Taj Mahal replicas and derivatives

The Taj Mahal, an iconic structure in India, has inspired numerous replicas and derivatives. "The Taj", informally, is now a major tourist attraction in Agra, Uttar Pradesh, and has been regarded as one of the New Seven Wonders of the World. Since 1632, when Mughal emperor Shah Jahan began building the Taj to house the tomb of his favorite wife, Mumtaz Mahal, it has inspired many notable replicas, and major derivative structures include a 1678-started project of the emperor's grandson. Some are intended to be scale models or otherwise to be more or less faithful copies, and others are designed with mild or extreme interpretations of the Taj's architecture adapted to serve other purposes.

The original Taj, in 2004

These include:

Asia

Bangladesh

Taj Mahal Bangladesh, Sonargaon

• Taj Mahal Bangladesh, a scaled copy of the original Taj Mahal located 16 kilometres (10 mi) east of the Bangladeshi capital, Dhaka in Sonargaon.[1]
• Lalbagh Fort, an incomplete 17th-century Mughal red sandstone monument inspired by the Taj Mahal. It was built by Shah Jahan's grandson, Aurangzeb who later built another Taj replica in Maharashtra, India - Bibi ka Maqbara.
• Taj Masjid, a Taj inspired mosque near Dhaka.[2]

India

Bibi ka Maqbara

India, the homeland of the original Taj, has several replicas spread across the nation:

• Bibi Ka Maqbara in Aurangabad, Maharashtra; also called as the 'Taj of the Deccan' was built by Shah Jahan's own son, Aurangzeb as an attempt to outdo the original Taj.[3]
• Shahzadi Ka Maqbara, in Chota Imambara, Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh [4]
• Taj of Bangalore, a 40 feet tall and 70 feet by 70 feet wide replica of Taj Mahal in Bannerghatta Road, Bengaluru was built by Malaysian architect, Sekar in September 2015.[5]
• A monument of Love called Maqbara Yadgare Mohabbat Tajammuli Begum, also known as Mini Taj Mahal in Bulandshahr district, Uttar Pradesh was built by a poor pensioner Faizul Hasan Quadri, 77, in memory of his wife Late Tajammuli Begum in his nondescript village in Northern India.[6]
• Vardhman fantasyland in Mumbai, Maharashtra has a miniature replica of the Taj Mahal.

China

• A replica of the Taj Mahal stands in the Window of the World theme park located in the western part of the city of Shenzhen.

Taj replica at Window of the World, Shenzen, China

Indonesia

Al-Hakim Mosque, Padang, Indonesia

• Al-Hakim Mosque in Padang, West Sumatra.[7]
• Ramlie Musofa Mosque in Jakarta.[8]

Malaysia

• Mini Taj Mahal in Legoland Malaysia Resort in Nusajaya, Johor [9]

United Arab Emirates

• Taj Arabia is a yet to be built 20-storey 350-room super luxury hotel in Dubai, United Arab Emirates which is planned to be an accurately scaled replica of the Taj Mahal made using glass. The glass hotel and its wedding hall are complemented with a suite of other Indian-themed facilities.[10]

The Americas

Canada

• Thomas Foster Memorial Temple[11] is a memorial to the Canadian Politician, Thomas Foster in Uxbridge, Ontario inspired by the Taj Mahal.[12]

United States

Trump Taj Mahal

Tripoli Shrine Temple

• Trump Taj Mahal was a casino located at 1000 Boardwalk in Atlantic City, New Jersey and modelled after the Taj Mahal.[13] It has been remodeled into the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Atlantic City
• Tripoli Shrine Temple in the Concordia neighborhood of Milwaukee, Wisconsin [14]
• Taj Mahal Houseboat, Sausalito, California is a Taj Mahal inspired houseboat in California.[15]

Brazil

• Sesc Mineiro Grussaí, in São João da Barra, Rio de Janeiro

Colombia

• Jaime Duque Park, in Tocancipá, a municipality of the Metropolitan Area of Bogotá. The park contains a replica of the Taj Mahal, as well as replicas of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.

Jaime Duque Park

References

1. Pakspectator.com. "Bangladesh to have its own Taj Mahal". Archived from the original on 20 December 2008. Retrieved 20 October 2011.
2. "Taj Masjid". Retrieved 4 February 2016.
3. "World Heritage Site-Bibi Ka Maqbara, The Taj Of Deccan". Retrieved 4 February 2016. Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
4. "Chhota Imambara". Retrieved 4 February 2016.
5. "Move over Agra, now Bengaluru has a Taj Mahal!". Retrieved 4 February 2016.
6. "Indian builds a Taj Mahal for his wife-BBC Asia". Retrieved 4 February 2016.
7. "Cerita Masjid Al Hakim, Destinasi Wisata Religi di Kota Padang yang Mirip Taj Mahal India". Padangkita.com (in Indonesian). 28 October 2020. Retrieved 28 October 2020.
8. https://republika.co.id/berita/p1gh1i313/ada-alasan-masjid-ramlie-musofa-dibuat-mirip-taj-mahal
9. "Taj Mahal in Legoland-Miniland India". Retrieved 4 February 2016.
10. "Taj Arabia, Arabia's new crown". Retrieved 4 February 2016.
11. Thomas Foster Memorial Temple
12. "Taj inspired Thomas Foster Memorial". Retrieved 4 February 2016.
13. "Trump Taj". Archived from the original on 5 February 2016. Retrieved 4 February 2016.
14. "Tripoli Shrine Temple". Retrieved 4 February 2016.
15. "The Taj Houseboat". Retrieved 4 February 2016.