The best museums Ferghana Valley

Uvaysiy, whose real name was Jahon Otin, was a woman of letters and poetess born in Marguilan at the end of the 18th century. Her talent, noticed by the wife of the Khan of Kokand, earned her lodging in the palace where she taught letters to the Khan's daughters. It was only after the death of the khan that Uvaysiy was able to return to Marguilan, where she ended her days writing poetry. The reconstructed house-museum houses a few books and photos. The only witness of the period is a mulberry tree, several centuries old, standing between the entrance and the iwan on the façade.

The old Akhunbabaev museum has the merit of going beyond traditional patterns, including presentation of stuffed animals and some pictures of duelling. The exhibition presents the first traces of prehistoric habitation of the city before illustrating the history of the kingdom of Davan and then the "golden age" of Marguilan, obviously corresponding to the period of Soviet occupation. There will be a silk weaving machine, as well as traditional and ceramic clothing from the region.

A very classic regional museum, with an exhibition of regional objects from the 19th and 20th centuries, numerous reconstructions from the prehistoric era to cotton cultivation, some unavoidable stuffed animals in very poor condition, a three-dimensional map of the Ferghana valley... The most interesting pieces are old black and white photos of the Soviet conquest and the Andijan revolt. On the second floor, don't miss a room dedicated to handicrafts, especially Rishtan ceramics.

In the centre of Rishtan you can visit the workshop of Rustam Ousmanov. Roustam has paid a lot of attention to the decoration of the place and has nicely arranged a small museum of ceramics, actually his personal collection with some pieces from Afghanistan, Iran, and of course from all regions of Uzbekistan. Some of them are antiques. His work to preserve local crafts has been rewarded by Unesco, which has awarded him the label of excellence.

In the purest Soviet tradition, this house where the poet Khamza, whose real name was Hamza Hakimzade Niyazi, was born and grew up, was transformed into a museum in 1959. Traditional house of old Kokand, it is the occasion to discover the alleys of the old town and the habitat of the beginning of the 20th century. The courtyard shelters a hundred-year-old mulberry tree while the living rooms are divided between a space for men and a space for women. We discover the house which saw the beginnings of the emblematic poet of Uzbek social realism and is still considered the father of modern poetry in Uzbekistan, having broken with Arab and Persian legends and integrated Russian and Western rules into themes that remain oriental. An early supporter of the Bolsheviks, he was transformed into a national hero by Soviet power, alongside Tamara Khanum, one of the first dancers to remove her veil in public, with whom he led a small travelling theatre troupe. Yet many still consider him a traitor to the Uzbek nation and to Islam. He was stoned to death by clerics during his stay at Chakhimardan, a tragic death in 1929, the year he turned 40. The same year as Nurkhon Youlacheva, another dancer who had removed her veil and also died by stoning. The town of Chakhimardan, a small Uzbek enclave in Kyrgyz territory, is home to one of the few statues in the country dedicated to the memory of the poet, enthroned in the place where the poet was executed by the rabble.

On two floors, classic presentation of the history and specialities of Andijan. On the ^first floor: stuffed animals, fruits, seismic measuring devices used during the earthquake, drilling equipment... The second floor is a little more interesting, with some archaeological finds from various sites in the area: Kurgan Tepa, Erchi, Kuva... At the back of the room, a 3D model and a trompe l'oeil painting present the city of Andijan in the 14th and 15th centuries: its gigantic walls and monumental entrance.

Dedicated to the often overlooked face of the founder of the Mughal Empire, the emperor writer and poet, this museum does not, however, offer any particularly interesting pieces, apart from a few biographies in Russian devoted to the last Timurid in Uzbekistan. On the other hand, it is located in a madrasa built in the 18th century on the very site of the royal residence of Babur. It's a quiet place with the charm of yesteryear, which is good for the modern city that Andijan has become. You will be able to spend a pleasant moment in the inner courtyard, in the coolness.

Slightly set back from the mausoleum, the Khamza Museum was built in 1989, in homage to the Uzbek poet of the beginning of the century, a great champion of national socialist realism. Khamzafut stoned Chakhimardan to death for his iconoclastic ideas. Many traces still testify to its contribution to the development of the city: construction of terraced gardens, an aqueduct... The museum also exhibits all kinds of tools, instruments, furniture, clothes recovered from the inhabitants of Chakhimardan and testifying to the daily life of the Uzbeks at the beginning of the century.