Agra: the Taj Mahal and the Baby Taj

Today I went to visit the Taj Mahal, 1 of the 7 Wonders of the World. It’s already my 5th wonder, I just need Christ the Redeemer and Machu Picchu.

I got up early and at 6 am I was already at the door of the ticket office, thinking I’d see the Taj Mahal at sunrise. The fact that it has the river behind it and the dust that’s been hanging in the air these days didn’t help, and when I arrived, in the distance, you couldn’t even see the Taj Mahal.

Emperor Shah Jahan commissioned the Taj Mahal in memory of his beloved wife, Mumtaz Mahal, who died in 1631 giving birth to their 14th child. To honour her, he decided to build a monument that reflected their love and served as her final resting place.

When he died, Emperor Shah Jahan was laid beside his beloved; his tomb is next to Mumtaz Mahal’s, which is located at the centre of the mausoleum.

Construction began in 1632 and took about 21 years, with the final details completed in 1653. The graves visible in the main hall are replicas, while the real tombs are in an underground chamber at garden level. The craftsmen carved the marble with floral designs and inlaid semi-precious stones, such as lapis lazuli, jade, turquoise and malachite.

Next I walked to the other side of the river to find Itmad-ud-Daulah, known as the Baby Taj, and I really did see a mini Taj Mahal, which is the tomb of Itmad-ud-Daulah, a Mughal mausoleum built between 1622-1628, in other words it was finished 4 years before the start of the Taj Mahal.

It was commissioned by Nur Jahan, wife of Emperor Jahangir, for her father, Mirza Ghiyas Beg (a Persian nobleman), and it’s the first Mughal tomb built entirely of white marble. Although the Taj Mahal is more famous, Itmad-ud-Daulah pioneered many of its decorative and architectural elements, being a more intimate and detailed jewel.

The tomb sits on the banks of the Yamuna river and represents a story of filial love and power during the heyday of the Mughal dynasty.

Then I found a Mingol restaurant where I stopped for lunch for some Pathi kimau noodles. The rest of the afternoon was quiet, wandering around Agra, where there’s not much else to do and one day is more than enough to visit it.