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Taj Mahal simply called as a “Symbol of Love” is a white marble mausoleum situated on the bank of Yamuna river in Agra. World famous mausoleum built by the Mughal King Shah Jahan to his sweet memory of late beloved wife Mumtaz. Built in 1653, purely made by the Mughal architectures along with some elements of Indian, Persian and Islamic styles. Considered as the “Symbol of Love” along with mixtures of devotions and the beauty.
History of Taj Mahal
As we said earlier, it was built during 1653, but its actual work began in 1632 under the order of Emperor Shah Jahan. When Mumtaz died in 1631 due to her 14th childbirth, he was totally disappointed and never controlled his feelings. Then the actual work began with the help of 20,000 workers and completed after 20 years dedicated work.
Taj Mahal means “Crown of Palaces”, its design was influenced by the Mughal and Persian architectures. Due to its beauty, historical and cultural significance and architectural marvelousness, Taj Mahal is recognised as one of the 7 Wonders of the world and listed in UNESCO World Heritage site.
However we can’t conclude Taj Mahal is world famous just because of its history and color or size, we actually know its internal architecture.
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Architecture
Its internal architecture is also influenced by the Mughal and Persian architectures, especially its intricate carvings and calligraphy. Its main building is flanked by the 4 minarets and central dome and a pool which look like the symmetry of structures in Taj Mahal.
Apart from the central dome and 4 minarets, gardens and waterways are really interesting. Like Charbagh or Persian style gardens including serene backdrops for the monument. Its calligraphy labelled motifs, arabesques and Quranic inscriptions.
Ustad Ahmad Lahori is the chief architect of Taj Mahal. They used pristine white marbles from Rajasthan to build its strong foundations. Precious stones like jade, turquoise, lapis and lazuli are used to build this magnificent building.
Interesting facts about Taj Mahal
1. Initially Taj Mahal was to be built in some other place.They planned to build in Burhanpur, Madhya Pradesh where Mumtaz died. But due to the scarcity of labour and marbles supply it didn’t happen.
2. Precious stones were imported from outside of India. Some of the precious and semi precious stones are not available in India, therefore they imported around 28 unique stones from Sri Lanka, Tibet, China and some parts of the Middle East.
3. Taj Mahal today could be the value of 1,062,834,098 USD. In 1632-53, Shah Jahan spent around 32 million to construct this site but now its value has reached some around a billion American dollars.
4. Yearly Taj Mahal welcomes 2 to 4 million visitors, which is equal to the city’s population. Out of this around 2 lakh visitors from overseas.
5. Taj Mahal appears in varying shades throughout the day. Different angles of color appear at different times in a day. Pink in the morning, milky white in the evening and golden when the moon appears in the sky.
6. Due to its world recognition, popular tourist destination and intrinsic architecture and cultural importance’s, Taj Mahal was listed in one of the 7 Wonders in the World in 2007. Along with being recognised by the UNESCO World Heritage site.
Taj Mahal Tickets Price
For Indians: ₹ 45
For Foreigners/ Overseas visitors: ₹ 1050
For children’s below that 15 year of age: ₹ 0
Taj Mahal Timings
Taj Mahal opens from morning 6 AM to evening 6 PM every week, except Friday.
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