Tomb of Nur Jahan
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Quick Facts
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Tomb of Nur Jahan (Urdu: نور جہاں کا مقبرہ) is the mausoleum built for Nur Jahan real name Mehr-un-Nisaa. Nur Jahan was the twentieth and favourite wife of Mughal Emperor Jahangir, who was her second husband and the most famous Empress of the Mughal Empire.
She was given the title of Nur Jehan (Light of the World) when she was married to Jehangir in 1611. Nur Jehan was the only empress whose name appeared on the Mughal coins. She died in 1645 A. D., eighteen years after Jehangir’s death and was buried near her husband’s tomb. She is said to have built her mausoleum during her lifetime.She commissioned it herself, probably at around the same time as Jahangir's tomb was built.The mausoleum is located near the town of Shahdara Bagh in Lahore, Pakistan.
She was given the title of Nur Jehan (Light of the World) when she was married to Jehangir in 1611. Nur Jehan was the only empress whose name appeared on the Mughal coins. She died in 1645 A. D., eighteen years after Jehangir’s death and was buried near her husband’s tomb. She is said to have built her mausoleum during her lifetime.She commissioned it herself, probably at around the same time as Jahangir's tomb was built.The mausoleum is located near the town of Shahdara Bagh in Lahore, Pakistan.
Architecture & Design
Graves; one of the Nur Jahan and the other of her daughter Ladli Begum
The scheme is similar to Jahangir's tomb, although Nur Jahan's tomb is about half the size. It is set in a charbagh garden with water channels, tanks, cascades, fountains, causeways, and wooded avenues. The tomb itself is an arcaded plinth, with octagonal towers on the corners and central arch-frames projecting from each wing. The facades are of red sandstone with white marble, and each contains seven arches.
The tomb is a single story structure with no domes or minarets. It has arched hallways and in the centre are two graves; one of the Queen and the other of her daughter Ladli Begum. The tomb once lay in ruins (above left), but has been repaired to bring back its simplistic grandeur and majestic look it once wore.
It was believed by 19th century writers that the marbles and other costly decorative items were removed from the sepulcher during the Sikh rule and utilized in the decoration of the Sikh temple at Amritsar. It is said that half the splendour of the Sikh temple in Amritsar is due to marble plundered from this mausoleum. Even the subterranean chamber containing the graves of Noor Jahan and her daughter Ladli Begam were desecrated, as was the marble and pietra dura of the sarcophagi. The original marble cenotaphs have disappeared. The existing cenotaphs and the marble platform are 20th century replacements.
In recent years, however, in an attempt to restore it, the monument has been made to look completely new, having lost the subtle traces of floral and geometric flourishes she so loved.
The tomb is a single story structure with no domes or minarets. It has arched hallways and in the centre are two graves; one of the Queen and the other of her daughter Ladli Begum. The tomb once lay in ruins (above left), but has been repaired to bring back its simplistic grandeur and majestic look it once wore.
It was believed by 19th century writers that the marbles and other costly decorative items were removed from the sepulcher during the Sikh rule and utilized in the decoration of the Sikh temple at Amritsar. It is said that half the splendour of the Sikh temple in Amritsar is due to marble plundered from this mausoleum. Even the subterranean chamber containing the graves of Noor Jahan and her daughter Ladli Begam were desecrated, as was the marble and pietra dura of the sarcophagi. The original marble cenotaphs have disappeared. The existing cenotaphs and the marble platform are 20th century replacements.
In recent years, however, in an attempt to restore it, the monument has been made to look completely new, having lost the subtle traces of floral and geometric flourishes she so loved.