The Taj Mahal looks white and relatively simple from a distance. Move closer, however, and another world of intricate craftsmanship begins to appear. Flowers, leaves and delicate patterns emerge from the marble walls. These decorations are examples of pietra dura, a highly skilled form of stone inlay used extensively throughout the monument.
Pietra dura involves cutting pieces of coloured stone into precise shapes and carefully inserting them into another stone surface. At the Taj Mahal, craftsmen used different varieties of semi-precious and decorative stones to create detailed floral designs.
The finished work can look almost like a painting, but the flowers are not painted onto the marble. Each design is physically constructed from carefully shaped pieces of stone that are fitted into the marble surface.
One of the most impressive aspects of the Taj Mahal's pietra dura work is its scale and precision. A flower may appear relatively simple from several metres away, but when viewed up close, individual petals and leaves reveal carefully shaped pieces of differently coloured stone.
This level of detail is one reason photographs taken from a distance cannot fully communicate the craftsmanship of the monument. The closer you look, the more intricate the individual elements become.
Floral decoration became an important element of Mughal art and architecture. At the Taj Mahal, the repeated floral motifs contribute to the idea of an idealized paradise garden.
The real gardens surrounding the mausoleum and the floral designs carved and inlaid into the marble therefore work together as part of the monument's overall artistic concept.
Don't spend your entire visit taking photographs of the central dome. When you reach the marble mausoleum, slow down and take time to examine the walls and decorative details.
Look closely at the borders around the arches, the floral patterns and the individual pieces of coloured stone. The closer you get, the more complicated and precise the craftsmanship becomes.
