Taj Mahal, << TAHJ muh HAHL, >> is one of the most beautiful and costly tombs in the world. The Indian ruler Shah Jahan ordered it built in memory of his favorite wife, Mumtaz Mahal, who died in 1629. The tomb stands at Agra in northern India. About 20,000 workers built it between about 1630 and 1650.
According to tradition, the Taj Mahal was designed by a Turkish architect. It is made of white marble and rests on a platform of red sandstone. At each corner of the platform stands a slender minaret (prayer tower). Each tower is 133 feet (40.5 meters) high. The building itself is 186 feet (56.7 meters) square. A dome covers the center of the building. It is 70 feet (21.3 meters) in diameter and 120 feet (36.6 meters) high. Passages from the Muslim holy book, the Qur’ān, decorate the outside along with inlaid floral patterns. A central room contains two cenotaphs (monuments). Visitors can see the monuments through a carved alabaster screen. The bodies of Shah Jahan and his wife lie in a vault below. The tomb stands in a garden.
See also Shah Jahan.
