Perhaps no other structure on Earth is capable of contesting The Taj Mahal a being the greatest symbol of love between two individuals. A structure that begun construction in 1631 and was completed only in 1653, it is Shah Jahan's eternal gift to his beloved wife, Mumtaz, who died giving birth to their fourteenth child. The Taj Mahal also known as the Taj is the greatest exemplification of Mughal architecture. The Taj Mahal architecture here makes use of elements of Islamic, Persian and Indian styles. The Taj Mahal is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. These, in fact, were the very words Shah Jahan used while describing the Taj Mahal:
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.
The white domed marble mausoleum which is the most notable feature of the Taj Mahal architecture is not its only wealth. The architect behind the creation of the Taj Mahal was the famous Ustad 'Isa. The Entire Mahal is in reality an integrated complex comprising of different structures. It takes inspiration from and also expands on the designs traditionally from Persian architecture. In specific, it takes inspiration from the tomb of Timur, the tomb of Humayun, and the tomb of Itmad-ud-Daulah. Contrary to the earlier Mughal structures that made use of red sandstone, Shah Jahan made this monument using white marble, that was inlaid with semi-precious stones.
 The main notable feature in the Taj Mahal architecture is its central tomb, made of white marble, that is built on a square plinth. It is made up of a symmetrical building with an arch-shaped doorway called an Iwan, that is topped by a large dome and finial. The most spectacular feature of the tomb is the marble dome on top of it. It is at a height of 35 meters, which is just about the length of the base. Because of its peculiar shape, the dome is also called the guava dome or onion dome. The top o the dome is designed with a lotus which accentuates the dome's height. The shape of the dome is further emphasized by the four smaller domes called chattris (kiosk). These are placed at the corners of the onion dome. The dome and chattris have gold finial on them, mixing Hindu and Persian styles of decoration.
In the early 19th century, the main finial which was actually made of gold, was replaced by one made of gilded bronze. This is a fine example of integration of Indian and Persian styles of architecture. The finial has a crescent moon with its horns pointing towards heaven, which is a Muslim motif. Because of its placement on the main spire, the horns of the moon and the finial point combined together, creating a trident shape. The trident is traditional shape related to the Hindu god Shiva. The minarets, each more than 40 meters in height are proof of the designers' interest in symmetry. These minarets were designed as according to the tradional ones in mosques, from where the muezzin called the faithful to pray. The minaret is chambered into three equal parts by two working balconies that ring the tower. The highest tower is topped by a chhatri. Each chhatri are all adorned by the lotus as design, which is topped with gold filial. The minarets were constructed slightly outside of the plinth in the hope that if a collapse were to happen the material from the towers would tend to fall away from the tomb.
Architecture of Taj Mahal
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