Planning a visit to the Taj Mahal? If you don't know already, there may be a few questions running through your mind like who built the Taj, why was it built, when's the best time to visit, the timings, the fee and a whole lot of stuff that you'd want to know before you pay a visit to the Taj. Don't worry at all, as this section on "Taj Mahal facts" will provide you with a few fast facts to up your knowledge along with the basic queries that you want to be answered as soon as possible. Read on to get some quick information about Taj Mahal and Agra. And once read, don't waste time. Just pack your bags, book your tickets and pay a visit to the world's most spectacular monument that epitomizes love at par.
We know that the Taj Mahal is one of the seven wonders of the world. We know who built it and for whom. We know it is the pride of our nation, India. We know a lot about it. But we don't know a lot of things about it.
Let's look at some of them:
Fast Facts Year of Construction: 1631 Completed In: 1653 Time Taken: 22 years Built By: Shah Jahan Dedicated to: Mumtaz Mahal (Arjumand Bano Begum), the wife of Shah Jahan Location: Agra (Uttar Pradesh), India Building Type: Islamic tomb Architecture: Mughal (Combination of Persian, Islamic and Indian architecture style) Architect: Ustad Ahmad Lahauri Cost of Construction: 32 crore rupees Number of workers: 20,000 Highlights: One of the Seven Wonders of the World; A UNESCO World Heritage Site Timings: Sunrise to Sunset (Friday closed) Fee: Rs 750 (Foreign Tourists) Rs 510 (Citizens of SAARC & BIMSTEC Countries) Rs 20 (Domestic Indian Tourists) No Entry Fee for children below 15 years of age (Domestic or Foreigner)
Interesting Facts Of Taj Mahal
Before his accession to the throne, Shah Jahan was popularly known as Prince Khurram.
Shah Jahan fell in love with the beautiful Arjumand Bano Begum and married her, making her his third wife.
Arjumand Bano Begum was christened by Shah Jahan as Mumtaz Mahal, meaning the “Chosen One Of The Palace” or “Jewel of the Palace”.
Shah Jahan lost Mumtaz Mahal, when she died giving birth to their 14h child.
For the transportation of the construction materials, more than 1,000 elephants were employed.
As many as 28 different varieties of semi-precious and precious stones were used to adorn the Taj with exquisite inlay work.
Depending on what time of the day it is and whether or not there’s moon at night, Taj Mahal appears to be of different color every time. Some even believe that this changing pattern of colors depict different moods of a woman.
Passages from Quran have been used as decorative elements throughout the complex.
On the sides of the actual tomb of Mumtaz Mahal, 99 names of Allah can be found as calligraphic inscriptions.
Taj Mahal was built in stages, with the plinth and the tomb taking up roughly 15 years. Building of minarets, mosque, jawab, and gateway took additional 5 years to be completed.
Different types of marbles used in construction of Taj Mahal were brought over from many different regions & countries: Rajasthan, Punjab, China, Tibet, Afghanistan, Srilanka, & Arabia.
Many precious stones and Lapis Lazuli (a semi-precious stone) were ripped off from its walls by the Britishers during the Indian rebellion of 1857.
Taj Mahal attracts 2-4 million visitors annually with over 200,000 from overseas.
1. There is a small hole on the ceiling of the main hall perpendicularly above the tombstone of Mumtaz Mahal .
According to stories it is the work of an artisan who decided to sabotage Shah Jehan 's dream of creating a masterpiece after he came to know about his decision to amputate all the artisan's arms. So the Taj is not as flawless as we would like to think it is.
2. The ASI had to conceal the Taj during WW-II with a huge scaffold to misguide bombers.
One of the most majestic man-made creations, the Taj was covered with a huge scaffold in the 20th Century so that it looked like a stockpile of bamboo to bombers. Then d uring the India- Pakistan war in 1971, and after 9/11, it was protected by camouflaging it with a green cloth.
3. Ever wondered what was Shah Jehan's first reaction on beholding the great Taj?
"Should guilty seek asylum here,Like one pardoned, he becomes free from sin.Should a sinner make his way to this mansion,All his past sins are to be washed away.The sight of this mansion creates sorrowing sighs;And the sun and the moon shed tears from their eyes.In this world this edifice has been made;To display thereby the creator's glory."
4. The story of the arms of all artisans being amputated by is probably a myth because the architect worked on other projects.
The architect who lead the team of architects to build the Taj mahal laid the foundation of the Red fort too. Ustad Ahmed Lahauri, was probably the leader of the architect's team. Seeing that Shah Jehan commissioned him to work on a project after Taj means he was clearly using both his arms!
5. The minarets were built tilting outwards to protect the Taj from calamities like earthquakes.
If you observe carefully, you'll find that the four minarets are tilting outwards. Thi s was done so that in the event of a natural disaster, like earthquake, the minars won't fall on the main ' gumbad ' or Dome, thereby ensuring the safety of the Tomb.
. A temple was built for the conman Natwarlal, who sold theTaj Mahal repeatedly.
Natwarlal who repeatedly sold the Taj Mahal , has a temple on his name. The people of his native village Bangra in Bihar decided to put up a statue of him as his monument, at the place, where his house once stood.
7. The foundation of Taj Mahal would have eroded years ago ifYamuna wasn't there.
Taj's foundation is made of timber which is not supposed to be long lasting. T he wood should weaken overtime and crumble owing to rot and ruin, but that did not happen because the wood is kept strong and moist by the Yamuna river.
8. The interior of Taj is capable of blinding any goblin with its grand inlay work.
28 kinds of rare, semi precious and precious stones were used for inlay work in the Taj Mahal . They were sourced from Sri Lanka, Tibet, China and of course several places in India. During the British rule, the monument was violated several times because of these stones and it was only in the late nineteenth century that restoration work was taken over.
10. How expensive was it for Shah Jehan to build the Tajexactly?
Shah Jehan spent about 32 million rupees during the years 1632-1653 on this great architectural venture. Today that amount would be close to 1,062,834,098 USD.
11. The fountains have a special feature to ensure uniform water pressure in the fountains.
To ensure uniform and undiminished water pressure in the fountains, the fountain pipes were not connected directly with the copper pipes feeding them. Instead a copper pot was provided under each fountain pipe so that the water first fills the pot and then only rises at the same time in the fountains. The pressure in the pots is maintained and so in the fountains.
14. Shah Jehan wanted to build another Taj Mahal , a black Taj Mahal .
Emperor Shah Jehan is widely believed to have desired a mausoleum for himself similar to that of the one he had built in memory of his wife, Mumtaz Mahal . The writings of the European traveller, Tavernier mention that Shah Jehan began to build his own tomb on the other side of the river but could not complete it as he was deposed by his own sonAurangzeb .
The plinth of the tomb is 2'10" on an average but varies all around. T his convexity has deliberately been given to the plinth in the center of each arch. The architect fully anticipated the apparent size which a finial would present from such a great height. If this wasn't the way then the building would have appeared as if it were falling down.
18. Shah Jehan's daughter Jahanara Begum refused a grand burial like the Taj .
She said:
Allah is the Living, the Sustaining. Let no one cover my grave except with greenery, For this very grass suffices as a tomb cover for the poor. The mortal simplistic Princess Jahanara, Disciple of the Khwaja Moin-ud-Din Chishti, Daughter of Shah Jahan the Conqueror May Allah illuminate his proof.
19. An American Grammy Award-winning artist named himselfTaj mahal.
Henry Saint Clair Fredericks, who uses the stage name Taj Mahal, is an American Grammy Award-winning Blues musician.
