Sep 12, 2010

Bibi-ka-Maqbara Aurangabad Maharastra - 1860

This photograph was taken in the 1860s for the Allardyce Collection. It shows the Bibi-ka-Maqbara or Queen's Tomb (1678), the most famous building in Aurangabad. After the death of his wife Rabia Durani in 1657, the Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb (reigned 1658-1707) ordered his son Azam Shah to build a mausoleum for her. It was designed by the architect Ata Aula as an imitation on a reduced scale of the Taj Mahal at Agra. Lack of funds meant that it fell short of the original plan. The mausoleum is situated in the centre of a walled enclosure with a garden surrounded by a crenellated wall with bastions. It is a square building with a pointed arch to each front covered by a large dome with four corner minarets. This print was taken by an unknown photographer in the 1860s.