One of the most beautiful creations of human hands, a place that attracts millions of people every year from around the world - majestic and beautiful Taj Mahal - is considered as a true symbol of India.

Taj Mahal - a marvelous snow-white building, which was built as a tomb for the third and favorite wife of the great Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan Mumtaz Mahal, on the river Yamuna in Agra .  Despite numerous harem, the emperor is the most loved Mumtaz Mahal .  She bore him thirteen children, and died in 1631, at the birth of the fourteenth .  Ruler greatly grieved the death of his beloved wife, so ordered to gather the most skilled craftsmen of the time to create a mausoleum, which would become a symbol of his boundless love for Mumtaz .  Construction began in 1632 and lasted more than 20 years: the main complex was finished in 1648, and minor buildings and garden were finished five years later .  A kind of "prototypes" of this grand tomb became Guri Amir - mausoleum of Tamerlane, the founder of the dynasty Mughal rulers in Samarkand, Jama Masjid Mosque in Delhi, and Humayun's Tomb - one of the Moghul rulers .

Taj Mahal is made in the traditional Persian style and is a complex of luxurious and magnificent structures built of white marble .  The main place is occupied by the mausoleum itself, located in the center of the site .  It has the shape of a cube with the "cut" corners and topped with a huge dome .  The building stands on the square "pedestal" in the four corners of which are tall minarets .  Mausoleum inside has a large number of rooms and halls decorated with marvelous mosaics, painted with delicate patterns and ornate ornaments .  In one of these rooms, and is located the tomb of Mumtaz Mahal .  And next to him - and the tomb of Shah Jahan, who wished to be buried after death near his beloved .  Initially, the governor was going to build a replica of the tomb on the other side of the Yamuna for themselves, only in black marble, but he was unable to bring his idea to life, so he asked to be buried in the Taj Mahal itself next to his wife .  But it is worth noting that both the tomb empty, and now the burial place is in an underground crypt .

Originally, the mausoleum was decorated with a huge number of precious and semi-precious stones, pearls, and its main door was made of pure silver. But, unfortunately, our time all these treasures almost did not survive, "settled" in the pockets of not very honest "tourists."

On three sides of the Taj Mahal is surrounded by a beautiful park gates which also represent an architectural masterpiece. Through the park leads to the main entrance of the road, walking along a wide canal. And on both sides of the mausoleum are two mosques.

Translated from the Persian "Taj Mahal" he means "crown of palaces". He truly is the "pearl of the Muslim art in India and one of the universally recognized masterpieces of world heritage."

Taj Mahal was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1983.

It should also be noted that the tour is officially allowed to take photographs of the Taj Mahal from only one side - opposite the main entrance.