The Mausoleum of Aga Khan is located close to the Monastery of St. Simeon on the west bank of the Nile with a panoramic view of Aswan in all directions.
Aga Khan was the 48th Imam of the Ismailis, a Shiite sect, based principally in India but with followers around the world. Members of this sect consider themselves the direct spiritual descendants of the Fatimid.
The Aga Khan educated in Europe and was extremely wealthy. On his birthday in 1945, he was weighed in diamonds which he then distributed to his followers. He died in 1957.
Agha Kan Mausoleum is recognizable by its elegance and by its special use of pink granite, the structure is inspired by the architecture of the Cairo Fatimid.
The Mausoleum was built at the request of his wife Yvette Blanche Labrousse’s. She was also known as Begum Om Habibeh.
The wife (The Begum) lived in the white villa below, she kept placing a Red Rose on his white Carrara marble tomb until her death on July 1st, 2000, even till this day, as per request of The Begum, a red rose still finds its way to the sarcophagus.
Agha Khan's wife closed the mausoleum to the public in 1997 to allow the late Agha Khan to rest in peace away from the bustle of life. However the mausoleum can be seen by a felucca ride.