The architecture created in southern Asia under the patronage of the great Mughals (1526-1858) is one of the richest and most inventive of the Islamic area, including such world famous buildings as the Taj Mahal in Agra or the tomb of Humayun in Delhi, the palaces and mosques in Agra, Delhi, Fatehpur Sikri and Lahore. All buildings types are considered, not only the well known masterpieces but also country houses, hunting palaces, gardens, mausoleums, mosques, bath houses, bazaars and other public buildings. Many of these are still unknown even to specialists. The unique book, covering the whole range of Mughal architecture and including numerous new photographs and detailed plans presents the results of the author's extensive field work in India, Pakistan and Bangladesh as well as Iran and the central Asian region of the Soviet Union. The author's in-depth knowledge of the original sources provides the reader with invaluable background information.

The buildings of Mughal India constitute one of the world's greatest architectural traditions. Whether it is the Taj Mahal in Agra, the Red Fort in Delhi or the palaces of Fatehpur Sikri, these and other similarly well-preserved monuments of the 16th and 17th centuries testify to the refined taste and unlimited resources of a line of powerful patrons, notably the emperors Akbar, Jahangir and Shah Jahan. Mughal architecture is a remarkable hybrid that fuses building forms, techniques and decorative schemes imported from Iran and Central Asia with long-established Indian materials and techniques. The results are both structurally innovative and aesthetically spectacular, a testament to the genius of Indian masons and craftsmen. The first comprehensive survey of the subject in more than 20 years, this lavish volume documents nearly 100 Mughal sites and monuments in India, Pakistan and Bangladesh. Mughal Architecture and Gardens is enhanced by over 250 stunning colour photographs by Amit Pasricha, one of the most talented architectural photographers working today. His photographs are accompanied by over 80 specially commissioned building plans and site layouts. Sumptuously illustrated with a text by renowned architectural historian George Michell, this book is of interest to students and scholars as well as travellers and general readers. AUTHOR: George Michell is an architectural historian, specialising in ancient Indian architecture. He obtained his PhD from the School of Oriental African Studies, University of London, has directed courses on Asian architecture at the Architectural Association, London, and was co-editor of the journal Art and Archaeology Research Papers from 1972 to 1982. Since the 1980s, he has co-directed an international team of scholars and students at Vijayanagara, the medieval Hindu site in Karnataka. George Mitchell has also lectured at universities and museums throughout the USA, Europe, India and Australia. Among his many publications are The Royal Palaces of India, Islamic Heritage of the Deccan, Architecture of the Islamic World: Its History and Social Meaning and Palaces of Rajasthan. Amit Pasricha lives in New Delhi and comes from a family of photographers. A well-known architectural and social documentary photographer, his work has been exhibited in India, London and New York. His photographs have also been published in several books, including Dome over India: Rashtrapati Bhavan, Horizons: The Tata-India Century and India: Then and Now. Pasricha's most recent publication is the panoramic collector's edition, The Monumental India Book, winner of the Indian Tourism Award, 2008. SELLING POINTS: The first comprehensive survey of the subject in more than 20 years, this lavish volume documents nearly 100 Mughal sites and monuments in India, Pakistan and Bangladesh ILLUSTRATIONS: 270 colour

This groundbreaking volume examines how the Mughal Empire used architecture to refashion its identity and stage authority in the 18th century, as it struggled to maintain political power against both regional challenges and the encroaching British Empire.

Traces the development and spread of architecture under the Mughal emperors who ruled the Indian subcontinent from the early-16th to the mid-19th centuries. The book considers the entire scope of architecture built under the auspices of the imperial Mughals and their subjects.

Bayana in Rajasthan, and its monuments, challenge the perceived but established view of the development of Muslim architecture and urban form in India. At the end of the twelfth century, early conquerors took the mighty Hindu fort, building the first Muslim city below on virgin ground. They later reconfigured the fort and constructed another town within it. These two towns were the centre of an autonomous region during the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. Going beyond a simple study of the historic, architectural and archaeological remains, this book takes on the wider issues of how far the artistic traditions of Bayana, which developed independently from those of Delhi, later influenced north Indian architecture. It shows how these traditions were the forerunners of the Mughal architectural style, which drew many of its features from innovations developed first in Bayana.

This Volume Of The Author S 5-Vol Series History Of Mughal Architecture Studies Such Aspects Of The Architecture Of Jehangir S Age (1605-27 A.D.) As Public Works (Roads-And-Sarais), Gardens And Garden-Pavilions, Palatial Mansions And Shikargahs, Picture Wall Of Lahore Fort And Tombs, Each In A Separate Chapter. It Covers 43 Monuments, Extending From Kabul To Allahabad, And Kashmir To Burhanpur, And The Scope Of This Volume Is Much Wider Than The Earlier Ones.That Public Works As Roads, Kos-Minars, Bridges, Sarais, Wells, Baolis And Porters Walls Were Built And Maintained At Government Expense Testifies That The; Mughal State Was Fully Alive To The Welfare Of Its Subjects. Four Masonry Bridges Have Been Specifically Studied. Jehangir Was Greatly Interested In Gardens, And Garden-Craft Received A Distinct Form Under His Patronage. Palaces Were Built Amidst Gardens, Mostly On The Riverbank, With Characteristic Idioms Of The Age. A Unique Building Complex, Which Developed Under Him, Was Shikargah (Hunting Lodge) And Four Representative Examples Have Been Studied. The Glazed-Tiled Picture Wall Of The Lahore Fort Is Unique In Respect Of Its Scale, Scheme And Subjects. Originally, It Covered An Immense Mural Area 500 Yards In Length And 16 Yards In Height, By An Ingenious System Of Panelling Which, Besides Stylized Florals, Arabesques And Geometricals, Depicted Beautiful Figurative Compositions. Architect, Potter, Painter And Glazed-Tiler Collaborated On This Grand Project Which Has No Parallel In The World.Domeless Tomb With A Barahdari With Chaukhandi Roof Or A Plain Chabutarah Was Also A Unique Growth Of This Age And The Most Notable Tombs Of This Class, As Those Of Akbar, I Timad-Ud-Daulah And Jehangir, Have Been Studied In Detail. Development Of Such Distinctive Architectural Features As Dado , Gateway And Minar Also Belongs To This Period, During Which Unprecedented Emphasis Was Given On Ornamentation, Which Is Why This Art-Epoch Is Noted For Colour And Design . This Study Has Been Made In The Context Of, And With Reference To, The Cultural Milieu Which Produced It And This Is Not Only A History Of Jehangir S Architecture But Also A History Of Jehangir S Age And History Of Jehangir S India. It Is A History Of Those Tender Feelings, Sublime Thoughts And Subtle Ideas Which Go To Make A Civilization, Not Of Those Political Intrigues And Feuds, And Military Conflicts Which Destroy It.