This volume brings together twelve studies, written between 1982 and 1997, on Mughal art. Analyzing the form and content of the artwork in its context, the author offers a new interpretation of the Mughal Gardens; the Taj Majal; palaces at Agra, Delhi, and Lahore; and the Padshahnama.
The idea of assembling a selection of my essays in a single volume arose from discussions with Sunil Kumar, who has long complained about my predilection for publishing.

Mughal architecture is the distinctive Indo-Islamic architectural style that developed in northern and central India under the patronage of Mughal emperors from the 16th to the 18th century. It is a remarkably symmetrical and decorative amalgam of Persian, Turkish, and Indian architecture and imperial ideologies are the ideas, concepts, explanations, and justifications for empire which imperial societies have articulated for themselves.