Humayuns Tomb: Delhis Mughal masterpiece and a UNESCO World Heritage Site
Humayun's Tomb in Delhi, a UNESCO World Heritage site, stands as a seminal example of Mughal architecture. Commissioned by Empress Bega Begum, Humayun's wife, it was the first garden-tomb in India, predating the Taj Mahal.
Kolkata: Humayun's Tomb in Delhi is a famous UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of the brightest examples of Mughal architecture in India. The tomb, as is evident from the name, is of the second Mughal Emperor Humayun. The tomb holds immense cultural significance as it was the first garden-tomb on the Indian subcontinent. The tomb, in later years and centuries, acted as the inspiration of several major architectural innovations with the culmination being the construction of the Taj Mahal.
Make no mistake, it was not Humayun who constructed this tomb. Rather, it was Empress Bega Begum, Humayun's first wife and chief consort who commissioned its construction. The tomb was built under her patronage in 1558 and Persian architect Mirak Mirza Ghiyas and his son, Sayyid Muhammad designed the structure. Located in Nizamuddin East in Delhi, the tomb is close to the Purana Qila or the Old Fort. Notably, the tomb was also the first structure to use red sandstone at such a scale.
The grief of a wife and her dream to build a tomb
Mughal Emperor Humayun died on January 27, 1556, and his first was buried at first in his palace in Purana Quila. Empress Bega Begum was overwhelmed with immense grief following the death of her husband, and she dedicated the rest of her life to the sole purpose of constructing a memorial to him which would become the Empire's most magnificent mausoleum and it would be located near the Yamuna River. After she undertook the Hajj pilgrimage and returned from Mecca, Bega Begum supervised the tomb's construction which began in 1565 and ended in 1572. The total cost was 1.5 million rupees and it was paid entirely by Bega Begum. In 1571, Humayun's son and successor Akbar visited the tomb.
Craftsmen from Persia and India worked together to construct Humayun’s Tomb and it was unlike any other tomb built previously during the Islamic reign in India. It was far grander in style and opulence, and it marked the beginning of the Mughal architecture in the country. The tomb is a bright example of charbagh, which is a four quadrant garden each representing the four rivers of the paradise mentioned in the Quran and the pools were joined by channels. The tomb is placed on a platform which is high and wide. The shape of the tomb is irregular octagon. The tomb's interior is a large octagonal chamber with vaulted roof compartments which corridors have connected. The structure was made with red sandstone with white and black inlaid marble borders.
The garden-tomb is also known as the ‘dormitory of the Mughals’ as more than 150 Mughal family members are buried there. While the main tomb of Humayun is there, the complex also has the graves of Empress Bega Begum, Shah Jahan's son Dara Shikoh, Hajji Begum, and of other numerous other Mughals, including Emperor Jahandar Shah, Farrukhsiyar, Rafi Ud-Daulat, Rafi Ul-Darjat, Alamgir II, and Muhammad Kam Bakhsh.
A place of refuge for a later Mughal
The Yamuna River's bank was chosen for the construction of the tomb since it was located close to Nizamuddin Dargah, the mausoleum of Nizamuddin Auliya, the celebrated Sufi saint of Delhi whom the Delhi rulers revered very much. Also, the residence of Auliya, Chilla Nizamuddin Auliya lies just north-east of the tomb. Centuries later, Bahadur Shah Zafar, the last Mughal Emperor took refuge at the tomb during the Indian Rebellion of 1857, along with three princes, before the British captured them.
Humayun's Tomb is the first great example of Mughal architecture in India, and while the concept of garden-tomb was prevalent in Persia, it was unlike anything ever constructed in India. The tomb became a benchmark for subsequent Mughal architecture especially when it came to royal mausoleum, which reached its zenith with Agra's Taj Mahal. In 1993, the tomb became a UNESCO World Heritage Site and since then has undergone extensive restoration work.
The tomb was in a deplorable state, especially after 1857. During the British Raj, Viceroy Lord Curzon repaired the tomb extensively and after India's Independence, the ASI has done several restoration works in and around the tomb complex. Today, the monuments in the complex are surrounded by elegant gardens, increasing their dignity and grace. The monument is illuminated at night, and it looks truly magnificent then.