Ascending a flight of steps to the wide terrace, all of whitest marble,
upon which the Taj is raised, we realised that the detail of carving and
of inlay was as perfect as the general effect of the whole.
High as my expectations had been raised, I was not disappointed in the Taj,
and that is saying much, for one's pre-formed ideas are apt to soar beyond
bounds and to suffer the fate of Icarus. At the same time, I cannot agree
with Fergusson that the Taj Mahal is the most beautiful building in the
world. I do not admit that it is possible to compare structures of such
widely divergent types as the Parthenon, the Cathedral of Chartres, the
Campanile of Giotto, and the Taj Mahal, and pronounce in favour of any one
of them. It is as vain as to contend that the "Rime of the Ancient Mariner"
is a finer poem than Keats' "Eve of St. Agnes," or that the "Erl Konig" is
better music than "The Moonlight Sonata."
Perhaps it is not too much to say that it is the loveliest tomb in the
world, and the finest specimen of Mohammedan architecture in existence. If
I dared to criticise what would appear to be faultless, I should humbly
suggest that the four corner minarets are not worthy of the centre
building, reminding one rather of lighthouses.
We spent a second day in Agra, revisiting the Fort and the Taj rather than
seeing anything new. We could have hired a motor and rushed out for a
hurried visit to Fatehpur-Sighri, and there was temptation in the idea;
but we decided to content ourselves with the abundant food for eye and
mind which we had in these two wonderful buildings, and in the evening we
took the train for Jaipur.
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