Taj Mahal: Palace in Honor of Beloved Wife
Between 1631 and 1648, Ustad Ahmad Lahouri and Ustad Isa built the Taj Mahal. It was an order from Shah Jahan, a Mughal Empire, in memory of his favorite wife. The Taj Mahal passed through history without getting damaged, so it makes it a lot better for people to admire. The Taj Mahal has about four billion visitors, which makes it the most visited monument. The Taj Mahal was meant for Shah Jahan’s third wife, Mumtaz Mahal, he built it for her after she died, when she gave birth to her fourteenth child, on June 17, 1631. It took 22 years to build the Taj Mahal, with 20,000 men that alternated on the construction site. They were helped by 1,000 elephants to help carry heavy loads. The building was built out of red sandstone, a very common stone in north India, and marble. Now you can go visit the Taj Mahal from sunrise to sunset, it remains closed on Friday, so the Muslims can do their prayer.
The shapes that are used to build the structure are Circles, Columns, and a few Squares. The style of the Taj Mahal is Indo-Islamic, a style combining Hindu art and Islamic. Some materials that were used in the Taj Mahal were, bamboo, wood, stone, sandstone, and marble. 20,000 men were working on the Taj Mahal alternating on the construction site and took 22 years to build with the help of 1000 elephants to help lift heavy loads. The foundation was a challenge to the Mughal builders. The sandbank had to be stabilized thus wells were dug, cased in wood, and filled with rubble. The walls were built out of red sandstone and marble. The Taj Mahal started in 1631 and finished in 1653. The Taj Mahal is 358 years old and is the most famous tourist attraction. Some people believe that the foundations in the Taj Mahal have become brittle and began to break apart. Cracks have appeared in parts of the tomb and some of the towers that are at the corners are showing signs of tilting. If the Taj Mahal doesn’t get immediate attention the building may collapse. I think the Taj Mahal is a good building because it has something to keep it stable and something to help support it for a long time without collapsing.
