NOORJAHAN BUILT BABY TAJ MAHAL FOR HER FATHER MIRZA-GIYAS-BEG

NOORJAHAN BUILT BABY TAJ MAHAL FOR HER FATHER MIRZA-GIYAS-BEG

SHAHJAHAN BUILT TAJMAHAL FOR NOORJAHAN`S NIECE MUMTAZ

Tomb of I'timād-ud-Daulah (Urdu: اعتماد الدولہ کا مقبرہ‎, I'timād-ud-Daulah kā Maqbara) is a Mughal mausoleum in the city of Agra in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. Often described as a "jewel box", sometimes called the "Baby Tāj", the tomb of I'timād-ud-Daulah is often regarded as a draft of the Tāj Mahal.

Along with the main building, the structure consists of numerous outbuildings and gardens. The tomb, built between 1622 and 1628 represents a transition between the first phase of monumental Mughal architecture – primarily built from red sandstone with marble decorations, as in Humayun's Tomb in Delhi and Akbar's tomb in Sikandra – to its second phase, based on white marble and pietra dura inlay, most elegantly realized in the Tāj Mahal.

The mausoleum was commissioned by Nūr Jahān, the wife of Jahangir, for her father Mirzā Ghiyās Beg, originally a Persian Amir in exile,[1] who had been given the title of I'timād-ud-Daulah (pillar of the state).

 Mirzā Ghiyās Beg was also the grandfather of Mumtāz Mahāl (originally named Arjūmand Bāno, daughter of Asaf Khān), the wife of the emperor Shāh Jahān, responsible for the construction of the Tāj Mahal. Nur Jehan was also responsible for the construction of the Tomb of Jehangir at Lahore.

Tomb

Cenotaph of Itmad-ud-Daulah's tomb

Located on the right bank of the Yamuna River, the mausoleum is set in a large cruciform garden criss-crossed by water courses and walkways. The mausoleum itself covers about twenty-three meters square, and is built on a base about fifty meters square and about one meter high. On each corner are hexagonal towers, about thirteen meters tall.

Mirza Ghiyas Beg

The walls are made up from white marble from Rajasthan encrusted with semi-precious stone decorations – cornelian, jasper, lapis lazuli, onyx, and topaz formed into images of cypress trees and wine bottles, or more elaborate decorations like cut fruit or vases containing bouquets. 

noor jahan -daughter of Mirza giyas beg

Light penetrates to the interior through delicate jālī screens of intricately carved white marble. The interior decoration is considered by many to have inspired that of the Taj Mahal, which was built by her stepson, Mughal emperor Shah Jahan.

silver coin in the name of Noorjahan

Many of Nūr Jahān's relatives are interred in the mausoleum. The only asymmetrical element of the entire complex is that the cenotaphs of her father and mother have been set side-by-side, a formation replicated in the Tāj Mahal.



Interesting Facts About the Tomb of Itmad-ud-Daulah

    Itmad-ud-Daulah means ‘Pillar of the Goverment’

    The Tomb of Itmad-ud-daulah is also known as ‘Baby Taj Mahal’

    It doesn’t have the same awesome beauty as the Taj but it’s arguably more delicate in appearance thanks to its particularly finely carved jali (marble lattice screens)

    This was the first Mughal structure built completely from marble, the first to make extensive use of pietra dura and the first tomb to be built on the banks of the Yamuna

    The small yet elegant marble tomb of Itmad-ud-Daulah is lyrically described as a “jewel box in marble”

    The style of the tomb is similar to the tomb built for Jehangir near Lahore in Pakistan

    The star features of the tomb are the marble screens, pietra dura artwork and the tomb chamber itself




Itmad-ud-Daulah History

The tomb was built for Mirza Ghiyas Beg, a Persian who had obtained service in Akbar’s court, and his wife. On Jahangir’s succession in 1605 he became Wazir (chief minister). Jahangir fell in love with his daughter, Mehrunissa, who at the time was married to a Persian. When her husband died in 1607, she entered Jahangir’s court as a lady-in-waiting. Four years later Jahangir married her. Thereafter she was known first as Nur Mahal (Light of the Palace), later being promoted to Nur Jahan (Light of the World). Shah Jahan married her niece, Mumtaz Mahal and built the Taj Mahal in her honour.

The marble tomb of Itmad-ud-Daulah was built by Nur Jahan between 1622 and 1628 in the char bagh that he himself had laid out. Stylistically, this is the most innovative 17th century Mughal building and marks the transition from the robust, red sandstone architecture of Akbar to the sensuous refinement of Shah Jahan’s Taj Mahal.


The square two-storeyed tomb stands in the centre of a charbagh. At the four corners of the low platform are four squat attached minarets. Open-pillared domed pavilions known as chhatris top the minarets. Tapering pinnacles with lotus mouldings crown the minarets. The dome, with its canopy-like shape, is different from the conventional domes of this period. The tomb is beautifully conceived in white marble, coloured mosaic, stone inlay and lattice work.

Panels of geometric designs, created by inlaid coloured stones, decorate the dado level of the tomb. Niches with painted floral bouquets, trees, fruit and wine decanters embellish the interior of the central chamber of the main tomb. The replica tombs of Itmad-ud-Daulah and his wife are placed in the marble-screened upper pavilion. There is a good view from the roof of the entrance.

The star features of the tomb are the marble screens, pietra dura artwork and the tomb chamber itself. Perforated marble screens with complex geometric lattice work are carved out of a single slab of marble; they permit soft lighting of the inner chamber. The polished marble surface is covered with stone inlay, the first time this technique was extensively used in Mughal architecture. The ceiling has incised, painted and gilded stucco and stalactite patterns. 

The yellow marble caskets appear to have been carved out of wood. On the engraved walls of the chamber is the recurring theme of a wine flask with snakes as handles – perhaps a reference by Nur Jahan, the tomb’s creator, to her husband Jahangir’s excessive drinking













Stylistically, the tomb marks a change from the sturdy and manly buildings of Akbar’s reign to softer, more feminine lines. The main chamber, richly decorated in pietra dura with mosaics and semi-precious stones inlaid in the white marble, contains the tomb of I’timad-ud-Daulah and his wife. Some have argued that the concept and skill must have travelled from its European home of 16th-century Florence to India. However, Florentine pietra dura is figurative whereas the Indian version is essentially decorative and can be seen as a refinement of its Indian predecessor, the patterned mosaic.

How to get to the Tomb of Itmad-ud-Daulah?

The Tomb of Itmad-ud-Daulah is located on the east bank of the Yamuna river 4 km (2 miles) from the Taj Mahal. The most affordable way to get here is to hire a cycle rickshaw to and fro; alternatively, you can get an auto rickshaw will be faster but cost at least double.

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MIRZA GIYAS BEG - PILLAR OF THE EMPHIRE IN PERSIAN ‘‘Itimad-ud-Daula‘‘ 

Mirza Ghiyas Beg (Persian: مرزا غياث بيگ‎‎) was an important Persian official in the Mughal empire, whose children served as wives, mothers, and generals of the Mughal emperors

Biography[edit]

After the death of his Ghiyas' father, his family's fell into disgrace. Hoping to improve his family’s fortunes, Ghiyas Beg chose to relocate to India where the Emperor Akbar's court was said to be at the centre of the growing trade industry and cultural scene.[1]


Half way along their route the family was attacked by robbers who took from them the remaining meager possessions they had.[2] Left with only two mules, Ghiyas Beg, his pregnant wife, and their three children (Muhammad Sharif, Asaf Khan and a daughter Sahlia) were forced to take turns riding on the backs of the animals for the remained of their journey. When the family arrived in Kandahar, Asmat Begum gave birth to their second daughter. 





The family was so impoverished they feared they would be unable to take care of the newborn baby. Fortunately, the family was taken in by a caravan led by the merchant noble Malik Masud, who would later assist Ghiyas Beg in finding a job in the service of Emperor Akbar. 

Believing that the child had signaled a change in the family’s fate, she was named Mehrunnisa or ‘Sun among Women’.[3] Ghiyas was later appointed diwan (treasurer) for the province of Kabul. Due to his astute skills at conducting business he quickly rose through the ranks of the high administrative officials. For his excellent work he was awarded the title of ‘‘Itimad-ud-Daula‘‘ (‘Pillar of the State’) by the emperor.[2]









As a result of his work and promotions, Ghiyas Beg was able to ensure that Mehirunnisa (the future Nur Jahan) would have the best possible education. She became well versed in Arabic and Persian. She also became well versed in art, literature, music and dance.[4]

Ghiyas' daughter, Mehrunissa (Nur Jahan) married Akbar's son Jahangir in 1611, and his son Abdul Hasan Asaf Khan served as a general to Jahangir.

Ghiyas was also the grandfather of Mumtaz Mahal (originally named Arjumand Bano, daughter of Abdul Hasan Asaf Khan), the wife of the emperor Shah Jahan, responsible for the building of the Taj Mahal. Jahangir was succeeded by his son Shah Jahan, and Abdul Hasan served as one of Shah Jahan's closest advisors. Shah Jahan married Abdul Hasan's daughter Arjumand Banu Begum, Mumtāz Mahal, who was the mother of his four sons, including his successor Aurangzeb. Shah Jahan built the Taj Mahal to serve as Mumtaz Mahal's tomb.

Death[edit]
Ghiyas Beg died in January 1622. Nur Jahan commissioned the construction of I'timād-ud-Daulah's Tomb in Agra, which is as an architectural predecessor of the Taj Mahal.