The mausoleum of Sher Shah at Sasaram is of exceptional beauty and larger than the Taj in size. It has a dome that is over 13 feet. Here also is the mausoleum of Sher Shah`s father, Hasan Shah Suri. And the tomb of Sher Shah`s son, Salim Shah, built in the center of a lake. On the outskirts of the village is the tomb of Aliwal Khan, the chief architect working for Sher Shah. A few hours from Sasaram one reaches Rohtasgarh fort. In the words of Abul Fazal it is "a well defended paradise (fort) with no equal for strength and solidity." The fort is 28 miles in circumference, and a perfect platform for eco-tourism projects. It is located high on the Kaimur hills where there are many monuments that bring to life the history of the Mughals and Afghan and later the Britishers.

Sher Shah Suri`s tomb The tomb of Sher Shah Suri and his son here reflects the life style of a 16th century Afghans who were dubbed in history as usurpers of the Mughal throne. Sasaram, just a medieval basti (village) and a small trading outpost today. It is bifurcated by Sher Shah`s Grand Trunk Road, on which no less than 25,000 trucks pass every day.

The Puranas tell a different story about Sasaram. The enmity between the Kartavirya Sahasrarjuna (literally thousand hands) and Parasurama led to the death of Sahasranjuna by Parasurama. The followers of Sahasrarjuna settled here calling it Sahasrarjuna-pura or Sahsaram. The discovery of Ashokan inscriptions on a small rock cut cave have eight lines of Brahmi script inscribed on the rocky boulder. This cave, overlooks the town, and is on the summit of Chandan Shaheed hill, named after a saint whose tomb is located close to the cave. Chandan is believed to be one of the Sufi saints who accompanied Muhmud of Ghazni.

Bahul Lodi who had encouraged the migration of his countrymen to Hindustan was ultimately disappointed with their disunity. Hasan Khan and his father Ibrahim Khan Suri came to India and were granted jagirs (land lordship) in Punjab. Their fortunes swayed with that of their masters and later Hasan moved to Jaunpur and finally to Sasaram. Sher Shah was born in Narnaul and spent his childhood at Sasaram. Early in the 16th century, Sasaram, under Hasan Khan Sur was a part of the Sharqi kingdom of Jaunpur. Sher Shah developed Sasaram into a successful administrative unit. It was an important trading post and often people came here to buy horses and later Sher Shah built a mint here. His currency reform was followed by the Mughals and maintained by the Britishers.

These tombs were built under Alawal Khan, the master architect. He was first commissioned to erect the tomb of Hasan Khan in 1535. Sher Shah`s tomb is larger than the original model. The tank appears to have been excavated solely for the purpose of providing a quaint view of the tomb. The multi coloured glazed tiles and painted decoration adds to the rich reflection. Unfortunately few traces remain. This three-storied mausoleum rises to a height of 45.7 m and was originally planned to be a typical island tomb with no access to the mainland. There are stairways on each side of the tomb leads to the water, there is a landing platform on the eastern side and a causeway between the tomb and the guardroom. The guardroom or the entrance porch on the edge of the northern side of the lake is flanked by two mosques and was meant to provide crew and rafts to the serious visitors willing to see the tomb. A bridge of arches linked the entrance porch and the tomb. The bridge did not last and the visitors used rafts made of earthen pots until 1881, until the present causeway was constructed.

The mausoleum appears perfectly symmetrical but its base has a slight deviation at the cardinal points. However, these have been skillfully adjusted to give the impression of perfect alignment. The mausoleum is built on a large square terrace, the corners support the octagonal pavilions with small kiosks between them. The entrance gives way to a wide verandah on all sides, which is shaded by 24 small domes supported on arches and each corner of the verandah has a cupola. The tomb chamber is plain with faded inscriptions on the western wall. The interior is well ventilated and the light comes through the large windows on the top part of the walls fitted with jalis. The grave of Sher Shah is surrounded by 24 of his compatriots. The dome surpasses that of the Taj by 13 feet, and is based on the beam and bracket principal, it has eight sides fused into a circle. The exterior was originally glazed and painted with a colour combination of red, blue, gold and white. Traces of these colours can still be seen on the parapets and battlements.

Sher Shah`s body was brought from Kalinjar after he had been injured in an explosion during the final assault on the fort. He managed to survive until the news of the final victory. Salim Shah, his son lies in a tomb half-a-kilometer NW from here. His tomb is impressive but incomplete. The design included - a larger lake, eleven small passages covered by stone beams, minars and pillars at all angles of the outer octagon. Alawal Khan`s tomb is on the outskirts of the town where he was the superintendent of tomb construction.

He built many inns, mosques and laid down the network of roads the most famous among them being the Grand Trunk Road. He also had a refined taste in architecture, it is evident in the Rohtas Fort built by him. Humayun, on his death referred to him as "Ustad-I-Badshahan", teacher of kings. Sher Shah Suri was succeeded by his son Jalal Khan who later adopted the name of Islam Shah. He built a magnificent tomb of his father, Sher Shah Suri at Sasaram, Bihar.