lasted more than twenty years (from about 1630 to 1652). The height of the Taj Mahal, together with the dome, reaches 74 meters. At the base of the monument lies a square platform with sides over 95 meters. Four minarets rise in the corners of the mausoleum.

The walls of the Taj Mahal are lined with polished marble, outside in some places supplemented with red sandstone. There are openwork lattices in the windows and arches, vaulted passages are decorated with Arabic script, which transferred 14 out of 114 suras of the Koran to the stone.

In the construction of this grand structure up to 20,000 people participated. The name of the architect who embodied the idea of ​​Shah Jahan is unknown. Some attribute the creation of this monument of world art to European architects. However, the study architectural features The Taj Mahal allows us to conclude that it embodied best features medieval architecture Iran and Central Asia together with the monumental art of ancient India.

But other scientists call different, but quite specific persons the author of this masterpiece. However, it is most widely believed that the best architects of India and other countries of the East, led by the Agra architect Ustad-Isa, took part in the development of the Taj Mahal project. It is possible that one of the authors was Shah Jahan himself, who had an outstanding artistic taste.

Around the Taj Mahal in Agra, Shah Jahan planted magnificent garden, built on the principle of Char Baga: on a plot of land divided into four parts. In the center is a marble pond. Unlike other structures that were usually placed in the center of the garden, the Taj Mahal is located at its beginning. Cypress trees are planted along the irrigation canal with fountains, the outlines of the crowns of which are in harmony with the domes of four minarets.

Opposite the Taj Mahal, on the other side of the Jamna, Shah Jahan thought of building another tomb for himself. According to the plan, his mausoleum was supposed to reproduce the forms of the Taj Mahal, but would have been made not of white, but of black marble. Both mausoleums were to be connected by a bridge. However, the plans and intentions of Shah Jahan did not materialize.

When Shah Jahan fell seriously ill, the question arose of which of his sons should take his throne. The eldest son, Dara-shikol, was like-minded of his father, grandfather and great-grandfather. He wanted the unity of the country, peace with the Hindus, an alliance with the Rajput and Maratha Rajas. Muslim mullahs and nobles stood by the wall for the second son - Aurangzeb, a cruel and gloomy Muslim fanatic.

Aurangzeb defeated his brother and entered Agra with troops. Here he learned that his father had recovered safely and was not going to vacate the throne. But power, once in the hands, is not easy to give away voluntarily. How long will the father live? And Aurangzeb ordered his father to be arrested and imprisoned in a fortress. From the heavy stone frame of the window, only the white mausoleum of his long-dead wife was visible, as light as a cloud.

Seriously ill, removed from power, Shah Jahan spent hours looking from the Agra fortress to the Taj Mahal, where Mumtaz Mahal, whom he loved so much, rested. And after his death, he was buried in the same tomb, in the same crypt with Mumtaz Mahal. Now, right above the crypt, in the central hall, decorated with ornaments of gold and silver, there are two stone slabs: one is over the grave of Mumtaz Mahal, the other is over the grave of Shah Jahan.

There are many legends about the Taj Mahal. And many young men, suffering from unrequited love, climbed the minarets and rushed down with the belief that in the next world they would achieve the location of their beloved. Then the entrances to the minarets were closed to cool the lovers who sacrifice their lives in the hope of finding love.

The Taj Mahal in Agra has become one of the most famous monuments of world architecture and is included in. Marble walls, agates and diamonds interspersed in the curls of the ornament, the soaring dome of the tomb, reflected in the waters of Jamna during the day and shimmering in the moonlight at night - such is the Taj Mahal, sung by hundreds of poets.

Taj Mahal- this mosque, combined with a mausoleum, is located in Agra on the banks of the local river Jamna. It is not known for certain who exactly is the architect this building. This building was built by order of Shah Janakh, who is a direct descendant of the famous Tamerlane. The Padishah of the Mughal Empire erected the Taj Mahal for his wife Mumtaz Mahal, who died while giving birth to 14 children. Subsequently, Shah Jahan himself was buried here.

The Taj Mahal (also known simply as "Taj") is the most famous example of a style of architecture that originated in Mongolia. It absorbed elements of Islamic, Indian and Persian styles of architecture, as there are many borrowings in the culture of the Mongols. The Taj Mahal received the status of a UNESCO World Heritage Site in the 83rd year of the 20th century. He is considered a universally recognized masterpiece and a pearl of Muslim culture, which is admired by people from different countries planets.

The Taj Mahal is a structurally integrated complex. Its construction began in 1632, and the work was completed only by 1653, that is, it lasted more than two decades. About twenty thousand craftsmen and ordinary workers worked on the construction of the facility. The construction was also led by the leading architects of that time, but it is not known for certain who exactly made the main contribution to the final result. Creator of this famous building Lakhauri is usually considered, but some evidence suggests that the chief architect was a native of Turkey, Mohammed Efendi. In any case, this question is unlikely to be answered.

Inside the mausoleum you can see the tombs of the Shah and his wife. But in fact, they are not buried under the tombs, but a little lower, underground.

The Taj Mahal is a five-domed building with a height of 74 meters. It was built on a platform with four minarets at the corners. Minarets have a slight slope away from the tombs, so as not to damage it in case of collapse.

Nearby is a garden with fountains. The walls are made of translucent marble, which had to be brought here from afar. The masonry is made with inlaid gemstones. Thanks to this, the walls look snow-white in daylight, appear pink at dawn, and have a silver tint on a moonlit night.

The construction of this building took place over a long period of time and more than twenty thousand people from different parts of the country, as well as from other countries of Asia and the Middle East managed to work at the facility. Each of them contributed to the final result.

The Taj Mahal was erected just south of Agra, which was surrounded by a high wall that guarded the city. Shah Jahan was personally involved in the selection of the site and exchanged a huge palace for it, which is located in the very center of Agra. As a result, construction began on a site of approximately 1.2 hectares. To begin with, the earth was dug up and the soil was replaced, and then a platform was built, which rose five meters above the level of the bank of the local river. Later, the construction of the foundation began, which was to become the basis of a massive building, and during its construction, the most modern technologies at that time were used. Even forests were thoroughly built, which were not bamboo, as usual, but brick. They turned out to be so massive that the craftsmen were afraid that after the completion of construction they would have to be dismantled for several years. But everything turned out a little differently. Giving says that Shah Jahan announced that anyone can take as much brick as he wants and the scaffolding was dismantled almost overnight, since in those days it was a popular building material.

Marble was transported using a special ramp built from compressed earth. Thirty bulls dragged each block along it to the construction site. The blocks were raised to the desired level using specially designed mechanisms. The proximity of the river also made it possible to quickly extract water. A special cable system made it possible to fill the tanks as quickly as possible, after which water from the tanks was transported directly to the construction site through specially laid pipes. A lot of work has been done in this regard.

The tomb and platform were built in 12 years, and all other parts of the complex were built for another ten. The construction was divided into stages, and largely due to this, it was possible to achieve the timely delivery of all objects. Forces were not scattered, but accumulated on a specific type of work.

Taj Mahal in 1865

Building materials were brought here from all over India and even from the neighboring powers of Asia, so more than one thousand elephants were used to transport them. The Taj Mahal was indeed built by the whole country, and a huge amount of effort, time and money was spent on its construction.

Taj Mahal in 1890

From the very beginning of its existence, the Taj Mahal has been not only a source of universal admiration, but also an excellent occasion for creating myths and legends based on it. As you know, any beautiful story surrounds many accompanying narratives, some of which are true, and others are complete nonsense and fiction. Sometimes it's hard to tell what's true and what's fiction. What exactly is true, and the number of legends themselves is incalculable, we will focus on the most remarkable.

The most common myth is that the Taj Mahal was not to be the only mausoleum. According to legend, another mausoleum was supposed to appear opposite it, but this time it was made of black marble. A new building was supposed to grow on the other side of the river, but certain circumstances prevented this. So, they say that Shah Jahan simply did not have time to finish the construction due to the fact that he was overthrown from the throne by his own son and legitimate heir Aurangzeb. This legend was supported by the fact that on the opposite bank of the river, ruins of black marble were indeed discovered over time. But everything fell into place at the end of the twentieth century, when excavations and research made it clear that black marble was actually just white marble blackened from time to time. At the same time, the pond in the Moon Garden (according to the legend, there should have been a second mausoleum there) was reconstructed, it turned out that the reflection of the Taj Mahal in the water of the pond looks black and can be seen without problems. Perhaps the pond was built just for this purpose.

There is no evidence that after the completion of the construction, the hands of the architect were cut off so that he could not recreate such beauty. According to another version, the builders signed a special agreement that they would never build anything like the Taj Mahal. Similar legends accompany almost any famous building and are pure fantasy.

Another legend concerns that in the mid-nineteenth century, William Bentinck planned to completely destroy the mausoleum and sell its marble at a major auction. Most likely, this myth arose after Bentinck sold marble from the construction of one of the forts in the city of Agra, but he had no such plans for the tomb.

The reality is often embellished by guidebooks, according to which, Shah Jahan, after he was overthrown by his son, admired the Taj Mahal straight from behind the bars of his dungeon. In fact, there was nothing of the kind, since Shah Jahan was kept in more than comfortable conditions in the Red Fort, located in Delhi. From there, the Taj Mahal is, of course, impossible to see. Here, the narrators deliberately replace the Delhi Red Fort with the one located in Agra. You can really see the Taj from the Red Fort in Agra. It turns out that most of the myths and stories about the famous mausoleum are nothing more than the most common fiction, albeit very beautiful.

Taj Mahal- one of the most beautiful palaces not only in, but throughout the world; mosque-mausoleum in Agra, dedicated to the beloved wife of Shah Jahan I - Mumtaz Mahal. Thanks to the verified architecture, the mausoleum turned out to be surprisingly beautiful and organic. If you look at its snow-white domes for a long time, it seems that it seems to be floating in the air. Taj Mahal is included in the version of our site.

In fact, this palace is the personification of beautiful and lasting love, about which there are many legends among the people. According to one of them this romantic story began after the padishah met Mumtaz Mahal in the city market and was so blinded by her beauty that he offered to become his third wife, later beloved. According to another version, the girl was a distant relative of the ruler on the maternal side, or the daughter of his father's vizier.

In any case, Sha-Jahan was so attached to her that he did not part until her death. Together they lived for about 17 years. The girl died while giving birth to their 14th child. The name of Mumtaz Mahal was named by her father-in-law, the padishah Jahangir, and it meant "decoration of the palace." They say that after the death of his beloved Shah Jahan never recovered. As a sign of his endless love, he ordered the construction of a mausoleum for her. He himself was also buried in the Taj Mahal, but much later.

The construction of the palace lasted from 1631 to 1653. More than 20 thousand workers worked on it, among which were the best calligraphers from Persia and Syria, Indian inlay masters, sculptors from Bukhara and other specialists. They say that the doors were originally cast from pure silver, but for so many centuries, the Taj Mahal has been looted more than once. Despite this, the palace has not lost its former gloss and is ranked among the most beautiful buildings in the world.

The place for construction on the banks of the Jumna River was chosen with the exact expectation of a long existence. For so many years, not a single earthquake has damaged the palace. The architecture of the Taj Mahal shows a mixture of Islamic, Indian and Persian architecture, which gives it a special royalty. An irrigation canal leads to the tomb, in which the contours of the structure are reflected. The height of the main dome is 73 meters. Despite this, the mausoleum seems surprisingly elegant and light.

Tourists visiting India certainly go to Agra to look at this "pearl" islamic architecture, take a picture of it and even visit the inner chambers, where two white marble sarcophagi covered with calligraphy are kept. These are the tombs of Shah Jahan and his beloved wife. The Crowned Palace looks especially spectacular in the morning haze of fog, at night and during the flood of the river. The gardens adjacent to the building are no less picturesque.

Millions of tourists come here every year. The doors of the Taj Mahal are open every day except Friday and the month of Ramadan. You can get from Delhi to Agra both by train and by bus. The distance between cities is about 250 km. From Goa is better just get there by plane.