Year: 1872




in diameter, diminishing in size un'
ill at the height of one hundred and
fifty feet it is crowned with an open
cupola, commanding q magnificent
view of the Taj, with its surround
ings, of the River Jumna, the city
5 and fort of Agra, and of the adjacent
country. l assembled to the top oil
ono of these minarets, and had pho
tographed upon my memory view
which am sure no time can dim.
IIgT In the centre of this marble ter
race, equidistant from the four lofty
and graceful minarets, stands the
building which for more than two
centuries has been the admiration
of every eye that in all that period
/ Of time has rested on it. 1t is an
Octagon, or il might perhaps be
more correctly described as a
square with each of the four corners
Slightly cut off, and is crowned with
a high swelling dome, having the
gracefulness of outline which seems
to have been an inspiration in the
Mohammedan and Oriental styles
Of architecture. The building is
one hundred and fifty feet in dame
ter; the crescent upon the summit
of the dome nearly two hundred
feet above the pavement. The
structure is built from foundation to
topstone of the purest marble, so
perfect in the preservation and so
unspotted in lis whiteness that it
looks as if it might have been erect
ed only yesterday. Standing upon
its marble pedestal, it wills in puri
ty with the clouds that are floating
by. A cupola of the same material
rests upon the roof on each side of
the dome. The exterior of the
building is carved in graceful de-
signs, the front elaborately wrought,
but in such perfect taste as to fill
theseye like picture in colors. No
description will convey to the mind
anysidea of the effect of the engrav-
ing on the arched doorway. 1t is
elaborate, but not forid, giving to
the solid marble almost the light
ness of cloud. Indeed, the whole
building, as you look upon it, seems
to float in the air like an autumn
cloud.


Let US enter-but breathe softly
and tread gently as you step within.
1t is the sleeping chamber Of Moor
Mahal, the cherished wife Of the
Mogul emperor, Shah Jehan, and
here, beneath this magnificent dome,
they lie side by side, each in a
couch of almost transparent marble,
set with precious stones, and
wrought exquisitely in tracery of
vine and flowers. Nowhere else
has human dust been laid away to
slumber in such superb repose-so
beautiful, so silent, so sacred, so SUBJ
lime. In such perfect, exquisite
taste is every thing within as well
as without, that it is more like
creation than the work of man.
The whole interior, which is light
ed only from the lofty doorway, is
open from wall to wall, and from
the pavement to the summit of the
dome, with the exception of high
marble screen standing about twen-
ty or thirty feet from the outer
wall, and extending entirely around
the building. This is cut in open
tracery, so as to resemble curtain
of lace rather than a screen of solid
marble. One who has seen the
yelled statue of a master artist can
appreciate the deception, if decep
ton it can be called where none was
intended.


The sarcophagi containing the
remains of the empress and of her
faithful lover, the Mogul emperor,
lie in the crypt below, which is
reached by a marble stairway.
That of the former has inscribed
upon--it, in the graceful Arabic
character, q aMoon-taj-i-Mahal, Ranoo
Begun" tRanoo Begun the
Ornament of the Palace), with the
date of her death, 1881. The other
has inwrought the name of the EN-
peror, with the date of his death,
1866. To this day they are cover
ed with fresh flowers, strewed by
faithful hands, in recognition of the
fidelity which reared the structure.


Upon the main floor, directly over
these marble slabs, and under the
canopy of the open dome, stand the
cenotaphs, designed simply as the
representatives of those below, but
carved in tracery and set in gems in
no ostentatious or gaudy style, but
so beautifully and tastefully that one
fingers around them as he stands be-
fore some masterpiece of art, never
satisfied with looking. Upon the
cenotaph of the queen, amid wreaths
of flowers, worked in gemmed
mosaic, are passages from the Koran,
in Arabic, one of which reads,
"Defend us from the tribe of un-
selievers." This inscription was
made by the Emperor Shah Jehan,
who seemed to think no words too
sacred to be recorded upon the tomb
of one whom he loved SO devotedly;
but his sou, Aurungzebe, who
placed the marble in memory of his
father, in accordance with Moham
medan custom, regarded the words of