Taj Mahal

Taj Mahal is the name of a monument located in Agra, India. It was commissioned by the Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan, the son of Jahangir, as a mausoleum for his Persian wife, Arjumand Banu Begum, also known as Mumtaz-ul-Zamani or Mumtaz Mahal. It took 23 years to complete (1630 - 1653).

The site

The architectural complex of the Taj Mahal covers an area of approximately 1900 ft × 1000 ft (580 m × 300 m) and comprises of five main components: the darwaza (gateway), the bageecha (garden) which is in the form of the typical Mughal charbagh (garden divided into four parts), the masjid (mosque), the mihman khana (guest house), and finally the mausoleum or the tomb of Taj Mahal, at the Northern end of the complex.

The tomb complex was designed to be accessed from both the northern and the southern sides, from the river Yamuna as well as by land. The entry from the landside has the gateway and other utility buildings constituting the front (and Southern) part of the complex. On entering the gateway which visually frames the tomb, one is inside the charbagh. Measuring 1000 ft × 1000 ft (300 m × 300 m), the garden has sunken parterres or flower-beds, raised pathways, water channels that reflect the Taj and avenues of trees. At the termination and along the central axis articulated by the garden is the tomb. To the Western or Mecca side of the tomb is a mosque of red sandstone that sanctifies the complex and provides a place for pilgrims to worship. On the Eastern side is a structure that duplicates the mosque in order to maintain architectural symmetry. This is known as the jawab ("answer") and was put to use as a guest house.

History

As part of the struggle for succession, Shah Jahan was put under house arrest at nearby Agra Fort by his son Aurangzeb, and legend has it that he spent the remainder of his days there gazing from a window at the Taj. Upon Shah Jahan's death, Aurengzeb buried him in the Taj Mahal, next to his wife, the only disruption of the otherwise perfect symmetry in the architecture.By the late 19th century, parts of the Taj Mahal had fallen badly into disrepair. During the time of the Mutiny, the Taj faced defacement by British soldiers, sepoys and government officials who chiselled out precious stones and lapis lazuli from its walls. At the end of the 19th century, British viceroy Lord Curzon ordered a restoration project. At the same time the traditional garden was replaced with the more English-looking lawns that are visible today.

By the 20th century the Taj Mahal was being better taken care of. In 1942, the British Raj erected a behemoth scaffolding over it in anticipation of a air attack on it by the German Luftwaffe and later by the Japanese Air Force. During the India-Pakistan wars of 1965 and 1971, scaffoldings were erected by the Government of India to mislead would-be bomber pilots. Its most recent threats came from environmental pollution on the banks of the Jamuna river, acid rain occurring due to the Mathura oil refinery (something opposed by Supreme Court of India directives).

The Taj Mahal, as of 1983, is an UNESCO World Heritage Site and a major tourist destination.

The Taj is one of the nominees for the modern seven wonders of the world. From Wikipedia