Origins and architecture of the Taj Mahal Origins and architecture of the Taj Mahal The 'Taj Mahal' represents the finest and most sophisticated example of Mughal architecture. Its origins lie in the moving circumstances of its commission and the culture and history of an Islamic Mughal empire's rule of large parts of India. The distraught Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan commissioned the ] upon the death one of his favorite wife Mumtaz Mahal. Today it is one of the most famous and recognizable buildings in the world and while the large, domed marble mausoleum is the most familiar part of the monument, the Taj Mahal is an extensive
Taj Mahal stated there was no evidence to suggest the monument ever housed a temple. A theory that the Taj Mahal was designed by an Italian, Geronimo Vereneo, held sway for a brief period after it was first promoted by Henry George Keene in 1879 who went by a translation of a Spanish work "Itinerario", ("The Travels of Fray Sebastian Manrique, 1629-1643"). Another theory that a Frenchman, Austin of Bordeaux designed the Taj was promoted by William Henry Sleeman based on the work of Jean-Baptiste Tavernier. These idea were revived by Father Hosten and discussed again by E.B. Havell and served as