New Research Archives on Islamic Architecture in India at the University of Vienna

The Bequest of the Ebba Koch Archive

Dr. Ebba Koch, the world’s leading expert on Mughal architecture, has transferred part of her substantial research archive to the University of Vienna’s Department of Art History as a living bequest. In addition to extensive photographic records, the collection includes important architectural surveys produced during Koch's time working in India. In some cases, these surveys represent the first scholarly examinations of the respective buildings. Of particular interest are the numerous plans related to each of the buildings in the entire Taj Mahal complex. Koch devoted a seminal monograph to the Taj Mahal (The Complete Taj Mahal and the Riverfront Gardens of Agra, 2006), which remains the only exhaustive scholarly monograph on addressing all aspects of the monument. The accompanying architectural drawings were meticulously produced through measured surveys and were hand-drafted by the Indian Architect Richard A. Barraud in cooperation with Dr. Koch, resulting in a definitive and highly detailed set of drawings. 

Dr. Koch, who has taught at the universities of Vienna, Oxford, and Harvard, is currently working on a new publication on Mughal architecture and will gradually transfer further parts of her archive to the Department of Art History.

The Bequest of the Klaus Rötzer Archive

Furthermore, in 2025, the Department of Art History received an outstanding collection of research materials on Islamic art and architecture in the Indian region of the Deccan with the donation of Klaus Rötzer's archive. The collection includes approximately 150,000 photographs (including slides, negatives, prints, and digital photographs), 6,500 AutoCAD plans, around 500 plans and drawings on paper, and manuscripts comprising about 8,000 pages documenting Rötzer's extensive fieldwork in India.

Thanks to these two donations, the University of Vienna now holds one of the largest image and research archives on Islamic art and architecture in India outside the subcontinent. These exceptional materials will be systematically digitized, cataloged, and contextualized before being made accessible to the global research community.