The Taj Mahal was built by the Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan as a memorial for his wife Mumtaz Mahal. The Prince of Wales was so taken by the marble monument that he visited it twice, once when it was lit by moonlight. Russell observed:

Ascending the terrace, the Prince walked over to the shelter of the dark gateway of the mosque. Gradually there grew out, in all its fair proportions and beauty, framed in the purple of the starry heavens, the marble "Queen of Sorrow", which had power to dim every eye […] it was quite near midnight before the Prince was minded to quit the place.

William Howard Russell