Taj Mahal
Amina Okada, Jean Louis Nou (Photographer), M. C. JoshiBooks.org participates in affiliate programs including Bookshop.org and the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program. We may earn a commission from qualifying purchases made through links on this page, at no additional cost to you.
Overview
A sumptuously illustrated portrait of perhaps the most fascinating architectural marvel of all time.Built between 1632 and 1643 by the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan in honor of his deceased wife Mumtaz Mahal, the Taj Mahal is unquestionably the most renowned mausoleum in the world. Now this legendary monument to love can be seen as no visitor to the site has ever viewed it. On the pages of this exquisitely illustrated volume, the Taj Mahal is revealed detail by detail. Starting inside the mausoleum, a sequence of closeups show the semiprecious stones, inlaid in white marble, that form the interior's Koranic calligraphy and floral patterns. The next sequence of images presents the octogonal plan of the structure, emphasizing both its perfect symmetry and its subtle variations. The final sequece is devoted to the decorative patterns carved in the walls of the mosque and entrance gate. In addition, four lavish fold-out photographs show the entire Taj Mahal complex from different perspectives.
In their informative texts, authors Amina Okada and M.C. Joshi provide historical and architectural anaylses of the Taj Mahal. Quotations from the Koran and from the journals of travelers as diverse as Jean-Bapiste Tavernier, Pierre Loti, and Aldous Huxley complete a breathtaking tribute.
Other Details: 158 full-color illustrations (including 4 deluxe gatefolds) 540 pages 10 1/4 x 10 1/4" Published 1993
Author Biography: Amina Okada, curator of the Musee National des Arts Asiatiques Guimet in Paris, is the author of numerous books and articles on Mughal India.
Dr. M.C. Joshi is a member of the Archaeological Survey of India in New Celhi. Before his death in 1992,photographer Jean-Louise Nou captured the beauty of India in many books, including The Art of India.
Synopsis
A sumptuously illustrated portrait of perhaps the most fascinating architectural marvel of all time.
Built between 1632 and 1643 by the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan in honor of his deceased wife Mumtaz Mahal, the Taj Mahal is unquestionably the most renowned mausoleum in the world. Now this legendary monument to love can be seen as no visitor to the site has ever viewed it. On the pages of this exquisitely illustrated volume, the Taj Mahal is revealed detail by detail. Starting inside the mausoleum, a sequence of closeups show the semiprecious stones, inlaid in white marble, that form the interior's Koranic calligraphy and floral patterns. The next sequence of images presents the octogonal plan of the structure, emphasizing both its perfect symmetry and its subtle variations. The final sequece is devoted to the decorative patterns carved in the walls of the mosque and entrance gate. In addition, four lavish fold-out photographs show the entire Taj Mahal complex from different perspectives.
In their informative texts, authors Amina Okada and M.C. Joshi provide historical and architectural anaylses of the Taj Mahal. Quotations from the Koran and from the journals of travelers as diverse as Jean-Bapiste Tavernier, Pierre Loti, and Aldous Huxley complete a breathtaking tribute.
Other Details: 158 full-color illustrations (including 4 deluxe gatefolds) 540 pages 10 1/4 x 10 1/4" Published 1993
Author Biography: Amina Okada, curator of the Musee National des Arts Asiatiques Guimet in Paris, is the author of numerous books and articles on Mughal India.
Dr. M.C. Joshi is a member of the Archaeological Survey of India in New Celhi. Before his death in 1992,photographer Jean-Louise Nou captured the beauty of India in many books, including The Art of India.
BookList
The construction of the world's most splendid mausoleum, the Taj Mahal, is surrounded by a haze of romanticized legends. Did the powerful seventeenth-century Mughal emperor Shah Jahan build this filigreed marvel of white marble, gems, and semiprecious stones purely out of grief over the loss of his wife Mumtaz Mahal, who died while giving birth to her fourteenth child, or was he "vaunting his grandeur and munificence to the world"? While master photographer Nou celebrates the exquisite artistry of the structure's stone marquetry, authors Amina Okada, an expert on Mughal and Rajput India, and M.C. Joshi, director of the Archaeological Survey of India, contemplate the motives behind the Taj Mahal's erection and discuss its remarkable design. The most astonishing of Nou's photographs are close-ups of the floral inlays that run riot in the mausoleum's luminous and arabesque interior. Every surface is alive with the grace of flowers and the animated strokes of Qur'anic calligraphy. Nou's impressive exterior shots display the opulence of the entire building, as well as the compound's earthier but still quite majestic mosque, lavish gardens, and stately main gate. A fresh and artful look at one of the wonders of the world.