No surprise here. 

Taj Mahal, a monument of love from Mughal king Shah Jahan to his late wife Arjumand Bano Begum (a.k.a. Mumtaz Mahal), was picked by online voters as one of the Seven Wonders of the World.

Construction of Taj Mahal started in 1632 and was completed in 1648.

Some twenty thousand laborers are estimated to have been employed to build the tomb.

Designed by Ustad Ahmad Lahauri, the marble wonder and a symbol of love stands on a raised platform with four minarets at each of the corners. The minarets are 41.6 m high and have a slant outwards. It is believed that the minarets were designed to slant deliberately to prevent them from falling on the tomb in an unlikely event of an earthquake.

The central dome is 187 feet high.

The mausoleum consists of a lofty central chamber, a crypt and four octagonal corner rooms. The four corner rooms were intended to house the graves of other members of the royal family. The cenotaph of Mumtaz Mahal stands in the center and has the Persian inscription:

“Marqad Munavvar Arjumand Ban Begum Mukhatib bah Mumtaz Mahal Tanifiyat ferr sanh 1040 Hijri” which means “Here lies Arjumand Bano Begum called Mumtaz Mahal who died in 1040 AH or 1630 AD”.

There are two Mosques on the left and right side of the Taj Mahal.

The Mosque on the left side is made of red sandstone and is used for Friday prayers.

The Mosque on the right side is known as Jawab. Prayers are not held in Jawab as it faces west and away from Mecca.

The other wonders picked by voters include the Great Wall of China, Machu Pichu in Peru, Mexico’s Mayan ruins at Chichen Itza, the Colosseum in Rome, Petra in Jordan and Brazil’s statue of Christ.