London - A dagger used by the emperor who built the Taj Mahal sold Thursday for the equivalent of $3.3 million.
The dagger once belonged to 17th century Mogul emperor Shah Jahan, whose empire spanned the entire Indian subcontinent and what is now Afghanistan, Bonhams auctioneers said.
A royal emblem and dates inscribed on the curved-tip blade suggest it was made in 1630 for the emperor's 39th birthday. Shah Jahan's name and title are also inscribed on the blade.
The emperor collected precious stones and gold-embellished blades but there is only one other known Shah Jahan blade, which is held in a private collection.
Shah Jahan's 30-year reign is known as the Golden Age of the Moguls. He built many monuments including the Pearl Mosque at Agra and the palace in Delhi.
Construction on the Taj Mahal, now designated one of the Seven Wonders of the World, took 22 years. Shah Jahan built the white marble Taj Mahal in the mid-1600s in memory of his favourite wife, Mumtaz Mahal, who died in childbirth.
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