Humayun’s Tomb as an Inspiration

The architecture of Humayun’s Tomb in Delhi, India, inspired subsequent Mughal imperial architecture.

The construction of the tomb of the second Mughal Emperor Humayun began in 1565 and took over ten years to complete.

It is believed that the construction of the tomb was commissioned by Humayun’s widow Haji Begum. Although the architect of the tomb was ‘imported’ from Persia, it has been observed that the distinctly Indian aspects of the tomb, such as the domed pavilions that surround the central dome, set Humayun’s tomb firmly in the Indo-Islamic tradition that was already emerging at the time. Many of the tomb’s basic elements, such as the octagonal plans and high iwans (large, vaulted chambers with a monumental arched openings on one side), are derived from earlier tombs built for Delhi sultans.

Humayun’s tomb may be the earliest existing example in India, and perhaps in Islam, of a tomb placed in the most formal of settings. The synthesis of garden and mausoleum at Humayun’s tomb as well as the unprecedented scale and grandeur of the monument, established a new dynastic tomb building that was repeated later in several tombs including the Taj Mahal in Agra.

In the year 2000, the Aga Khan Trust for Culture in collaboration with the Archeological Survey of India undertook the restoration of Humayun’s tomb which is one of twenty three World Heritage Sites in India; the work was completed in 2003. For further information on Humayun’s tomb, log on to the website of the ArchNet at

http://archnet.org/library/sites/one-site.tcl?site_id=8