To express love and commitment, one would buy a diamond ring or write letters in the sky, Yet no one can ever live up to Shahjahan, who built the Taj Mahal for Mumtaj.

Who the Taj Mahal belongs to has been a recurring question, and a number of myths surround it even today. Does it belong to the millions of tourists that visit from the corners of the world? Travelers who navigate the crowded and smelly streets of Agra and make it to the narrow arched entrance, which keeps getting darker with every step. And as they get closer, the arch turns into a tremendous frame with the onion dome sitting at the center, above the pointed arch, with a clear blue sky in the background. Does it belong to this traveller who made the long journey to reach this beautiful marvel, only to turn his back the second he enters the complex to raise his phone and take a selfie? Or does it belong to the tourist who likes to stand tall and take a perfect picture while holding the pinnacle of the onion dome within his fingers?

Does the Taj Mahal belong to the thousands of artisans who made it possible to build it? Or, as the popular myth says, the same craftsmen whose hands were amputated after comple- tion? Well, Shahjahan did no such horrible thing to his crafts- men, yet the legend lives on.

Roland Barthes object mythologies Article written as a part of Proseminar Fall 2021 Pratt MSUD