Famous Architectural Buildings of India, Egypt,China and France

TajMahal
The Taj Mahal, a beautiful white marble Monument located in the city of Agra on the banks of the holy river
Yamuna in the state of Uttar Pradesh. Taj Mahal is the finest example of combines elements of Mughal,Persian,
Ottoman Turkish and Indian architectural styles. It is one of the eight wonders of the world and the jewel of
Muslim art in India. Fatehpur Sikri is another historic site in the state, the first planned city of the Mughals.

HarmandirSahib
The Golden Temple is known as Harmandir Sahib is a Sikh Gurdwara located in the Amritsar, Punjab. Shri
Darbar Shaib is the holiest shrine and most famous pilgrimage place for Sikhs. Harmandir Sahib is one of the
most sacred places in India, a Holy Granth Sahib is always present inside the temple.
MahabodhiTemple
The Mahabodhi Temple or Great Awakening Temple is a Buddhist temple located in the Gaya district of Bihar
state. Mahabodhi Mahavihara Bodhgaya Temple is one of the ancient and most important shrines of  Buddhist in
India. The site contains a Mahabodhi Tree,Lord Buddha stupa and the monastery called Bodhimanda Vihara.
Mahabodhi Temple is count on one of the 7 wonders of India.Nalanda is another Historic Monuments site in the
state.

BrihadishwaraTemple
Brihadishwara Temple also called Periya Koyil or Big Temple is one of the India’s largest temple located in the
Thanjavur at the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. The Rajarajeswaram temple is dedicated to Lord Shiva and the best
temple build by Cholas along with Airavatesvara Temple. Brihadishwara Temple and Airavatesvara Temple are
two World Heritage in Tamil Nadu India.
ShoreTemple
The Shore Temple is situated on the shore of the Bay of Bengal at Mahabalipuram,in the state of Tamil Nadu.
Shore Temple is the oldest structural rock cut temple in south India built with blocks of granite. The shrines are
dedicated to great God Lord Shiva and Lord Vishnu. Mahabalipuram is world famous for number of Monuments,
which are UNESCO World Heritage Site.

BahaiTemple
The Lotus Temple of Delhi is called Bahai Temples, situated near kalka Ji.Lotus Temple is a house of Worship
for every religion and best place for meditation and peace. Bahai Faith is spiritual unity of all humankind, there
are eight continental Houses of Worship have been built around the world. Lotus Temple is one of them and the
prominent attraction in Delhi.
HawaMahal
The great monuments of the royal Rajputs of Rajasthan, Hawa Mahal also Palace of Winds is situated in the heart
of pink city and the capital of Rajasthan,Jaipur. The pyramid shape five-story palace is constructed by red and
pink sandstone by Maharaja Sawai Pratap Singh for women’s of royal families. Hawa Mahal is one of the major
tourist attraction of Jaipur as well as in the royal state Rajasthan.

ChhatrapatiShivajiTerminus
Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus or Victoria Terminus is a historic railway station situated in the dream city of India
Mumbai,Maharashtra. Victoria Terminus is one of the most busiest railway station in India and headquarters of
the Central Railways. Taj Mahal Palace Mumbai, a five-star hotel is another Historical Monuments located in

Mumbai city.
VictoriaMemorial
The Victoria Memorial Hall is located in the capital of West Bengal, Kolkata and dedicated to Queen Victoria.
Victoria Memorial is one of the major tourist attraction of Kolkata and serves as a museum with great collection of
manuscripts,paintings and sculptures of the British period. Victoria Memorial was declared as one of the
UNESCO World Heritage Site in India.

Egypt

1. The Pyramids
The Pyramids are situated at Giza just outside Cairo and is one of the engineering marvels of
all time and the only remaining wonder of the ancient world. Situated on the west bank of
the Nile, which is associated with death, the pyramids are generally believed to be tombs for
the Pharaohs or a resurrection machine for his rebirth. The first large Egyptian pyramid was
the Step Pyramid at Saqqara, built during the third dynasty of the Old Kingdom to protect
the body of the king Djoser who died around 2650 BC. The Pyramid was the development of
the Mastaba which was a house built over the body. The most prolific builder was Sneferu
who ruled from around 2612–2589 BC and built three pyramids. The greatest and most
famous however, are the Pyramids of Giza, built near the capital city of Memphis for the
fourth dynasty kings Khufu, Khafre and Menkaure who ruled from 2589-2504 BC. 
 2. The Step Pyramid 
The Step Pyramid at Saqqara is situated 20 km from Giza near Cairo. Built for the Pharaoh Djoser the
first king of the Third Dynasty as his tomb and mortuary complex it is surrounded by a panelled,
bastion wall of white limestone, which imitates bound bundles of reeds and has a number of
symbolic doors, although it only has one functional entrance. Originally with 9 metres (30 feet) high
walls, the complex covers an area of approximately 560 x 275 metres. Surrounding the wall is a
trench which measures 750 m long and 40 m wide which was dug in the underlying rock, around the
sides the trench was decorated with niches. 

3. Temple of Karnak

The Temple of Karnak is not a single temple but a temple complex which developed over a period of
1500 years. It is one of the largest religious complexes in the world and consists of gates, pillars,
halls, obelisks, statues and a sacred lake. Each of the Pharaohs would make further additions and
then remove those erected by their predecessors; thereby replacing them with their own.  In order
to make the people believe that they were the builders, they would remove predecessors’
cartouches and replace them with their own. The Temple played a significant part in the Egypt of the
Pharaohs, being situated in what was Thebes, the religious capital of Egypt.

China
1. The Great Wall 
Great Wall of China is the most famous Chinese architecture. But, there are more Chinese
architectures except for the Great Wall of China, such as extravagant mausoleums, breathtaking
imperial palace and ancient bridges and pagodas. All these great old buildings reflect wisdom and
efforts of ancient Chinese working people. Below is a list of the top 6 greatest historic buildings in
China that you should not miss.

The Great Wall is the greatest building in ancient China. Originally constructed by Emperor Qin Shi
Huang in the third century B.C. as a means to keep out “nomadic tribes from the north”, the wall is
one of the most extensive construction projects ever completed in the world. The best-preserved
section of the Great Wall was built during the Ming dynasty (1368-1644). Today It is a powerful
symbol of China’s enduring strength.
2. The Forbidden City

The Forbidden City in the center of Beijing is the largest and most complete imperial palace and
ancient building complex in China.  It was built between 1406 and 1420 during the Ming Dynasty. 24
emperors from the Ming and Qing dynasties lived and ruled China from there. The Forbidden City,
extending 753 meters from east to west, and 961 meters from north to south. It consists of some
9,900 bays of rooms.  Most of the buildings were built with wood, roofed with yellow glazed tiles
and built on blue-and-white stone foundations, looking solemn and brilliant.
3. Potala Palace

Situated on the Red Hill of central Lhasa, Potala Palace is the highest ancient palace in the
world,with its highest point reaching 3,767.19m above sea level. The Potala Palace was built in the
7th century in Tang Dynasty during the reign of King Songtsan Gampo of Tibet. The palace has 13
stories, and is 117 meters high. It is considered a model of Tibetan architecture.
4. The mausoleum of Emperor Qinshihuang

The mausoleum of Emperor Qinshihuang (China`s first emperor) is located about 35 kilometers from
Xi’an City.  It is the biggest imperial mausoleum in ancient China. He started building it as soon as he
united the country. More than 700,000 laborers from all over China were requisitioned in this giant
project and nearly 40 years were used in building the mausoleum.

According to Records of the Historian. The tomb was very deep and solid and lined with stones.
Inside the tomb treasures and jewels were kept there and candles of man-fish oil burned 24 hours a
day. Automatic hidden arrows protected the tomb from robbers and looters. A belt of quicksilver
poured in a ditch around the tomb looked like a protective river. But whether modern people will
ever see inside this mausoleum depends not just on the Chinese government, but on science.
5. Zhaozhou Bridge

Zhaozhou Bridge, also known as Anji Bridge, is a large stone-arched bridge designed by ancient
architect Li Chun The bridge is located on the Xiaohe River in Zhaozhou County, Hebei Province. It is
the largest and oldest stone-arched bridge in the world. It took 11 years to complete the bridge from
605 to 616 during the Sui Dynasty. The Zhaozhou Bridge is 50.82 meters long and 9.6 meters wide;
the span of its large stone arch in the middle measures 37.37 meters — the world’s largest arch at
the time.
6. Songyue Temple

Built in A.D. 523 in the Northern Wei Dynasty, The Songyue Temple Pagoda is the oldest extant large
pagoda in China. It is located in Songyuesi Temple in Dengfeng County, Henan Province. The twelve-
sided, 40-metre-tall pagoda is built entirely of blue bricks. The body is girdled round by 15 closely-
arranged eaves, which get smaller in beautiful proportions towards the tapering top.
 France

 Eiffel Tower

The world-famous metallic tower was built for the Paris International Exhibition in 1889 for the centenary of the French
Revolution. At the time of its inauguration, it was the world’s tallest monument.
2. Notre-Dame

The cathedral of Notre-Dame-de-Paris is a jewel of Gothic architecture and arguably one of the finest churches in Europe.
Built from the Middle-Ages, it is renowned for being at the centre stage of “The Hunchback of Notre-Dame”, a 19th century
novel written by French writer Victor Hugo.
3. Arc de Triomphe

The monumental triumphal arch sits at the top of the Avenue des Champs-Élysées at the centre of Place de
l’Étoile (or Place du Général Charles de Gaulle) where 12 avenues radiate.
It was built in honour of the French Imperial army of Napoleon.
4. Palais du Louvre

It is said that the Louvre is the world’s largest museum. Whether it is true or not, it is one of the most majestic
palaces of Europe.
Former residence of the Kings of France, the Louvre and its glass pyramid open onto the garden of
the Tuileries at the starting point of the Historical Axis.
5. Sacré-Cœur

The Romanesque-Byzantine basilica of Sacré-Cœur in Montmartre stands like a whipped-cream edifice atop the

This neo-classical white monument with its formidable colonnaded dome stands at the top of the Sainte-
Geneviève hill. Originally a church, the Panthéon has since become a necropolis for France’s greatest citizens
and a popular national monument.
7. Opéra Garnier

The opulent Paris Opera house was built from 1861 to 1875 by Charles Garnier during the reign of Napoleon
III. It is part of the great reconstruction of Paris by Baron Haussmann during the Second Empire. The auditorium
seats nearly 2,000 people and features the grand chandelier and a fine ceiling painting by Marc Chagall.
8. Les Invalides

The grand complex of Les Invalides in the 7th arrondissement is easily recognisable with its magnificent golden
dome. It was built by Louis XIV to house the homeless and wounded veterans of his army. Today the Hôtel des
Invalides is famous for housing the tomb of French emperor Napoleon Bonaparte. The Hôtel des Invalides also
hosts three museums: the Army museum, the Musée de l’Ordre de la Libération, and the Musée des Plans-
Reliefs.
9. Centre Pompidou

The Pompidou Centre in Beaubourg (4th arrondissement) is one of France’s most visited museums.
The complex, not far from Les Halles, was designed in the style of high-tech architecture. The top floor offers
panoramic vistas over the roofs of Paris. With its colour-coded pipes and ducts, the design of the modern art
museum has been the source of much controversy since its construction.
10. Palais du Luxembourg

The Luxembourg Palace, surrounded by the garden, was created in 1617 and owes its name to the Duke of
Piney-Luxembourg, landlord of a domain which was later acquired by Maria de Medici, widow of the King of
France, Henri IV. The Italian born Queen wished to create a building to remind her of the Pitti Palace as well as
establishing gardens evoking those of Boboli in Florence. The construction of the palace, opening onto a park
comprising 8 hectares, was entrusted to Salomon de la Brosse. It now houses the French Senate.