Sharandeep Singh805815Art 100 sec.121 Taj Mahal DeTemple,Lesley a. The Taj Mahal.
Minneapolis;Lerner Publication Co.2003.Prints Taj Mahal is a fine part of art and architecture. Taj Mahal is location in Agra,India. Taj Mahal was a part of Mughal empire. Taj Mahal was built in seventeenth century. “Shah Jahan,the fifth emperor of the mughal emperor,commissioned the building of Taj Mahal as a tomb for his beloved wife”(DuTemple04).
The design of Taj Mahal is not designed by one person. Many people work on the architectural design of Taj Mahal. The design of Taj Mahal was made by many architects,engineers,artist,calligrapher and Shah Jahan himself.
“The name of other two architects, Mir Abd al-Karim and Makramat Khan, also show up in documents concerning the Taj Mahal”(DuTemple 23). Many historians says that Taj Mahal is also known as “Mumtaz Mahal”. Taj Mahal is situated at the bank of Yamuna river.
The construction of Taj Mahal was begin in 1631. Taj Mahal was a big project. Shah Jahan want to built Taj Mahal in a very quick time. Thousand of working man and women assembled to Agra. At the beginning of Taj Mahal Shah Jahan provide them “unskilled physical labour”- digging and raise stones for the base of Taj Mahal. The building of Taj Mahal was made up of several material. The material used to build Taj Mahal was bricks,marble and red sandstone.
“Shah Jahan designed the buildings and gardens of the Taj Mahal complex to complement each other and to frame Mumtaz Mahal’s tomb,…”(DuTemple 38). By 1637 the central dome of Taj Mahal was built. The dome shines like pale shade of pink in the noonday.
The beauty of the dome reflects in Yamuna river. “According to Islamic law, tombs must be accompanied by 80 feet to the west of the Taj Mahal (DuTemple 47). On the top of tomb building three domes was built. The central dome is the biggest and bound by two smaller domes. Tillotson, G.H.R. Taj Mahal Cambridge,Mass:Harvard University.
2008 Press(e-book) Taj Mahal is one of the beautiful buildings in the world. It was made in mughal period. “Taj Mahal is the queen of architecture”(Tillotson 01). Taj Mahal is the famous mughal building in India. Taj Mahal is a tomb which is located in Agra. Many foreign and Indians historians describe that Taj Mahal is a symbol of love.
Writers and scholars give different- different views on the design of Taj Mahal. The design of Taj Mahal is related to three traditions: “Mughal’s central asian home land, the buildings erected by early muslim rulers of India, older architectural expertise of India itself”(Tillotson 46). Shah Jahan want a tomb for his wife. Every part of Taj Mahal is describe about the glory depends on its placement amongst satellite buildings and garden.
Four minarets was built surrounding the tomb. The minarets was built with white marble. Minarets is a tower and it is used for announcing the time of prayer. Minarets is a standard feature of a mosque, but it is not a functional of a tomb.
Minarets was built away from the tomb building. A theory explains that minarets built in a way, if they fall due to earthquake they will not strike and damage the tomb. “As at the Taj, they are purely ornamental”(Tillotson 59). The minarets look completely straight, but when viewed from ground it appear to converge towards the central dome.
On the west of tomb building there is a mosque. Mosque is a prayer hall provided for those who visit Tomb for religious purpose. The mosque was built from red sandstone. The mosque designed in such a way that it will not distract the attention from tomb.
At the opposite end of terrace, a second building was built that replicates the form of the mosque. This building is not used for prayer. This building is called as “Mihman Khana”. The main purpose of this building is to balance the mosque. Collier, Dirk. The Great Mughals And Their India. New Delhi:Hay House.
2016 (e-book) The meaning of the Taj Mahal is Crown Palace. The name of the tomb building is still a mystery. “The historians and poets of Shah Jahan era constantly referred to it as the Rauza -i – Munnawara(the illumined tomb); the Rauza-i-Muqqadas(the holy tomb); the Rauza -i- Muthahhara(the poure tomb-the word rauza refers to a tomb in a garden)”(Collier 153). After the death of Shah Jahan on 22 january 1666 the name Taj Mahal was use commonly.
Many type of myth are popular related to Taj Mahal. “When the Taj was finished, Shah Jahan is said to have had the architect’s eyes gouged out and the hands of the craftsman chopped off, so that nothing as beautiful could ever be built again”(Collier 156). Building of Taj Mahal was a idea of truly intelligent men first of the widowed emperor- who commissioned the Taj Mahal, the skilled the craftsman and thousand of workers, hindus and muslims people managed to built the one of the most beautiful buildings in the world. Taj Mahal took place in the seven wonders of the world because of its architectural design, beauty, and history.
