Taj Mahal: A Tour from the Top

A new perspective on an Indian icon

By Google Arts & Culture

Tap to explore

The Taj Mahal is one of the great artistic treasures of the world, an instantly-recognisable emblem of India itself. It’s a mausoleum, or tomb, commissioned in 1632 by Emperor Shah Jahan, one of the greatest Mugal Emperors, to house the body of his wife Mumtaz Mahal. Here, you can take in the famous architecture and surroundings in Street View. But what does it look like from up high?

Tap to explore

From the top of this minaret, we have a good view across the entire river plain, and of the Taj Mahal itself. The building is perfectly symmetrical, with four minarets, four small pavilions, and one iconic central dome.

Tap to explore

Up here, we can see the richly-decorated facade. Before the Taj Mahal, most grand buildings were made of sandstone, but when commissioning this, the emperor Shah Jahan preferred white marble inlaid with semi-precious stones.

Tap to explore

Red sandstone can be seen being used to create a remarkable contrast in the smaller - but no less elaborate - building to the west, a mosque, completed in 1643. Inside, the tiled floor has space for precisely 569 worshippers.

Tap to explore

A matching building known as the jawab (answer), is found to the east. This was built to provide a perfectly symmetrical view, but may have also been used as a private guesthouse.

Tap to explore

Standing on the roof of the mosque, we have a better view of the decoration. The inlaid stone shows no expense was spared in this devoted lover's monument.

Tap to explore

To the south are the gardens, laid out in a grid divided by pathways and pools. This style was very popular in the Mughal Empire, and designed to invoke thoughts of the gardens of paradise as described in the Qur'an.

Tap to explore

While we're here, why not take a look around the rest of the site and discover the many more treasures of the Taj Mahal.

Credits: All media
The story featured may in some cases have been created by an independent third party and may not always represent the views of the institutions, listed below, who have supplied the content.
Home
Discover
Play
Nearby
Favorites