Sights of Samarkand

                                 Sights of Samarkand

                              REGISTAN SQUARE

•The Registan Square, paved with fired bricks and cobbles, and the architectural ensemble of its three edifices, masterpieces of medieval Islamic architecture, have been UNESCO World Heritage Sites since 2001. The central building of the ensemble is Tilla-Qori Madrasah; Ulugbek Madrasah and Sher-Dor Madrasah stand to the left and right of it respectively.

•The madrasahs date from different times. Ulugbek Madrasah, the earliest of them, was built in 1417 - 1420 by order of Ulugbek, Tamerlane’s grandson. Two centuries later, by order of Samarkand governor Yalangtush Bahadur Sher-Dor Madrasah and Tilla-Qori Madrasah were built. They replaced the khanaka (a Sufi hospice and monastery; also spelled khanqah, khaniqah, khanqa, khaneqa, khanegah, khaneqah) and the caravanserai that had been built under Ulugbek. Each of the madrasahs features unique decorations: fascinating tile mosaics, delicate stone carvings, splendid gilt ceilings, etc.

BIBI-KHANYM MOSQUE

•The Friday communal prayer mosque Bibi-Khanym  in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, is one of the largest and most impressive historic mosques in Central Asia and the Islamic world in general. 

•Bibi-Khanym was the nickname of Saray Mulk  Khanym, Tamerlane’s senior wife. Ruy Gonzalez de Clavijo,the ambassador of Henry III of Castile to the court of Tamerlane (Timur) in 1403 - 1405, wrote she was also nicknamed Cano (‘thegreat khanym’). According to legend, it was Saray who ordered that the mosque be built to please her husband when he came home from his victorious campaign in India. (Hence the mosque was named after her.) However, historians believe Bibi-Khanym Mosque was built by order of Tamerlane himself.

                         GUR-E AMIR MAUSOLEUM

         •

The construction of the mausoleum began in 1403, by order of Tamerlane, in the grounds of an architectural complex that had been built by order of Muhammad Sultan in the southeast of Samarkand in the 14th - 15th centuries. The complex comprised a madrasah and a khanaka, both facing the rectangular courtyard, as well as four minarets at the courtyard corners and an entrance portal. The khanaka was also the prince’s residence. Only the foundations of the two buildings of the complex, its entrance portal and two of the four minarets survive. Initially, its purpose was to be a center of Islamic education, which the construction of the mausoleum made different.

•In 1405, during his military campaign in China, Tamerlane got ill and died. Although there was a magnificent mausoleum built for him earlier in his hometownShakhrisabz, he was buried next to his grandson in Samarkand mausoleum, which was named Gur-e Amir then and became a family sepulcher of the Timurids.

“AFRASIAB” MUSEUM IN SAMARKAND

Legendary Capital of ancient Sogdiana

•There is a place in Samarkand, visiting which can lift the veil and solve fascinating mystery of the city. This is “Afrasiab” Museum. It is located in the north of Samarkand, near the ancient settlement of Afrasiab (Afrosiab). Today, the ancient settlement of Afrasiab (was founded in VII-VI centuries BC and existed until the XIII century) represents only a cluster of hills. Afrasiab is believed to have been Marakanda - the legendary capital of Sogdiana (Sogdia). Sogdiana included territories around Samarkand, Bukhara, Khujand and Panjikent in modern Uzbekistan and Tajikistan.

•During archaeological excavations, it was found that before AD Afrasiab had been the largest cultural and trade center of Central Asia. In 1894, there werearchaeological excavations, and as a result many artifacts were discovered, later they became exhibits of the Museum of History of Samarkand - “Afrasiab”.

•“Afrasiab” Museum tells the story of life, culture and traditions of the people who inhabited this area in very different eras and left their mark in the form of works of art, household items, and tools. Thanks to archaeological findings, scientists were able, as a mosaic, to restore the full picture of the appearance of the city, people's daily lives, and the significant events that took place in this territory. They also managed to find out how looked, and was arranged Samarkand in ancient times.