Every parent loves and cares for their children but in the modern world, it is observed that not each of their grown-up offspring is reciprocating the same gestures. But during the Mughal regime, a daughter constructed a beautiful tomb in memory of her parents, three years before the construction of the Taj Mahal. The daughter was no other than Mehrunnisa, who later rechristened NurJehanafter marrying the fourth Mughal emperor Jahangir. She was admired for her administrative qualities and this attracted the attention of Jahangir. NurJahan was the twentieth and last wife of Jahangir and the latter was her second husband. Firstly she was married to Sher Afgan khan who was serving in the your tour guide for Itmad- Ud- Daulla(Baby Taj) will aquaint you with history of Mughals and Baby Taj in detail..
How much is the entrance fee for ITMAD-UD-DAULA (BABY TAJ MAHAL)?
MONUMENT | FOREIGNER | INDIAN | |
Baby Taj | 210/- | 30/- |
How much it cost for hiring services of tour guide for ITMAD-UD-DAULA (BABY TAJ)?
For half-day Agra local sightseeing with English speaking tour guide : INR 1800 OR USD 25
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...HISTORY OF ITMAD-UD-DAULA (BABY TAJ MAHAL) ?
There is an anecdote that when Jahangir saw Nur Jahan in Meen market, he was fascinated by her enchanting beauty and got killed by Sher Afgan clandestinity to marry her. There is no official confirmation of this anecdote. She constructed the tomb of Itmad -Ud -Daula in memory of her father Mirza Ghias Beg and her mother Asmat Begum. Your tour guide for Itmad- Ud -Daula sightseeing will brief you about Mirza Ghia Beg who was an Iranian businessman whose trade had gone down, prompting him to try his luck in the court of Akbar, where he rose to the highest rank of Lord Treasurer and acquired the official title of Itmad- Ud -Daula. It is said that this edifice set an inspiration in Shah Jahan for constructing the Taj Mahal. Nur Jahan wanted her first daughter Ladli Begum to be married to Shah Jahan but the latter married MumtazMahal who was the daughter of Asaf Khan, one of the Nobel in Mughal court. She was the niece of Nur Jahan and grand daughter of Mirza Ghias Beg. This prompted Nur Jahan to hatch a conspiracy against Shah Jahan and declare him a rebel. Due to this Shah Jahan spent some time in the mountain hiding from the Mughal army but later Shah Jahan convinced Jahangir and ascended the crown. Some scholars believe that due to this family feud, Shah Jahan wanted to construct a grand edifice in comparison to Baby Taj but there is no mentioning of this reason in the official record behind the construction of Taj Mahal.
WHAT ATTRACTS TOURISTS FOR SIGHTSEEING OF ITMAD-UD-DAULA (BABY TAJ MAHAL) ?
The Baby Taj, one of the most beautiful monuments in Agra, is the first marble made monument commissioned by the mighty Mughals, depicting Persian Islamic architectural design, and constructed on the west side of river Yamuna. Its construction started in 1622 and was completed in 1628. It is a square-shaped dome with four octagonal towers surmounted with chhatris at the top. Its interior is composed of a central square hall having the cenotaphs of MirzaGhias Beg and Asmat Begum, made of yellow marble. There are four square rooms on each corner having tombstones of other relations of NurJahan and these rooms are interconnected by common doorways. The tomb is made of white marble, each chamber has a marble screen with lattice jali for ventilation and walls are bearing images of Cyprus trees, wine bottles, grapes and flower vases. There are four gates in four directions. The eastern gate is for the entry of tourists and the watergate on the western side was exclusively used by Nur Jahan when she was reining the Mughal administration. The tomb lies right at the centre of a beautiful garden on charbagh design divided into four equal quadrants. There are stone pavements from every gate towards the tomb with water channels sunk in on raised stone pathways. The baby Taj is a symmetrical building that appears the same from four different sides and you can see the coloured Mughal design on the ceiling of every chamber.
WHAT ARE THE DIFFERENCES BEWTEEN TAJ MAHAL AND ITMAD-UD-DAULA (BABY TAJ MAHAL) ?
The aura of the Taj Mahal reduced the charm of Baby Taj by assigning it a backseat. The Taj Mahal is closed every Friday but Baby Taj remain opens, so overnight visitors mostly visit Baby Taj on Friday. As Per Islamic principles, the inside of the actual burial chamber at Taj Mahal was kept simple and devoid of any ornamentation of cenotaphs with semi-precious stones however at Baby Taj the main cenotaphs are very well inlaid. The four minarets at Taj Mahal are far from the main dome but at Baby Taj, the four minarets are adjoined with the central portion. Also at Taj Mahal minarets are leaning outwards but here the four minarets are straight. The Taj Mahal was constructed by Shah Jahan and the Baby Taj was constructed by his stepmother Nur Jahan. The marble at Taj Mahal is inlaid with semi-precious stones like cornelian, lapis lazuli, mother of pearl etc however here no semi-precious stones are used. Taj Mahal took 22 years to complete however the Baby Taj was completed in 6 years.
HOW TO ACCESS TOMB OF ITMAD-UD-DAULA (BABY TAJ MAHAL)?
Tourists can easily book a taxi, Rikshaw, Tonga for accessing the Tomb of ItmadUdDaula.
• 7 km from Agra Cantt Railway Station.
• 4.5 km from Agra Fort Railway Station.
• 4 km from Agra Fort.
• 6.5 km from Taj Mahal.