MIRPUR UNIVERSITY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

(MUST), AJK

Architecture and Town Planning

Submitted To: Engr. Muhammad Umer Arif Khan

Submitted by: Abdullah Iftikhar & Bilal Nasir
Roll Nos: 13-CE-01 & 13-CE-15
Date: 9th May, 2016
 Taj Mahal

Overview and History

Taj Mahal is a tomb which is made up of creamy white marble. It is manifestation
second generation mughal architecture. This beautiful structure is located at south bank
of Yamna River in Agra, India. It was made by Mughal emperor Shah Jahan in the
memories of his beloved wife Mumtaz, thats why it is also known by the name Mumtaz
Mahal.

Now lets discus some facts and figures of Taj Mahal. It is a huge building extending
on 42 acres, having a mosque and a guest house also. It was started in 1632 and was
completed in 1943 but construction on some of the phases was continued and finally
completed in 1953. It has a height of about 73 meters (240 ft). In 1953 its estimated cost
was 32 billion rupees, which in 2015 would be equal to approximately 52.8 billion
rupees, a huge amount. The architect who had made this miracle was Ustad Ahmed
Lahauri. According to one of the surveys he Taj Mahal is visited 7-8 million visitors
every year.

Shah Jahan ordered to construct Taj Mahal in 1931 in the memory of his wife, Persian
princess Mumtaz who died while giving birth to his 14 th child. Construction was started
in 1632. The love and grief of wifes death was the inspiration to make this tomb.

Architectural style and elements

The Taj Mahal was constructed on Persian and mughal architectural style. Some of
the inspiration came from Timurid and Mughal buildings already present there, like;
Humaiyons tomb and Jama Masjid in Delhi etc. The major architectural elements are
tomb, interior decorations, exterior decorations, garden and outlying buildings. Now I am
going to explain these elements one by one.

Tomb:
When you enter from the main gate the first marvelous and splendid thing someone
sees is the tomb which has a great centered dome like most of the mughal buildings.
This tomb has an iwan (a chamber closed at three sides and open on one side). Most of
the buildings of mughal era and Persian era have large main entrances in the form of
iwan so is the case with this building also. This beautiful tomb is constructed on a
square plinth.

It is an 8 unequal sided building as it has four large sides along with four corners
which are chamfered so they also make four faces that is why overall it has 8 sides. The
length of each long side is 55 meters. At the four corners there are four minarets. In the
main chamber there are false sarcophagi of Mumtaz Mahal and shah Jahan, the original
or true graves of these two are below ground.

The most prominent part of the complex is its massive dome. Height of the dome is 35
meters and because of its shape some people call it as onion dome or amrud (guava
dome). The large dome is surrounded by four small domes present at each corner.
These corner domes are supported on columns having openings and provide light to the
interior during day time. Each of the minarets are 40 meters high. Each minaret consists
of three main parts , which are; two working balconies ring the minaret and one final top
balcony. By observing the Taj Mahal it can be clearly seen that it is a symmetrical
structure.

Exterior decoration:
The exterior decoration of Taj Mahal is very fine. The use of white marble and
carving with the help of chisel and hammer added a charm in it. On the walls and
corners there are dominant influences of Islamic architecture like calligraphy.
Throughout the structure there are passages from Quran. These passages are written
with great skill and are very attractive. The calligraphy on the great gate reads: "O Soul,
thou art at rest. Return to the Lord at peace with Him, and He at peace with you." Most
of the calligraphy is made with jasper and black marble.
 On the lower levels of the walls different flowers and vines are carved (islimi). These
are made with yellow marble and jasper and are polished and leveled to the surface of
the wall.

Interior architectural design:

The inner chamber of the complex is an octagon allowing the entrance from each
face of the octagon. Although only the door facing the south is used. The interior walls
are 25 meters high having top dome. The interior dome is decorated with the sun motif.
There are are four arches at upper level all of which lead to the corresponding balconies
to accommodate with the exterior view of the garden and the Yamna river. The
balconies have exterior windows having jalli (mesh) made by marble.

In the inner chamber the light enters from balconies and also from the upper four
corner domes as already explained in exterior design. The octagonal marble screen or
jali flanking the cenotaphs is produced using eight marble boards cut through with mind
boggling puncture work. The remaining surfaces are trimmed in sensitive point of
interest with semi-valuable stones shaping twining vines, products of the soil. Every
chamber divider is profoundly embellished with dado bas-alleviation, complicated
lapidary trim and refined calligraphy boards which reflect, in smaller than usual point of
interest, the outline components seen all through the outside of the complex.

As the Muslim traditions forbids the decoration of the graves so the grave of Mumtaz
Mahal and Shah Jahan were not decorated and they at lower level facing towards
Mecca. But in the main chamber of the complex the false sarcophagi is present which
is very well decorated.

The mughal calligraphers use pen a composition tables for the calligraphic purposes.
Ninety nine name s of God are composed on the genuine dividers of the tomb Other
engravings inside the sepulcher incorporate, "O Noble, O Magnificent, O Majestic, O
Unique, O Eternal, O Glorious... ".

Garden:
The complex is surrounded by a beautiful garden. The area covered by this garden is
300 meters square. This garden is named as Mughal garden or Charbagh. The garden
has raised pathways, which divide the four quarters of the garden into 16 ornamental
portions having flowers which adds to the beauty of Taj Mahal. On the way between the
main gate and the complex there is a raised water tank along with a reflecting pool,
which shows the reflection of tomb.

Surrounding buildings:
Taj Mahal has a boundary wall of sandstone on three sides but the fourth side
towards the Yamna River is open. Outside the wall is other building including several
tombs of Shah Jahans other wives. The main entrance gate is made with marble
having calligraphy on it. It has the archways similar to the archways of the tomb. At
western and eastern far ends there are two sandstone buildings. The western one is a
mosque and the eastern one is jawab, thought to be constructed for architectural
balance .But it also serve as guesthouse. The difference between these two buildings is
that the guesthouse lacks the mihrab.

Construction:
Taj Mahal is constructed in south of Agra. Shah Jahan gave place in the center of
Agra to Jai Singh in return of the land taken for the construction of complex. Almost
three acres of the land was excavated and refilled with dirt to reduce the seepage. The
level was raised to about 160 feet from the river. The wells was dug and filled with rocks
so that a solid foundation is provided. Almost 1000 elephants were used for transporting
materials. White marble is used for the construction of the complex. Total expenses
were 32 million Indian rupees which are equal to 52.8 billion rupees in 2015.

Threats:
Later dangers have originated from ecological contamination on the banks of Yamuna
River including corrosive rain because of the Mathura Oil Refinery, which was
contradicted by Supreme Court of India directives. The contamination has been turning
the Taj Mahal yellow. To control the contamination, the Indian government has set up
the Taj Trapezium Zone (TTZ), a 10,400-square-kilometer (4,000 sq. mi) zone around
the landmark where strict emanations models are in place.

Attentiveness toward the tomb's basic respectability have as of late been raised on
account of a decrease in the groundwater level in the Yamuna stream bowl which is
falling at a rate of around 5 feet a year. In 2010, splits showed up in parts of the tomb,
and the minarets which encompass the landmark were hinting at tilting, as the wooden
establishment of the tomb might be decaying because of absence of water. In 2011 it
was accounted for that a few expectations showed that the tomb could fall inside 5
years.