Parchin kari, or pietra dura in Italian, is the art of marble inlay, which involves carving out marble slabs and inserting precious and semiprecious stones to create elaborate floral and geometric patterns.
One of the most famous and prominent examples of marble inlay is the Taj Mahal in India. The descendants of the 17th-century artisans who worked on the Taj Mahal still make a living using the skills passed down from their ancestors.
A community of these craftsmen is centered in Agra, just 300 feet from the Taj Mahal. But the number of artists who can create the most intricate artworks is in decline, down to around 3,000 from 10,000 over the last two decades.
