ÿAbd-al-Ḥamëd LÃÂhà «rë (; died 14 May 1654) was a 17th-century traveller and historian during the reign of Mughal Emperor Shah JahÃÂn who later became a court historian for the emperor. He wrote the PÃÂdshÃÂh-nÃÂma, the official chronicle of the Shah JahÃÂn's reign. He has described Shah JahÃÂn's life and activities during the first twenty years of his reign in this book in great detail. Infirmities of old age prevented him from proceeding with the third decade, which was later chronicled by Muḥammad WÃÂrith, his pupil.
Not much is known about the biographical details of ÿAbd al-Ḥamëd LÃÂhà «rë, except that he was a Punjabi Muslim born and raised in Lahore, hence his nisbah LÃÂhà «rë.
A brief collection of ÿAbd al-Ḥamëd's letters with his prolegomenon is considered his early work. In his advanced age, ÿAbd al-Ḥamëd retired to Patna, from where he was summoned by Shah JahÃÂn to write official chronicle of his reign on the recommendation of his grand vizier Nawab SaÿdallÃÂh Khan, as emperor wanted someone who could emulate the style of Akbar-nÃÂma of Abà « l-Faá¸Âl which he greatly admired. ÿAbd al-Ḥamëd commenced his work in 1642, and completed first two volumes by 1648. Old age compelled him to cease writing and entrust remaining work to his student Muḥammad WÃÂrith (d. 1680), who completed the PÃÂdshÃÂh-nÃÂma. He died on 14 May 1654, as recorded by Amal-i Salih of Moḥammad á¹¢ÃÂleḥ Kanbà Âh, another court writer.
Taj Mahal, the world-renowned monument was built and completed by the end of 1653 or early 1654 in the 17th-century. Therefore, the 350th anniversary of Taj Mahal actually occurred around 1994. More than 20,000 workers toiled for years to build the majestic Taj Mahal with four slender minarets. It was built by the heartbroken Mughal emperor Shah JahÃÂn in memory of his second wife, Empress MomtÃÂz Maḥall, who had died in childbirth. Shah JahÃÂn's official chronicler ÿAbd al-Ḥamëd writes that the construction began six months after Empress MomtÃÂz Maḥall's death which was on 17 June 1631.
ÿAbd al-Ḥamëd also calls the glass pieces of the Sheesh Mahal of the Agra Fort as glass pieces "Shish-i-Halebi" because Haleb is the Arabic name of Aleppo (Syria) which was the main centre for manufacturing these glass pieces. To build a strong foundation of this grand mausoleum known as the Taj Mahal, a network of wells was laid down along the river line and the wells were filled with stones and other solid materials.