The Impact of the Taj Mahal: Analyzing Changed Perceptions

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A Monumental Legacy

Paintings of the Taj Mahal That Changed Perceptions of India Still Captivate Today

In the fall of 2023, an art auction at Sotheby’s Auction House mushroomed into a frenzy over an Indian painting. When the bidding was complete, the artwork sold for $609,628—more than 10 times its original value. The piece was a chalk-and-watercolor painting of the most-famous Islamic mausoleum in the world—the Taj Mahal.

The painting, done by Sita Ram in 1815, is entitled, “The Taj Mahal by moonlight.” It features a tender gray-white sky and swaying mango trees. Between all these layers stands the magnificent Taj Mahal.

It is one of more than 200 surviving works that Ram created while on a yearlong journey through India. Ram was commissioned by Warren Hastings, an official at the British East India Company at the time the world’s largest trading corporation. Both men made nightly visits to the Taj Mahal, which Hastings described as a once-in-a-lifetime experience.

The Taj Mahal was built just north of the city of Agra, in central India. It was meant as an enduring monument of love from Gurkani Emperor Shah Jahan for his favorite wife, Mumtaz Mahal. Construction on the primary marble structure began after she died in childbirth in 1631 and ended in 1648. 

Since then, Europeans have experienced vivid emotions and professed their fascination with the monument. Gradually, the Taj Mahal became not only one of the most important art objects in the world, but it changed the West’s perception of India as a “lesser civilization.”

Emblem of Culture

The European perception of India began changing in the 17th century, and the growing admiration for the Taj Mahal was primarily responsible. The first words of praise came from Jean-Baptiste Tavernier, a Frenchman with a penchant for Eastern cultures. A prosperous merchant in gemstones and silk, Tavernier traveled to India six times between 1636 and 1668 and visited the Taj Mahal more than once. When he returned to France, King Louis XIV asked him to publish a travelog of his journeys. Entitled The Six Voyages of Jean-Batpsite Tavernier, the book enumerated all that he witnessed during his stay in India, including succession battles and Hindustani life. He also described the striking architecture of the Taj Mahal. European interest grew among the elite after the book was published, as it was translated into several European languages.

Another European at the time, François Bernier, was the personal physician to the Hindustani Court. In his book, Travels in the Mogul Empire, he enthusiastically details multiple visits to the Taj Mahal, writing one is “never tired of looking at” it. He was stunned by the esthetic beauty of the Taj Mahal and felt it deserved to be listed as one of the wonders of the world.

The Catalysts

In the late 17th century, artists were commissioned by a diverse group of East India Company officials and their wives. Medical and botanical staff, soldiers, civil servants, diplomats, missionaries, and judges were enthusiastic over  India’s rich culture, history, architecture, society and biodiversity. This interest encouraged the rise of a hybrid artistic style called “Company Paintings,” done exclusively by Indian-origin artists, known as “Company Painters.”

The first round of Company Paintings had Indian draftsmen render exact drawings of Hindustani monuments, including the Taj Mahal and Emperor Akbar’s tomb at Sikandra, both of which had fallen into disrepair. The idea was to use these meticulously drawn geometric pencil artworks as the structural plan for the conservation project to restore the buildings.

The artisans of the Hindustani court produced art for the East India Company and then for passing travelers. Judging by the number of copies, the artists seem to have developed an atelier, which mass-produced this art in the 1820s and ’30s.

However, European artists’ impressions were mixed. British landscape painter William Hodges admired the Taj Mahal, but he didn’t want to give it any extra attention. Consequently, he depicted the town of Agra as a city of ruins. In contrast, the uncle-nephew duo of Thomas and William Daniell painted the Hindustani monuments with great passion. Between 1786 and 1793, the Daniells made several trips across North India with their retinue and equipment including a camera obscura, to record scenes. During their trips, they were likely in contact with the best Company Painters of Delhi.

Once the Daniells returned to England, their art (144 aquatints and six uncolored artworks) produced in India became hugely popular. Published between 1795–1808, the collection included beautiful renderings of the Taj Mahal—and remains one of the highlights of British colonial artistry.

Soon, many European or East India Company officials working in India wanted to carry back the memories of their stay with a beautifully illustrated album. Established artists reproduced these original works to cater to the rising antiquarian interest of Europeans in Delhi’s monuments.

The Company Painters’ works of the Taj Mahal and other sites in India changed European perceptions of the country. By the 19th century, Europeans saw India in a very different light.

That ”The Taj Mahal by moonlight” entices art lovers more than two centuries after it was created reflects the enduring power of both the piece and its subject around the globe.