Noor Jahan

According to legend, Noor Jahan is purported to have made contributions to almost every type of fine and practical art. Noor Jahan means "Light of the World" and she was the only Mughal empress to have coinage struck in her name.

She was the most powerful and influential woman at court during a period when the Mughal Empire was at the peak of its power and glory.

She was born "Mehr-un-Nissa" 'Sun Among Women' in 1577 in Kandahar, Afghanistan, into a family of Persian nobility.

She possessed great physical strength and courage. She often went hunting with her husband, and was known for her marksmanship and fearless in hunting ferocious tigers. She is reported to have slain four tigers with six bullets during one hunt.

She is considered by historians to have been the real power behind the throne for much of her husband's reign, the chief wife of the Mughal emperor Jahangir. She died December 18, 1645.