Taj Museum

Located within the complex of one of the seven wonders of the world, Taj Museum is one of the most visited Museums in Agra, hosting a plethora of Mughal artifacts, artworks, and much more. A visit to the Taj Mahal is not completed without exploring the museum and its Mughal artifacts.

About the Museum

Situated 6km away from the Agra Cantonment Railway Station, Taj Museum is a very popular museum in Agra and is housed on the ground floor of Jal Mahal within the Taj Mahal complex. The museum was first created in 1899 to 1905 and was then modernized and inaugurated in 1982 by Khan Bahadur Hussan. As the name suggests, the museum is all about telling facts and tales of the Taj Mahal and is thus visited by several tourists.

The museum is a two-storied building built on a raised platform comprising of three galleries and a chief hall. The museum has on display many exhibits relating to the creation of the Taj Mahal and that of the era, with a total of 121 antiquities broadly categorized as Mughal miniature paintings, government decrees, manuscripts, specimens of calligraphy, utensils, arms, a blueprint of Taj complex, paintings, marble pillars, etc. The main hall of the museum houses paintings of Shah Jahan and Mumtaz Mahal, replicas of minted coins from Agra, and paintings of popular Persian epic Shahnama of Firdausi, which is a manuscript of Chaihl Majlis.

The first gallery exhibits colored drawings and plans related to the architecture of the Taj Mahal. You can also see the site plan and other details such as the front elevation of the Tomb, etc., in this section of the museum. The second gallery is dedicated to Jade and porcelain artifacts like Quran stand made out of Jade, a beautiful vase carved from Jade, a mirror on stone, dishes, and bowls of Celadon ware. Celadon utensils are said to change color if they come in contact with poison, and hence they were used to serve food to the king. At last, you can also find on display, arms like swords, daggers, and a world map depicting places from where stones were traded for the creation of the Taj Mahal along with the specimen of these semiprecious stones.

The third and the final gallery displays documents and royal Farmans with calligraphic inscriptions and specimens, and a couple of paintings of the Taj Mahal by British painter Daniel in the year 1795. There is also a recording of the fruit auction of the Taj Mahal Garden ordered by General Perron. The museum is a must-visit for history buffs and admirers of Mughal Art and even if you are not a history lover, the visit would be worth every minute.