Less than 1km north of Itmad-ud-daulah is Chini-ka-rauza,
built in 1635 and reputed to be the mausoleum of Afzal Khan, a
Persian poet and Shah Jahan's prime minister. Neglected and
decaying, its soft brown stone is victim to the elements and is now
crumbling away into the riverbank. Topped with an Afghan-style
bulbous dome, the dull earth-coloured tomb is a far cry from Nur
Jahan's delicate work, but is distinctive as Agra's sole Persian
construction. Parts of the walls are still covered with the coloured
enamel tiles (chini) that once enhanced the whole of the exterior
and gave the tomb its name, while traces of paintings and Islamic
calligraphy can still be made out on the high domed ceiling.
The main tomb building is very simple in plan and lacks
architectural ornamentation. According to 1871-72 survey report, the
monument originally enclosed by high walls, having gateways on North
and South direction, two three storeyed octagonal towers and a ghat
of stone masonry near the river bank, but now only the main Tomb
building, in partially damaged state, has survived.
The main tomb is square in plan with 79 feet (8.48m) side. The
central chamber is in octagonal plan having diameter of 27'10"
(8.48m), with eight arched recesses. Out of these eight arched
recesses, four are pentagonal arched which are close and rest of the
four are square which provides openings on all four sides. There are
four square chambers, one at every corner, which are inter connected
with the side halls or porches on all four sides.
The upper part of the tomb contains an arched passage which is
three feet (94 cm) wide and opens on all the four corners into four
rooms just above the lower corner chambers and gives a double
storeyed effect to the tomb building. This passage was accessible by
a stairway on the southern side which ultimately leads to terrace.
The superstructure of the building includes a shallow dome which is
crowned by inverted lotus and kalash finial, and pinnacles on all
the four corners.
Ornamentation
The monument was designed in such a way, that it may provide spaces
for colour embellishments. Use of architectural ornamentation like
chhajja, brackets and balconies were restricted to provide enough
space for glazed tile decoration.
The sides of central arch, on each side of the building contains
inscription in blue coloured tiles which is bordered by stylized
design in blue, yellow and green tiles. The spandrels of the arches
are decorated with arabesque and floresque patterns, laid in blue
and orange tiles. The shafts on sides of the arches contains zig-zag
design in crimson, orange and white colour. Chevrons of the
pinnacles are decorated with bands of blue tiles. The remaining
spaces on each facade is divided into panels each having floral
designs in variegated colours like blue, green, orange, vermillion
etc..
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