Taj Mahal, mausoleum complex in Uttar Pradesh in northern India, built by the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan in the 17th century. The complex houses the tombs of Shah Jahan and one of his wives, known as Mumtaz Mahal. ... The interior of the mausoleum is organized around an octagonal marble chamber ornamented with low-relief carvings and semiprecious stones (pietra dura). Therein are the cenotaphs of Mumtaz Mahal and Shah Jahān. Those false tombs are enclosed by a finely wrought filigree marble ...