There is no doubt that Shah Jahan, while creating a tomb for his wife, Mumtaz Mahal, wanted something that would astonish people from around the world for a great many years. Perhaps the only thing more beautiful and interesting than the architecture and exterior design of the Taj Mahal , is the interior design of the Taj Mahal. For starters, it is quite contrary to traditional styles of decoration. The inlay work within this structure is not made of Florentine mosaic, but instead is a creation out of precious and semi-precious stones. The inner chamber has eight entrances, being octagonal in shape. All the doors except the southern one- the one that faces the garden are used. The walls in the interior are about 25 meters high and have above them, a "false" ceiling, a dome with a sun motif decoration. There are eight pishtaq arches at ground level, which like in the exterior, are topped by another pishtaq around midway up. Balconies, or rather, viewing areas are formed out of the upper four central arches.
The windows of each of these viewing area are adorned by intricately designed marble screens called jali. Decoration using dado bas relief, delicate lapidary inlay, and calligraphy panels have been used in each chamber wall to depict the same design that is seen in the exterior. The octagonal marble jali on the border of the cenotaph are made up of eight marble sheets, on which carving is done using delicate pierce work. All the spaces that remain have extremely intricate design work involving semiprecious stones, in the shape of fruits, flowers and twisted vines.
The graves of Mumtaz Mahal and Shah Jahan are laid in comparatively simple crypts as Muslim culture doesn't allow elaborate decoration on graves. These are below the inner chamber, where Shah Jahan and his wife's bodies are placed, facing right, in the direction of Mecca. Mumtaz Mahal's cenotaph is placed exactly in the center of the inner chamber above a marble base of 1.5 meters by 2.5 meters. There are calligraphic writings on the casket that speak highly of Mumtaz. The casket and the base are beautifully decorated with precious and semi-precious stones. A rectangular lozenge, representing a a writing tablet is placed on top of the casket. On the side of Mumtaz's tomb are inscriptions of the 99 names of Allah, and also the inscription, "O Noble, O Magnificent, O Majestic, O Unique, O Eternal, O Glorious... "
Shah Jahan's tomb is the only asymmetrical structure in the entire exterior as well as interior design of the Taj Mahal. His cenotaph is bigger than his wife's but depicts the same features of a casket on a tall base. There is also the calligraphic writing that speaks of Shah Jahan. His cenotaph has a the sculpture of a small pen box. According to Mughal tradition, the pen box signifies a man's casket while the tablets, a woman's. The inscriptions on the side of Shah Jahan's tombs read: "He traveled from this world to the banquet-hall of Eternity on the night of the twenty-sixth of the month of Rajab, in the year 1076 Hijri."
Architecture of Taj Mahal
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