Shah Jahan and the Taj Mahal: story, construction and architecture
Shah Jahan and the Taj Mahal: why it was built, who Mumtaz Mahal was, how long construction took, its architecture, and its later history.
Shah Jahan, the fifth Mughal emperor, reigned from 1628 to 1658 and commissioned the Taj Mahal at Agra as the tomb of his wife Mumtaz Mahal, who died in childbirth in 1631. Built mainly between about 1632 and the late 1640s by more than 20,000 workers, the white marble complex became the finest example of Mughal architecture and a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1983.
Shah Jahan and Mumtaz Mahal
Shah Jahan came to the Mughal throne in 1628, succeeding his father Jahangir, and ruled until he was deposed by his son Aurangzeb in 1658. His reign is remembered as a high point of Mughal court culture and building, and the Taj Mahal is its most famous product.
The monument was a personal memorial. Mumtaz Mahal, whose name means Chosen One of the Palace, had been Shah Jahan's inseparable companion since their marriage in 1612, and she died in 1631 while giving birth to their fourteenth child. Court histories describe a grief so deep that the emperor withdrew from public life for a time, and the tomb he commissioned was conceived as an earthly reflection of her resting place in paradise.
Building the complex
Work began about 1632 on the southern bank of the Yamuna at Agra, on land once occupied by a mansion belonging to Raja Jai Singh. More than 20,000 workers were employed, including masons, stone-cutters, inlayers, carvers, painters and calligraphers recruited from across the empire and from Central Asia and Iran.
The five main elements, the gateway, the garden, the mosque, the jawab, a matching building that mirrors the mosque purely for symmetry, and the mausoleum with its four minarets, were designed as a single unified composition. The mausoleum itself was complete by about 1638-39 on Britannica's dating, or 1648 on UNESCO's, with the surrounding buildings finished by 1643 and decoration continuing until at least 1647, so the complex as a whole took about 22 years. Its white marble came from Makrana in Rajasthan, and it was inlaid with semi-precious stones such as lapis lazuli, jade, turquoise and crystal.
Architecture: symmetry, dome and decoration
The mausoleum stands on a plinth about seven metres high, with four nearly identical facades, each with a tall central arch. Above it rises a great central dome reaching about 73 metres to the tip of its finial, ringed by four smaller domes, and four slender minarets stand at the corners of the plinth, framing the building rather than touching it.
Two decorative arts define the interior and exterior. Pietra dura, the inlay of coloured stones into marble in floral and geometric patterns, softens the white surface, while calligraphy in black stone, directed by Amanat Khan al-Shirazi, carries verses from the Quran around the gateways and arches, with the lettering growing larger with height so that it reads evenly from the ground. Inside, an octagonal chamber holds the cenotaphs of Mumtaz Mahal and Shah Jahan behind a marble lattice screen, while the real graves lie in a crypt below. In front, a four-part charbagh garden with water channels and paths leads the eye towards the tomb, which is placed at the far end of the garden rather than at its centre, a deliberate break with convention that deepens the view.
Later history and the black Taj legend
Shah Jahan did not live out his days in the monument he built. Deposed in 1658, he spent his final years imprisoned in Agra Fort, about a mile and a half west of the Taj, from where the white dome was visible across the river. A popular tradition says he had planned a matching mausoleum in black marble for himself on the opposite bank, joined to the Taj by a bridge, but historians note that this story rests on traveller's tales rather than documents, and some dismiss it outright.
The monument has survived long periods of neglect and, more recently, damage from air pollution, which has led to traffic restrictions, a buffer zone and a pollution-control area known as the Taj Trapezium Zone. A major restoration was carried out in the early twentieth century under Viceroy Lord Curzon, and the Archaeological Survey of India manages the site today. In 2007 it was also voted one of the New Seven Wonders of the World, and it remains among the most visited monuments on earth.
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Frequently asked questions
Which Mughal emperor built the Taj Mahal?
Shah Jahan, the fifth Mughal emperor, who reigned from 1628 to 1658.
Who was the Taj Mahal built for?
For his wife Mumtaz Mahal, his empress consort since their marriage in 1612, who died in childbirth in 1631. Shah Jahan's own cenotaph was placed beside hers much later.
When was the Taj Mahal built?
Construction began about 1632. The mausoleum itself was finished by about 1638-39 according to Britannica, while UNESCO gives 1648 for the main tomb; the surrounding buildings and decoration continued into the 1650s, so the whole complex took roughly two decades.
Who designed the Taj Mahal?
Ustad Ahmad Lahori, an Indian architect of Persian descent, is generally regarded as the chief architect, working with a board of architects and master craftsmen drawn from across the empire and beyond.
When did the Taj Mahal become a UNESCO World Heritage Site?
In 1983, as a masterpiece of human creative genius and the jewel of Muslim art in India.