One of these following facts about Taj Mahal might give you much information about how wonderful it is. Taj Mahal is a white marble mausoleum located in Agra, Uttar Pradesh, India. It was built by Mughal emperor Shah Jahan in memory of his third wife, Mumtaz Mahal. The Taj Mahal is widely recognized as “the jewel of Muslim art in India and one of the universally admired masterpieces of the world’s heritage”. To get to know more about it, here are some facts about Taj Mahal you might be interested in.
Facts about Taj Mahal 1: Changing Color
The color of Taj Mahal appears to change color depending on the time of the day. The Taj Mahal appears pink in the morning, while it appears white in the day. And interestingly, the Taj Mahal appears golden in the moonlight.
Facts about Taj Mahal 2: Hands Chopped Off
It’s said that Shah Jahan had ordered to cut off the hands of all workers immediately after the construction of Taj Mahal. It was because he wanted no one to recreate such a marvel anywhere in the world. However, nobody has been able to prove this story true yet.
Facts about Taj Mahal – Taj Mahal
Facts about Taj Mahal 3: Symmetry
Taj Mahal is perfectly symmetrical in every way except two tombs of Shah Jahan and Mumtaz kept inside the structure. These two tombs are not equal because the male tomb had to be larger than the female tomb.
Facts about Taj Mahal 4: Graves
The actual graves of Shah Jahan and Mumtaz are not visible to the public. They are situated underground the basement. Actually, these tombs are placed 7 feet below the surface and are locked behind a metal door. The visitors get to see just a façade below which the tombs are kept.
Facts about Taj Mahal – Changing Color
Facts about Taj Mahal 5: Verses Carved in the Dome
The main dome of the Taj Mahal has Quran verses carved on it. Ninety nine names of Allah are also carved on either sides of the grave of Mumtaz. The verses have been engraved so that they look equal in size when observed from below. The verses on the top are of bigger size though.
Facts about Taj Mahal 6: Taj Mahal Plan
It’s been said that Shah Jahan wanted to construct an identical Black Taj Mahal on the other side of the river. But, he couldn’t make it happen as he was imprisoned by his own son Aurangazeb. The base of the black-marble Taj Mahal can still be seen across the river.
Facts about Taj Mahal – Graves
Facts about Taj Mahal 7: Architectural Pattern
To make the magnificent structure, four different architectural styles were used in Taj Mahal. It’s the amalgamation of Persian architecture, Turk architecture, Indian architecture and Islamic architecture styles which shows that the architecture of Taj Mahal was globally inspired.
Facts about Taj Mahal 8: Precious Stones
About 28 different varieties of stones has been brought from different parts of Asia and were inlaid into the white marbles used to construct the magnificent architecture of Taj Mahal. They brought marbles from Rajasthan, blue stones from Tibet, emerald from Sri Lanka, jasper from Punjab, and the crystals from China.
Facts about Taj Mahal – Precious Stones
Facts about Taj Mahal 9: Time and Effort Taken
Talking about the time and effort taken to build the Taj Mahal, well, it took 22 years and around 22000 people to build this outstanding structure. It’s said that over 1000 elephants were used to transport necessary construction materials. It cost about 32 million of Indian Currency to build Taj Mahal at the time of construction.
Facts about Taj Mahal 10: Structure Pillars
The pillars around the main monument were built to slant away from monument slightly. They were so designed in order to protect the main monument if the pillars ever collapsed due to natural calamities like earthquakes. This reveals that every precaution to protect this monument has been taken.
Facts about Taj Mahal – Replicas
Hope you would find those Taj Mahal facts interesting and useful for your additional reading.
