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The Taj in all the gorgeousness of Oriental splendor is a dream among tombs and a miracle in marble. Here, too, the Eastern love of color runs riot in covering the beautiful marble work of the architect with the inlay of the jeweler who wrought his gems - jasper, bloodstone and agate into scrolls, fretwork and wreaths in the glistening surface of the marble. As a place of pleasure in enchants alike by its perfection of symmetry, beauty of design, and delicacy of decoration. The Taj owes its effect to its layout, with entrance court, great gateway, garden court with pavilions east and west, and the raised open court with the Taj itself in the center flanked by a magnificent mosque on the west and a corresponding hall on the east. It stands by the waters of the Jamuna amidst terraces, canals, lakes nad fountains, and is invested with the solemnity suitable to a mausoleum by the surrounding dark sentinel cypresses.

Reference :
A History of Architecture on the comparative method by SIR Banister Fletcher Page no. 956