The Mausoleum of Bibi Ka Maqbara is located in Aurangâbâd, India
Do you know that India doesn’t have one but two Taj Mahal? Indeed, there is an identical monument to the Taj which stands in the city of Aurangâbâd in the Maharashtra region. It is a mausoleum called Bibi Ka Maqbara (“The Tomb of the Lady”) built by Prince Azam Shah, the son of Moghol Emperor Aurangzeb, between 1651 and 1661, in memory of his mother, Dilras Banu Begum.
Bibi Ka Maqbara draws inspiration from the famous Taj Mahal of Āgrā built by none other than the grandfather of Prince Azam Shah, the Moghol Emperor Shâh Jahân in memory of his wife Mumtaz Mahal ("the light of the palace"). Azam Shah intended to build a monument that could compete with the Taj Mahal. Unfortunately, he missed the cash that his grandfather had access to, as well as the skilled labour force that this treasury was able to buy, which leads to a pale copy of the latter. Despite everything, Bibi Ka Maqbara is a architectural wonder with complex motifs, beautiful sculptures, an imposing structure and a beautiful landscaped garden of moghol style. Because of his strong similarity to the Taj Mahal , it is affectionately nicknamed the "Taj du Deccan".
The mausoleum is located in the center of a large enclosure measuring approximately 458 meters per 275 meters, with basins axials, fountains and channels irrigation, many of which are delimited by stone paravents and lined with wide paths. The garden is enclosed by high walls decorated with arches. These are separated by pilasters crowned with small minarets, and pavilions opened on three sides are placed at regular intervals. The mausoleum itself is built on a high square platform with four minarets at its corners, exactly like the Taj Mahal, which is accessed by a staircase by three sides. The main bulb dome Maqbara is, however, smaller than the Taj Mahal dome and its minarets are smaller.
Bibi Ka Maqbara is a beautiful architectural work , which deserves to be seen but it fades in comparison with its famous ancestor. While the monument of Agra is entirely made of pure white marble, the mausoleum of Aurangabad is enveloped with marble only in the lambris. Beyond that, it is covered with a thin layer of polished plaster giving it a marbling look. The walls of the Bibi Ka Maqbara are also a little darker by contrast, which gives the mausoleum a dull appearance compared to the Taj. According to the archives, the Bibi Ka Maqbara cost Alam Shah 700,000 rupees (9150€) for its construction. As a comparison, the Taj Mahal was built for a cost of around 32 million rupees (418 530 €) at that time (the values are at the time). This is probably another reason why Bibi Ka Maqbara is often referred to as the “Taj of the poor”.
However, the monument remains superb.
The small status of the Bibi Ka Maqbara is the result of the lack of architectural interest of Aurangzeb (open of the Moghol Empire from 1658 to 1707). From the beginning, Aurangzeb was not in favour of the construction of such a sumptuous monument as the Taj, and he prevented its construction by blocking the marble movement from Rajasthan and other regions of the moghol empire. But his son Shah Alam was determined to have a monument in honour of his mother who could compete with the Taj . In a way, Alam Shah was right about his father who eventually gave in.
Legend has it that in 1803, Nizam Sikander Jahan was so captivated by the Maqbara that when the city of Aurangabad and the Marathwada region were annexed to his kingdom, he intended to move the Maqbara into his capital, Hyderabad . He even ordered the dismantling of the structure, slab by slab. But in a certain way, he had a premonition telling him of the worries that could happen to him. He stopped the work and built a mosque as a penance, which is still west of the main structure.
Did you know the existence of a twin construction at Taj Mahal?
Photo sources : Wikipedia , Amusing Planet
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