Shah Jahan Builds Taj Mahal for Lost Love
Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan commissioned the Taj Mahal in 1631 as a mausoleum for his wife Mumtaz Mahal, who died giving birth to their 14th child. Construction employed over 20,000 workers and 1,000 elephants, taking 22 years to complete at a cost estimated at 32 million rupees (roughly $1 billion in today's currency). The white marble was quarried in Rajasthan, the jade came from China, the turquoise from Tibet, and the lapis lazuli from Afghanistan. The building's perfect symmetry extends to optical illusions: the minarets lean slightly outward so that in the event of an earthquake they would fall away from the tomb rather than onto it. Shah Jahan reportedly planned a matching black marble mausoleum for himself across the river, though this story may be apocryphal. He was ultimately buried beside Mumtaz.
June 17, 1631
395 years ago
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