Architecture of Mughal India

"Light of the World:" The Life and Legacy of Nur Jahan

“…32 Asher, Architecture of Mughal India, 128. stories. 33 There are other structures, in the same style as the east and west gate, on the north and south side, but these are not functional entrances. On all four sides of the red sandstone gates there are marble inlays, which were common characteristics of architecture in the empire.…”

“…On all four sides of the red sandstone gates there are marble inlays, which were common characteristics of architecture in the empire. 34 Inside the gate is the marble tomb structure surrounded by gardens, split into four equal sections.…”

“…19 More importantly, the location was along the road that led from Kashmir to Agra, where Jahangir had ordered many serais to be built for travelers. 20 The road between these cities was significant to Jahangir as his court traveled between them and it was an essential trade route.…”

Indian Nationalist Art History and the Writing and Exhibiting of Mughal Art, 1910-48

“…As Catherine Asher remarks, his 1909 illustrated volume on Akbar's tomb at Sikandra remains up to this day the best documentation of the site. 49 Yet, essential knowledge and analysis of buildings as important as the Taj Mahal were still missing at the beginning of the twentieth century. A sharp discrepancy existed between the popularity of the building and the lack of information on its origins, context and meaning.…”

From the gardens of theQur'anto the “gardens” of Lahore

“…Garden historians have examined the correspondence between Mughal gardens and descriptions of paradise in the Qur'an (Moynihan, 1979). Art historians have concentrated on garden elements, functions, and social contexts (Asher, 1992;Koch, 1991;Petruccioli, 1988;Wescoat, 1990Wescoat, , 1992. Scholars of religion have dealt with theological issues but not in the context of specific places (Gardet, 1983;MacDonald, 1966;Schimmel, 1976;Smith, 1981).…”