REGISTAN'S PLACE
Read moreRegistan used to be the heart of Samarkand, and a compact and colourful crowd would gather around the many stalls that crowded the madrasas. The indefatigable Swiss traveller, Ella Maillard, had the good fortune, during her visit to Samarkand in 1932, to stay in the Tilla Kari Madrasa, whose cells were then used to accommodate visitors passing through. Less hospitable, the Chir Dor Madrasa served as a place of detention for basmatchi - Muslims who opposed Soviet rule - awaiting execution. Here, as around the Gur Emir, the houses have been demolished to make way for cleanliness. One could think of the decor of a deserted theatre: the three huge and superb madrasas Oulough Begh, Chir Dor and Tilla Kari border a large empty esplanade and, on the fourth side, slightly set back, rise bleachers that welcome visitors during the sound and light shows. In the 14th century, the six main arteries that started from the city gates intersected at this location, on a vast sandy square. Not that sand covered the whole square, but sand was thrown in abundance to absorb the blood spilled during public executions. Tamerlan wanted to facilitate trade and encourage merchants, who paid heavy taxes, to come to Samarkand. He had a street lined with shops built that ran through the city from one end to the other and a huge bazaar. Continuing his work, his wife, Tuman Aka, built a tim, a large domed covered market. During the reign of Ulugh Begh in the early 15th century, the Registan became the official seat of Samarkand. Its new status was accompanied by major works, the domed market was demolished and a madrasah, a khanaka, a caravanserai and a mosque were built. It was also a strategic place and, at the end of the 15th century, when the enemies were encircling Samarkand, Babur, the last of the Timurids, had set up his headquarters on top of the madrasah of Ulugh Begh, the real centre of the city.
To the west, the Ulugh Begh Madrasa is the oldest of the three. Built between 1417 and 1420, it is recognizable by its northern minaret, slightly inclined, as if it was struggling to support the sky, a role attributed to these two gigantic minarets, 33 m high, which flank the portal and never welcomed imams. The guides like to tell how, during the restoration, the Russians tried unsuccessfully to rotate the minaret on its base to put it back upright. The portal, decorated with a mosaic of fired bricks and bricks glazed in the colours of the sky, rises like a huge vessel towards the celestial vault. Spirals of majolica, star motifs with five or ten branches, a few rare touches of yellow or green... the eye is lost in this bewitching spatial geometry.
Both the wings and the minarets are entirely covered with girikh, geometric patterns. Inside, about fifty cells spread over two levels form a square courtyard. At the corners of the building, high courtyard rooms were topped by domes that have now been destroyed. When it was built in 1417, the Madrasa of Ulugh Begh was the largest university in Central Asia. More than a hundred students studied the Koran, but also astronomy, mathematics, philosophy and literature. Kazy-Zade-Rumi, the so-called "Plato of his time", came to teach astronomy. Ulugh Begh, an enlightened governor, mathematician, astronomer, poet and politician, also came to the madrasah courtyard to argue with the students. This opening towards non-religious matters caused his death, his own son, allied with religious fanatics, had him assassinated in 1449. "The owls had taken the place of the students in these cells, and instead of silk curtains, their doors were stretched with cobwebs. "The description dates from 1711.
At this time, the sumptuous Samarkand seems to be fast asleep. The market, which has taken over in the centre of the city and grafted itself onto the buildings, flooded the Registan square with rubbish; brought by the wind, the sand also rushed in and the ground level rose by more than two metres! In 1873, Eugène Schuyller pointed out the dilapidated state of the madrasah, which has only one floor left, as well as the optical illusion that makes the minarets appear leaning. It is in order to repair this "illusion" that in the 20th century the architects in charge of the restoration of monuments tried in vain to straighten the right-hand minaret. The back of the courtyard is occupied by a mosque.
To the east, facing the Oulough Begh Madrasa, the Chir Dor Madrasa was not erected until two centuries later. At the beginning of the 17th century, Yalangtush Bakhadur, vizier of Imam Kouli khan and governor of Samarkand, probably wanting to wake up the sleeping city and leave his mark on it, destroyed what was left of the caravanserai and the khanaka and had a madrasah built on the other side of the square, mirroring that of Ulugh Begh, between 1619 and 1635. Its fire-coloured lion tigers adorning a portal as bright as the sun respond to the starry vault of the madrasah of Uulough Begh: the power of the sun facing the infinity of space. Legend has it that the architect responsible for the construction of Chir Dor perished for violating the laws of Islam that prohibit figurative art.
It was this tiger-lion that gave the madrasa its name: Chir Dor means 'who carries the lion'. The width of the two buildings is identical, but the Chir Dor Madrasa, built on the foundations of the ancient khanaka, is slightly lower than the Ulugh Begh Madrasa. On each side of the portal, two fluted bulbous domes with aerial relief cap the study rooms. Many inscriptions decorate the portal and the drums of the domes: "You are the great warrior, Yalangtush Bakhadur, if we add the numbers of your name, we get the date of foundation. "And also: "He raised up a madrasah so that through him the earth was brought to the zenith of heaven. "Or again: "Never in the course of the centuries will the skilful acrobat of thought, by the rope of fantasy, reach the forbidden peaks of the minarets. »
Facing the stands, the Tilla Kari Madrasa, which is lower and has a longer façade than the two previous ones, closes off the north side of Registan Square. On its left, the blue dome of the mosque distinguishes the madrasa from its two neighbours. It is to this mosque that the madrasah owes its name: Tilla Kari means "covered with gold". One only has to admire the stunning decorations inside the dome to see that this nickname is entirely justified. The high portal and the two levels of cells are decorated with majolica, intertwined floral motifs and solar symbols that echo the tones of the Chir Dor Mosque. Yalangtush wanted to endow Samarkand with a Friday mosque worthy of his rank, that of Bibi Khanum being already in ruins. He had a large mosque built adjacent to the courtyard of a madrasah, so that he could accommodate the largest number of worshippers during public ceremonies. The madrasa was built on the site of the caravanserai built under the Timurids, the foundations of which are still preserved. The work lasted more than 10 years, from 1646 to 1659, and the mosque was indeed covered with gold. It is the youngest monument in the square and, undoubtedly, due to the imbalance created by the dome of the mosque at the corner of a 120 m façade, the most astonishing. Of the three madrasas, this one is the only one to have outward-facing cells, like the Mir-i-Arab madrasah in Bukhara. The walls, the dome and the mihrab are entirely decorated with red and gold floral motifs on an ultramarine blue background. The dome is particularly impressive, the concentric circles of gold leaf on a midnight blue background seem to catch the eye towards infinity. The ceiling is as flat as a table, but the trompe l'oeil decorations make it appear vaulted. Space has been set aside to display photographs taken before and during the restoration
SHAH I ZINDA NECROPOLIS
Read moreThe necropolis of the 'Living King', Shah-i-Zinda, is an alleyway that climbs up the hill of Afrosyab and once led to the ancient city gates. An unusual street on the edge of which was built, in the 11th century, the mausoleum of Qassim-ibn Abbas, a Muslim missionary and cousin of the Prophet Mohammed who arrived in Sogdiana in 676 with the first wave of Arab conquerors. Qassim-ibn Abbas was beheaded by the infidels while he was praying, and legend has it that he then seized his head and descended into a well leading to paradise where he presided over a "court of souls" surrounded by two assessors. The legend takes up the Zoroastrian myth of the judges of the Underworld: Solar Mithra, Srôsh and Rashn, or that of the "Living King" dating from before the Islamic conquest, and which tells how, after his death, the Afrosyab king continued to reign in the kingdom of the dead. The Arab conquerors and the missionaries of Islam thus appropriated many Zoroastrian, Manichean or Nestorian beliefs for the benefit of the heroes of the new religion. In the 11th and 12th centuries, many tombs and mausoleums were built near the saint's mausoleum and the great mosque next to it. When the Mongols took and destroyed the ancient city of Samarkand, only the tomb of Qassim-ibn Abbas (also called Kussam or Kutham) was spared. In the Timurid period, in the 14th and 15th centuries, noble families and family members of Tamerlan were built mausoleums near the tomb of Qassim-ibn Abbas, the Islamic belief that the proximity of a saint's tomb provides protection in the afterlife. These new constructions gave the street its current configuration.
The entrance portal, or pishtak, is flanked by the first chortak, a small passage surmounted by a dome supported by four arches (literally: 'chortak'), where the following inscription can be read: 'This majestic ensemble was built by Abd-al-Aziz khan, son of Ulugh Begh, son of Shakhrukh, son of Amir Timur in the year 838 AH. "» (1434-1435). In fact, it was Uulough Begh who was the real builder on behalf of his still young son.
At the foot of the forty steps of the "Stairway to Paradise" or "Fishermen's Stairway", there is a mosque with iwan and finely carved colonnades where believers come to listen to the prayers of the imam. This is where Qassim-ibn Abbas would have been beheaded.
The staircase leads to the mausoleum of Kazy Zadeh Roumi, on the left, built between 1420 and 1435 for the tutor of Ulugh Begh. Considered the Plato of his time, Kazy Zade Rumi would not actually be buried here: the skeleton discovered in the mausoleum was that of a woman, perhaps Tamerlan's nurse. It is the largest building in the complex. The prayer room and the mausoleum are surmounted by two very high domes. The staircase was built in the 18th century on the site of the ancient walls surrounding Samarkand in the pre-Mongolian period. It goes up to the second chortak, dating from the 19th century and erected on the site of the ancient wall of Afrosyab.
The first mausoleum to the right of the second chortak is that of Emir Hussein, also known as Tuglu Tekin, son of a Turkish man named Kara Kutkul and a famous Turkish commander whom Tamerlan took as his model while claiming to be of his descent. Tamerlan had the mausoleum built in 1376, when Tuglu Tekin had died a martyr's death in the 8th century.
Facing him, the mausoleum of Emir Zade (son of the Emir) dates from 1386 and is said to contain the remains of an unknown son of Tamerlan. Just above, on the same side, the mausoleum of Shadi Mulk Aka (1372) was built on the order of Tourkan Ata, Tamerlan's sister, to bury her daughter. The emperor, for whom his niece meant a great deal, had the following inscription engraved: "This is a tomb where a precious pearl was lost. "It is the oldest mausoleum in the complex, and also the oldest building in Timurid Samarkand.
Opposite, in the mausoleum of Chirin Bika Aka (1385), lies Tamerlan's second sister, under a dome with a 16-sided base. The facade is decorated with dark blue openwork mosaics. The interior decoration was made by an artist from Azerbaijan. Surprisingly, on the façade on either side of the portal, the inscriptions in Arabic are not suras from the Koran, but words of the Greek philosopher Socrates. It reads: "Socrates said: people are sad in all circumstances. »
On the same side, the octahedral mausoleum remains a mystery. Dating from the 15th century, it is considered a mausoleum, but no human debris has been found there. According to another hypothesis, it could be a minaret, but there is no evidence of this in its vast rotunda architecture. Little is also known about the next three mausoleums on the left side of the driveway. The third chortak opens on the northern and last part of the necropolis. On the left is the Tuman Aka Mosque, built in 1405, and the adjoining mausoleum, built in 1404, for Tuman Aka, Tamerlan's youngest wife. On a square base, the turquoise blue dome rests on a high cylindrical drum. If the mosaics of the portal may recall the mausoleum of Chirin Bika Aka, the originality of the decoration lies in the use of the colour purple, extremely rare at the time. The interior has been deliberately left white, which is also unusual, and the decorations are limited to a few landscape frescoes under the dome. Above the finely carved wooden door it reads: "The tomb is a door that everyone goes through. "In front of the Tuman Aka Mosque, the finely worked elm wood door, once enhanced with gold, silver and ivory, is the work of the Shiraz master Yusuf. Nicknamed the "Gateway to Paradise", it has been opening for more than 600 years to the kingdom of Qassim-ibn Abbas. Excavations have unearthed, on the right wall of the corridor, remains of the wall of the former 11th century mosque, whose minaret can be seen above and to the right. It also dates from the 11th century, which makes it the oldest monument of the complex, and the only one from that period in the Shah-i-Zinda. Passing the "Gate of Paradise", the corridor leads to the Qassim-ibn Abbas Mosque. The mihrab is decorated in mosaic, a technique that was used in Samarkand from the end of the 14th century and of which Central Asian craftsmen became virtuoso. The glazed earthenware mosaic pieces depict leaves, flower petals, thin branches or inscriptions, and are assembled without gaps. The next room is the ziaratkhana, or prayer room. Behind a wooden fence in the gurkhana is the tomb of Qassim-ibn Abbas, dating from the 11th century and entirely decorated with majolica. It says: "He who has died following Allah, is not dead: he is indeed alive. "Archaeologists have also researched this area and discovered a shaft 18 metres deep. The decorations in the room may appear to be original as they have been erased. In fact, they were fully restored in 1995, but the humidity level was such that all the work was spoiled in the following months. An air conditioner was installed to try to remedy the problem, but one only has to look at the corners of the walls and floor to realize the vanity of the attempt. To save what remains, it is strongly advised against leaning against the walls or even putting your fingers on them.
Coming out of the saint's tomb, immediately to the right and opposite the Tuman Aka Mausoleum is the Kutlug Aka Mausoleum, from 1360, which houses another of Tamerlan's women. Its portal is decorated with chiselled and glazed terracotta.
Closing the northern end of the necropolis, the Khodja Akhmad Mausoleum dates from 1350 and is the oldest mausoleum of Shah-i-Zinda after that of Qassim-ibn Abbas. Its portal was decorated with blue and white majolica by the Samarkand craftsman, Fakhr Ali.
GOUR EMIR
Read moreLike another great conqueror, Genghis Khan, Tamerlan wanted to be buried soberly: "Just one stone and my name on it," he said, and his tomb had been prepared in a crypt in Shahrisabz, his hometown. But history decided otherwise. In 1401, Muhamad Sultan, Tamerlan's favourite grandson and his appointed successor, built a four-minaret architectural complex consisting of an inner courtyard bordered by four iwans and overlooked by a madrasah to the east and a khanaka to the west. The madrasa was dedicated to the education of the sons of noble families destined to work in the administration. In the khanaka, residence of the dervishes, there was also a domed mosque. Today, only the traces of the foundations bear witness to these constructions, but one can admire the still richly decorated portal on which is inscribed in Persian: "Built by the weak slave Mohamed, son of Mahmud, of Espahan". When, in 1403, Muhamad Sultan, still young, perished during a campaign in Persia, Tamerlan had this mausoleum built, the most beautiful there is, for the one in whom he had seen his successor. When the first dome was completed, Tamerlan decided it was too small, had it destroyed and ordered a new, larger dome to be built, which was completed in less than two weeks. Ruy Gonzales de Clavijo recounts how the workers worked there day and night, and describes Tamerlan, sick and bedridden, coming twice in person to supervise the work. In February 1405, Tamerlan in turn died and his body, embalmed with musk and camphor, was temporarily and secretly buried in the khanaka next to his grandson. It was not until four years later, when the battles of succession were settled, that the royal remains returned to their present residence in the crypt of the mausoleum. On this occasion, Tamerlan's spiritual master, Sheikh Mir-Said-Bereke, was also buried. He was later joined by other Timurids, including two of Tamerlan's sons, Shakhrukh and Miranshakh, and his grandson Ulugh Begh. The latter added a gallery through which the mausoleum is now accessed and began the construction of another mausoleum, of which only ruins remain, and a crypt that can be seen behind the Gur Emir. It was also Ulugh Begh who brought back from Mongolia the block of nephrite that covers Tamerlan's tomb, and who had the mortuary slabs surrounded by an openwork marble barrier. The real tombs lie in the crypt. Like all the constructions of Tamerlan, the Gur Emir is grandiose. The volumes, simple, are of imposing size. The outer dome is 32 m high and a 3 m high Sufi inscription surrounds its base: it reads: "Allah is the only God and Muhammad is his prophet. "On this drum rests a stretched dome, 12.50 m high and 15 m in diameter, entirely covered with blue glazed bricks that sixty-four ribs dotted with yellow and midnight-blue rhombuses seem to stretch towards the sky. The interior of the mausoleum is even more sumptuous: firstly, the translucent green of the onyx walls, once decorated with gold and lazurite, then the blue and gold Qur'anic inscriptions that surround the room, and finally the dome, which the geometric gold decorations on a soft blue background make "like the firmament", in the words of the historian Cheref-ad-Din.
LIAB-I-KHAOUZ ENSEMBLE
Read moreBordered by tchaikhanas and mulberry trees several hundred years old, behind the foliage of which can be seen the sumptuous facades of the madrasah and the khanaka Nadir Divanbeg, the Liab-i-Khaouz is a place of life and conviviality in the heart of the old city, an ideal starting and finishing point for walks in Bukhara.
The pool provides coolness even in the hot summer hours. At the time of its size, Bukhara had about 100 such basins, of which the Liab-i-Khaouz is one of the few survivors. Taken over by the tourism business, it is now flanked by restaurants on three sides and camel statues on the fourth. The traditional takhtans have mostly been replaced by western-style tables and chairs. The aksakal, or elders, who used to gather there in tens, have gradually been pushed to the right of the basin to make way for the now much larger number of tourists. This has not changed their habits: watching the time go by and playing dominoes for hours on end. There is a legend that tells how the basin was once the home of a Jewish woman. She had no desire to move, and she interfered with the plans of the Wazir, who decided to dig a canal under her house. The Wazir won the game, because the house, which had been eaten away by dampness, eventually collapsed. This unusual story of eviction left its mark on the inhabitants of the city, who named the basin Khaouz Bazur, the basin of constraint. In addition to being one of the rare basins to have crossed the centuries, it is also one of the largest in the city: it is 45 m long and 36 m wide. Three buildings line the basin
To the north, slightly set back, the Koukeldash Madrasa is the oldest, dating from the mid-16th century, while the Madrasa and the Nadir-Divanbeg Khanaka, facing respectively the east and west of the basin, were built in 1620, at the same time as the water body. The Kukeldash Madrasa, built in 1568 by Kulbaba Kukeldash, is the largest madrasa in the city; it measures 80m by 60m and comprises 160 cells on two levels.
To the east of the basin, the Nadir-Divanbeg madrasa stands out for the two huge semurgues, or simorghs, that adorn its portal. These fantastic birds with blue and green plumage, holding a doe in their talons, seem to fly towards a sun god that is reminiscent of the sun god on the façade of the Chir Dor Madrasa in Samarkand. The high entrance porch is characteristic of caravanserais, and was apparently not intended to open onto a madrasah. But it is said that the khan was mistaken at the inauguration and, while admiring the caravanserai, congratulated Nadir-Divan-Begi for his religious zeal in building such beautiful madrasas. It was unthinkable to contradict the Khan, and although there were no study halls or mosque, the caravanserai became a madrasah. In reality, this transformation was probably caused by the decline in commercial activity that Bukhara suffered in the 17th century. Today the cells are transformed into souvenir shops and craftsmen's workshops. In the summer, concerts are also organized there.
Finally, in the west, the Nadir-Divanbeg khanaka welcomed pilgrim dervishes. They were housed in the cells surrounding the central mosque, now transformed into an art gallery and souvenir shop.
BIBI KHANUM MOSQUE
Read moreFor the traveller arriving by car from Tashkent, the huge blue dome of Bibi Khanum rising behind the compact and colourful crowd on their way to the market is one of the first images of Samarkand the Timurid. It was in 1399, on his return from his campaign in India where his troops had set fire to the temples of the Zoroastrian and Hindu infidels, that Tamerlan decided to build the Masjid-i-Jami mosque, known today as Bibi Khanum, daughter of the Emperor of China and Tamerlan's favourite woman. The best architects and craftsmen from Khorassan, Azerbaijan and India worked on the construction of what was to be the largest mosque in Central Asia. The best location in the capital was chosen and Tamerlan laid the foundation stone on the most auspicious day, the fourth day of Ramadan 801 (10 May 1399). Ninety-five elephants, which Tamerlan had brought back from his conquests in Hinduhistan, maneuvered huge blocks of stone needed for construction. According to Cherif id Din, there were four hundred and eighty five-metre high blocks! Entrusting the supervision of the grandiose project to his most faithful collaborators, Tamerlan set off on new conquests in Asia Minor, and did not return to Samarkand until July 1404. According to Ruy Gonzalez de Clavijo, a Castilian ambassador and keen observer who visited Samarkand in August 1404, Tamerlan's first wife was actually named Cano. She was the daughter of Chiacao, emperor of the province of Samarkand and former king of Persia and Damascus, and it was in honour of Cano's mother that the mosque was built. Clavijo recounts how, on his return from Asia Minor, Tamerlan considered the gate too low and had it demolished and then rebuilt. The workers who took turns day and night were treated rather harshly. Those who worked in the pits had meat thrown at them like dogs, sometimes adding coins so that they could continue their hard work without respite. According to the historian Sharaf ad-Din, upon his return in 1404, Tamerlan fell into a black fury because Bibi Khanum, who must have been a strong-willed woman, had a madrasah and mausoleum built for herself right in front of the mosque. As later archaeological excavations showed, Tamerlan's fury may have been due to the fact that the madrasah's portal was not built in parallel with the mosque's portal. Whatever was the real reason for the Iron Emir's anger, legend has taken hold of it and the following story is told: while Tamerlan was fighting far from his lands, Bibi Khanum decided to surprise him by erecting the highest mosque ever built. Asked to hurry up, the architect ends up getting a kiss from her in exchange for her promise to finish the work on time. The kiss was so torrid and so hot that Bibi Khanum still had a mark on his cheek when the emperor returned. This one went into a frenzy. The felon architect climbed to the top of one of the minarets and flew forever to Persia. Bibi Khanum was thrown from the top of another minaret, and Tamerlan gave the order that in his empire all women should wear the veil so that their faces would no longer tempt the men when the husbands were at war.
At the time of its construction, the complex included four marble-paved galleries, covered with 400 domes and supported by 400 marble columns, which surrounded a huge inner courtyard measuring 130 m by 102 m. Two 50 m high minarets stood on either side of the 35 m high entrance portal and the portal of the large prayer hall, which was 40 m high. Four other minarets were located at each outer corner of the courtyard. To the north and south, two smaller mosques, each decorated with a dome resting on a lavishly decorated cylindrical drum, looked towards the centre of the courtyard where the Qur'an of Osman, the second largest Qur'an in Islam, dating from the seventh century, which Tamerlan brought back from Damascus, rested on a marble lectern. It is said that the suras were written in such large letters that imams could read them from the top of the colonnade. It is also said that as soon as it was finished, the mosque was already beginning to deteriorate. The haste of the architects probably had something to do with it and the earthquakes, one of which had its epicentre in the very centre of the mosque, did the rest. Armin Vambery, the false dervish who managed to visit Samarkand in 1863, describes a very damaged monument which was used as a garage for carts. Ten years later, Eugene Schuyller also went to Samarkand and described the courtyard of the mosque, which had been transformed into a cotton market: the large marble lectern on which the Koran Osman was placed was still there. He also reported on the popular belief that, to cure back pain, one had to crawl between the nine short, thick pillars supporting the lectern. Another superstition was that infertile women would come there in the morning on an empty stomach in order to procreate. Even today, you can still see women crawling between these pillars... The restorers worked for more than forty years to rebuild the mosque to gradually restore it to its original shape. The three domes have reappeared, but those of the north and south mosques are already losing their blue ceramic decorations.
JUMA MASJID - FRIDAY MOSQUE
Read moreFrom the outside, nothing, or almost nothing, allows us to guess the grandiose character of the Friday mosque. The monotony of a long blind wall is interrupted by an imposing double door made of finely crafted wood. A slender minaret, 33 m high, dominates the ensemble. The interior is more than surprising: a forest of carved wooden columns supports the ceiling of the mosque. Each pillar seems to have its own story, one of the most famous being the one from India. Its decoration is abstract, as is Islam, but one can nevertheless guess a human representation. By taking the time to study the various ornamentations, one can discover Zoroastrian symbols, representations of the Buddha, etc. Wealthy pilgrims or merchants who came to Khiva to do business sometimes offered the mosque a column carved in the style of their city, which would replace another column that was too old. The oldest, about fifteen in all, date from the 10th and 11th centuries. In total, the mosque has 213 columns, all of different ages and designs. The architecture of the Juma Mosque corresponds to the style of the first mosques that were gathering places. It commented on the Koran, but also discussed other issues relating to the organization of the social life of believers. The mihrab is placed in the centre of the huge hall 55 m long and 45 m wide. The light enters through two octagonal openings in the ceiling.
KALTA MINOR OR "SHORT MINARET"
Read moreLocated outside the madrasah, at the eastern corner of its façade, Kalta Minor was to be the highest minaret in the Muslim world, rising to 70 m. An architectural challenge for the time, but above all a height that was never reached, the work having been abandoned after the death of the khan when the minaret barely reached 29m. According to legend, the Khan of Bukhara, learning of the project from his rival Khiva and not being able to suffer from living in the shadow of a minaret larger than the Kalon minaret (it was said that when it was completed, Bukhara could be seen from its summit), planned to have the architect removed so that he could come and erect an even larger minaret in his city. What he learned, and so that his knowledge would benefit no one else, Khiva's khan decided to assassinate the architect as soon as his work was completed. As the Bukhara Khan matured the same project, the architect finally fled without asking for the rest, and the minaret remained forever truncated. The "short minaret" therefore only rises to 29 m, leaving the title of highest minaret in Bukhara: the Kalon minaret measures 49 m! The Kalta Minor nevertheless rests on a wide 14 m base, and is entirely and superbly decorated with green and blue majolica married to the distinctive green of Khiva. It is not usually possible to go up there, as the place is closed to tourists, but you can try your luck with the staff of the Orient Star Hotel, which has opened in the adjoining madrasah.
KARAKALPAKSTAN MUSEUM OF FINE ARTS
Read moreThe museum has a unique collection of Soviet avant-garde and post-avant-garde paintings assembled by Igor Savitsky. Despite the risk of being denounced as anti-communist and being deported to Siberia, this enthusiast managed to save more than 90,000 works by artists repressed during the Stalinist period, which he stored in the archives of the Nukus Museum. Nukus was far from Moscow and its totalitarian power, and the paintings were forgotten by the world, like a treasure buried in the sands of the desert. They only reappeared with perestroika and in 1988 a first exhibition was held at the Russian Museum in St. Petersburg. It includes works by Robert Falk, Yevgeny Lyssenko, Liubov Popova, David Chterenberg, Alexander Volkov, Alexander Nikolaev, known as Usto-Moumin, Vasily Rojdestvenski and works by Sokolov during his years in the Gulag. There is also a collection of copies that belonged to Fernand Léger, including works such as the portal of the Fountain of the Innocents. It is a treasure that alone justifies the trip to Noukous. The museum also has a floor dedicated to Karakalpak handicrafts. Once again, it is a unique collection of jewellery, fabrics, clothing: 8,000 pieces in total to present this little-known people, including in Uzbekistan.
However, despite the great wealth of the collection on display, less than 10% of the total works collected by Igor Savitsky have joined the museum.
POY KALON SET
Read moreIt is undoubtedly the most beautiful square of the city, and in any case the most monumental. The Mir-i-Arab madrasa faces the huge Kalon mosque and its terrible minaret, "the tower of death". Many historical films have been shot in these places, and even if the horsemen of Mohamed Chaybani Khan are not there every day, the students of the madrasa and the pilgrims who go to the mosque take care of the atmosphere. In the evening, the atmosphere is magical: we stroll on the deserted esplanade while enjoying the night illuminations of the minaret and the mosque.
The minaret Kalon. Five times a day, four muezzin climbed the 105 steps of its interior staircase to call to prayer. Their voices carried more than 8 km and the other minarets relayed the call in a radius of 16 km. The minaret was built in 1127 by the Karakhanid Arslan Khan and was not only used to call the faithful to prayer. In the 17th century, it was from its top that the condemned and other impure were thrown out. The minaret was also used as an observation point during the day and as a lighthouse at night. Every evening, a basin filled with oil was lit in the center of the rotunda located at the top. The caravans arriving from the desert could thus locate themselves, like ships approaching the ports. Genghis Khan, who quickly appreciated its strategic importance, spared the minaret while no other monument of Bukhara survived his passage. 48 m high, with foundations sinking several meters into the ground, the minaret bears its name well, kalon meaning "big". Slightly conical in shape, it is decorated with a succession of rings of fired bricks with different geometric patterns. These bricks were made with camel milk and bull blood! All this terrible beauty did not prevent General Frunze from firing a cannon at the symbol of the power of the holy Bukhara. Badly damaged, the minaret was restored in the 1930s. In the 1970s, an earthquake was not more lenient and made him lose his head, restored since then by the care of Unesco and equipped, since 2019, with a night lighting that does not let escape any detail! For security reasons, it is unfortunately no longer possible to climb the spiral staircase leading to the top of the minaret to enjoy the splendid view offered on Bukhara and the domes of the madrasa.
Kalon Mosque. This imposing jami mosque, the largest after Bibi Khanoum, was rebuilt several times. It is said that a first mud-brick mosque was built in 713, probably on the site of a Buddhist or Zoroastrian temple, a frequent appropriation in this century of religious conquest. The mihrab of the Kalon mosque would have been located further east, at the Ark. In the ninth century, the mosque, with an area of 2 ha, was rebuilt according to new plans. The numerous pillars supporting the structure were made of wood, a rare commodity that forced to reduce the surface to one hectare. It is said that a fire destroyed it in the 11th century, or that the minaret collapsed and almost destroyed it completely. In any case, it was rebuilt in the 12th century by Arslan khan and destroyed again when Genghis khan passed by in 1220. In 1514, the khan chaybanide Abdullah khan made build a new mosque whose dimensions (130 m on 80) answered the "golden number"; in 1545, his successor made decorate the mihrab of mosaics of it. The immense interior courtyard and the covered galleries with 288 domes could accommodate more than 10,000 faithful. The mosque has seven doors, one facing the sunrise, two facing the sunset and two on each side wing. In the right wing of the mosque, a very deep well is said to contain holy water; it is poured into a huge stone bowl ensuring that it stays fresh. The pilgrims make a vow while drinking it. In the center, a rotunda with eight doors - symbolizing the gates of paradise - was built by the last khan of Bukhara in memory of the martyrs who died during the destruction of the mosque by Genghis Khan. During the Soviet era, from 1924 to 1989, the mosque remained closed, and was transformed into a warehouse and a mill during the Second World War. The blue dome, the Kok Goumbaz, dominating the mihrab, and its portal have been restored with funding from Unesco, told us a holy man meditating in the shadow of a dome, and that is also why, he added, it was not returned to worship, and that non-believers can still admire the most beautiful mosque.
Madrasa Mir-i-Arab. It was built in 1535 by Sheikh Abdullah, a Yemeni religious leader and spiritual guide of Ubaydullah khan. The khan financed its construction through the sale of 3,000 Persian prisoners, Shiite Muslims who were considered infidels and therefore could be sold as slaves. During the Soviet era, this madrasa was the only one authorized to provide religious education in Central Asia. Today, it enjoys a considerable reputation and the students are very numerous. Its access is forbidden to visitors. From the outside, its appearance is imposing and its two blue domes make a beautiful echo to the Kok Goumbaz of the Kalian mosque. The khan Ubaydullah khan and the sheik Abdullah Mir-i-Arab are buried there.
ISMAIL SAMANI MAUSOLEUM
Read moreNicknamed "the pearl of the East", the mausoleum of the Samanides has long been forgotten at the bottom of a cemetery. When the archaeologist Shishkin discovered it in 1930, during the development of Samani Park, it was drowned among other graves, buried under several meters of earth, which saved it from the Mongolian tornado and a thousand years of history. Today the necropolis has disappeared, a park has been laid out around the mausoleum, and a basin has been dug to restore it to its original configuration. The Uzbeks venerate the founder of one of the most prestigious dynasties of Central Asia. The Pearl of the Orient is a witness to the golden age of Bukhara. Built at the beginning of the 10th century by Ismail Samani for his father Akhmad, this dynastic tomb is the second oldest mausoleum in the Muslim world. Its precise dating would make it possible to know whether the tradition of mausoleum building for Muslim dynasties originated here, or in Iraq, with the tomb of the Caliph Al Mountasir. Its architecture retains a Sogdian influence, but incorporates construction techniques that were revolutionary for the time. The mausoleum is conceived as a symbolic representation of the universe: a cube of just under 11 m on each side with four identical façades, symbolizing the earth and stability, surmounted by a semi-spherical dome which is the Sogdian representation of the universe. Above the door of the mausoleum is represented a circle in a square: the Zoroastrian symbol of eternity. Decorative techniques made of bricks assembled in groups of four or five in different directions were also an innovation that would mark the following centuries. The mausoleum has 18 different combinations, including three-dimensional. Its proportions and decorative motifs are based on the principle of the dynamic square, an architectural discovery that gives the ensemble a power and harmony rarely equalled. Depending on the position of the sun, the brickwork gives the monument a different light and appearance, moving, despite its sober form. The builders used baked brick, cemented with egg yolk and camel milk. This unusual material and its skillful assembly allowed the monument to cross more than a millennium without suffering from earthquakes. Pilgrims walk three times around the mausoleum reciting prayers. Some tourists too, because they say that if you make a wish to come back to Bukhara... the wish comes true.
TCHOR MINOR
Read moreLost in the alleys east of Liab-i-Khaouz. Tchor Minor means "four minarets". In fact, they are four towers that marked the entrance to a madrasah, now disappeared, built in 1807 by a wealthy Turkmen merchant. Each turret symbolized a city: Termez, Denau, Kounia-Ourgentch and Mecca. Originally, the madrasa had 59 cells and was run by the Sufi Sheikh, Khali Niaz Kholi, one of the most respected and influential naqchbandi of the early 19th century. A staircase leads to a vaulted room and then to the roof.
BOZO KHAUZ MOSQUE
Read moreThe huge iwan is set on twenty wooden pillars of Karagatch. The decoration of the wooden ceiling caissons, as well as the painted stalactites adorning the tops of the fine pillars, make this mosque one of the most beautiful in the city. When the Emir went to Friday prayer, carpets were laid on the floor from the Ark door to the entrance of the mosque. The mosque itself dates from 1712, the 12m high iwan, making it one of the highest in Central Asia, was added in the 19th century and the minaret in 1917.
FARKHAD YUNUSOV
Read moreThroughout the year, Farkhad brings you to the discovery of an historic and contemporary Uzbekistan. A perfect francophone and fine connoisseur of the desires and needs of a Western clientele, it will benefit from its experience on the ground and an excellent network of contacts across the country. Based in Tashkent, Farkhad operates both in Samarkand and in Ferghana Valley or in the end of Karakalpakstan. Perfect for organising a surprising stay, but without bad surprises, and come back with exceptional memories and meetings.
YODGORLIK FACTORY
Read moreThe visits of this workshop are free and allow to follow all the stages of silk manufacturing. We start with the shed where the cocoons are kept in whole bags and where the workers make a first sorting according to the size, the quality, the state of the cocoons, before sending them to the next step. The boiling is done in large pots, after they have been preheated in the oven. The purpose of the operation is to free the thread of all the glue which maintains the cocoon in its shape. The chrysalis dies during this operation, without the cocoon having been damaged to remove it. The thread can then be unwound before being woven into carpets and fabrics, and then dyed. The colors used are from natural products (onion peels, pomegranate, turquoise, ladybugs ...). 200 people work in the factory, producing 50 to 60,000 m of silk each year, but can increase production to 200,000 m if necessary. The most interesting - and beautiful - part of the visit is to see the traditional looms, which are all between 100 and 200 years old. The workers there are only asked to weave the best quality fabrics. They will give you a demonstration without any problem. You can also ask to see the more modern workshops, where much of the work is mechanized. At the entrance, a store sells fabrics and rugs. Prices are obviously much higher than in the bazaar.
KOUNIA ARK
Read moreFor more than a thousand years, several palaces were periodically destroyed and rebuilt in the same place. The oldest building still standing is the Ak Sheik Bobo Tower, dating from the 12th century. In the 17th century, Arang Khan, the son of Anusha Khan, built around the ruins of this fortified tower a throne room and the walls protecting the palace from outside and inside the city. But it was under Altuzar Khan, the founder of the Kungrad dynasty at the beginning of the 19th century, that the construction of the present palace began. It included several inner courtyards where the mosque, the guard, the chancellery, the throne room, the mint and the harem were located. The empty space behind the large gates of the palace once included various courtyards. In the first one, the visitors were in the antechamber, in the second one was the guard, then came the chancellery. To the right of this large courtyard is the Summer Mosque (1838). Its immense iwan with six columns and walls covered with blue majolica is of breathtaking beauty: glazed tiles with vegetal arabesques and geometric designs made by renowned 19th century master craftsmen Abdullah and Ibadulla Djinn.
The Mint, located at the end of the inner courtyard, is now transformed into a museum. In the 19th century, working in finance in Khiva had little to do with the life of a golden boy. In order that their knowledge might not disperse, those who minted the coins there were prisoners in the old citadel, and did not come out until after their death. It is in the second inner courtyard, Kurinish Khana, built in 1804, that the khan received his subjects under the shelter of high walls. The throne room itself consists of a long empty room with high ceilings. The silver-leaf veneered wooden throne in the large niche at the back of the room was unfortunately "emigrated" to Russia. Carved and gilded gantch (wood) panels decorate the walls and the ceiling is also richly decorated with polychrome geometric patterns.
The two-column iwan, open to the north to take advantage of the cooler winds during the warmer months, is decorated with majolica in cool colours made with cobalt powder for blue or copper for green. The ceiling, on the other hand, is decorated with warm colours, yellow and red, Zoroastrian symbols of sun and fire. The sun or stars, often symbolized on the ceilings, consecrate the khan as an intermediary between earth and sky, thus God. The wooden doors as well as the columns are entirely carved. Their flared and hollowed base allowed them to be driven onto their marble or wooden base, insulating the wood from the stone with camel's wool, which was said to have anti-seismic properties. Some say that this iwan was the harem, but the women's apartments were actually in the northern part of Kounia Ark. Built at the end of the 19th century by Muhamad Rakhim Khan II, they are unfortunately closed to the public. From the interior of Kounia Ark, a small staircase leads to Ak-Cheikh-Bobo, "the tower of the white sheik", built in the 12th century and so named in memory of the sheik who lived there in the 14th century. At the same time royal residence, guard tower and watchtower, it offers, from its iwan on the upper floor, a panoramic view.
BAZAR CHORSU
Read moreChorsu, which means the «four roads», is the biggest bazaar in the centre of Tashkent. The large hall, built after the earthquake of 1966, welcomes products from all over the country: dry fruit on the floor, spices and condiments on the ground floor. In recent years, Chorsu has undergone some changes. The open-air meat market, where one trébuchait on the heads of freshly shaved sheep, and where even the night was a smell of blood and fat, was moved to a new closed and glass building. The previously reserved space is now host all year round and seed sellers, except during the melon season, where the production of cucurbits from all over the country occurs.
At the foot of the grand hall are still clowns, wrestlers and acrobats of all kinds, attracting a dense and enthusiastic crowd. On the other side of the grand hall, the clothing shops have also been renovated and rebuilt in a hard way. The large bus station has been reorganized, and the nearby intersection, from where to reach the old town of Chorsu, has been completely redone. You will find a model supermarket as well as an amazing building with a children's crib and at the top of which you can climb through a spiral staircase to admire the view over the bazaar or the mountains.
HAREM
Read moreIts five high, single-column iwans open onto a long inner courtyard lined with a string of summer and winter apartments. Five iwans: one for the khan and the other four for each of his wives... The figure has made several generations of tourists dream, but it is very classic and does not take into account the captives who lived in bulk in the rooms surrounding the courtyard. The apartments of the khan and his wives all have the same architecture: a high iwan open to the northeast, to avoid the baking sunlight of the summer months, and a small adjoining room that is supposed to keep a bearable temperature during the winter months. The slaves and family members of the khan's women lived in the rooms and small iwans lining the courtyard. The ensemble was decorated by the best craftsmen of the time, whose talent seems to have been evident in all parts of the construction: neither the openwork windows of the winter rooms, nor the finely chiselled wooden columns, nor the wooden coffers of the ceilings painted with geometric motifs. The walls of the iwans, entirely decorated with blue and white majolica, are due to the master craftsman Abdullah Djinn who also built the Ark Mosque. The stylistic resemblance is obviously striking, but the proportions are more important here. The walls of the iwans are painted in cool colours while the ceilings are painted in warm colours. At the end of the harem is a room with a ceiling supported by ten wooden columns.
OULOUGH BEGH OBSERVATORY
Read moreUnfortunately, there is so little left to see of this famous observatory that some people will "miss out", which would be a mistake, because the only view of the underground part of the giant sextant is worth the visit: an 11 m arc lined with marble parapets where the degrees are indicated. The site of the observatory was long lost in memory and was rediscovered at the beginning of the century by Viatkin, a schoolmaster with a keen interest in archaeology, whose tomb can be seen at the entrance to the site. Ulugh Begh was a scholar, poet and mathematician, considered one of the greatest astronomers of his time. While telescopes were still unknown at the time, he wrote an astronomical catalogue with the coordinates of more than 1,000 stars. He was able to determine the rotation cycle of the planet Saturn as well as the length of the stellar year with less than one minute of error. But his son, allied with religious fanatics, put an end to his work by assassinating him in 1449. Not content to make the man of science disappear, who dared to discuss the existence of God with his students, the fanatics destroyed his achievements and especially the most disrespectful: the observatory which housed the largest sextant in the world: 90 °, while the usual sextants are 60 °. The circular building, 45 m high, had three levels with walls decorated with frescoes depicting the stars and the solar system. The descriptions of the time make us bitterly regret their destruction. The whole site was ransacked, the stones used for other constructions, and the underground part of the sextant completely buried, only to be rediscovered centuries later.
The museography has been reworked. But the museum has gained in lighting and enhancement what it has lost in museographic funds. Fewer astronomy-related objects will be found here than in the old building: in particular, the ceiling with its vaulted ceiling and the astronomy tables of Uulough Begh have been lost, and the focus has shifted to a few objects from the Timurid period that are of no real interest and, above all, devoid of any explanation or connection between them. The large mural depicting the life of Uulough Begh, and in particular his assassination by his own son, has been replaced by two fairly conventional scenes that stick with the official story for which a parricide has no place in a museum. Work your guide to dig up the story!
ARK, EMIR'S FORTRESS
Read moreThis artificial hill of about twenty meters high was the residence of the Lords of Bukhara. Twenty metres high, many of which are due to the piling up of the ruins of palaces and citadels destroyed and rebuilt in the same place, as a result of the conquests and looting of the city. The oldest foundations found on the site date back more than 2,500 years, but the part visible today is from the 18th century. According to the legend reported by a 16th century Bukhara historian, the founder of Bukhara is Prince Siyavush-ibn Keivakus. The young prince, fleeing from his father, crossed the Jeihun (Amou Daria) and took refuge with Afrosyab, the legendary king, founder of Samarkand. He was welcomed with kindness and married Afrosyab's daughter. Siyavush built a citadel on his new land, but he came into conflict with his father-in-law, and his father-in-law had him murdered a few years later. His body was buried at the foot of his palace, near the east gate, and for a long time the inhabitants of Bukhara worshipped his grave. In the 8th century, the Zoroastrian city was invaded by the Arab conquerors, the citadel destroyed, and a mosque was erected there in 713, in place of the Temple of Fire. Rebuilt by the Samanids, then by the Karakhanids, it was each time destroyed successively by the Kara-Kitai and the Korezmshah and then, in the 13th century, by the Mongols, who, faithful to their reputation, left only ashes. In the 16th century, the Chaybanids undertook the construction of a citadel worthy of their ambitions by raising an artificial hill 800 m in diameter and 20 m high, but it did not withstand the attacks of Nadir Shah. The palace that can be visited today dates back to the Uzbek khanats of the 18th and early 20th centuries. At that time, the Ark was a city within the city inhabited by more than 3,000 people. The complex included gardens, administrative buildings, cowsheds, depots, the Treasury, the armoury, stables, prisons, a mosque, mausoleums, jewellers' shops and the residence of the emir, his wives, family members and slaves in their service. Unfortunately, only 20% of these constructions remain today. Indeed, in September 1920, the Bolshevik army, commanded by General Mikhail Frounze, fired a cannon on the citadel. A fire broke out as Emir Alim Khan fled. We're guessing he might have set it off himself before he fled. The tour begins with the west gate built in 1740 by Nadir Shah. The monumental gate is flanked by two turrets. When Armin Vambery stayed in Bukhara in 1863, he described the Ark as a "den of tyranny" and shuddered at the thought of the Westerners who were then confined there. The door was surrounded by fourteen ornate bronze cannons, a trophy of the Emir's victorious campaign against the Khanate of Kokand. It was also adorned with a clock - disappeared - with an unusual history. Giovanni Orlandi, the Italian watchmaker who made it, had been kidnapped by slave traders in Orenburg in the mid-19th century. The Italian saved his head by promising the Emir to build him a time measuring machine. The Emir was capricious and never tired of the wonders of European technology, but the watchmaker was a believer, stubborn, loved wine and refused to convert to Islam, which was fatal to him. He was the last European to have his head cut off. The covered terrace above the arch of the gate was intended for the Emir and the princely family, who had a front row seat to attend the celebrations and public executions that took place in Registan Square. Beneath the gate, the only remnant from the 19th century, a vaulted corridor is pierced by twelve dark niches, narrow, unsanitary prisons where the personal enemies of the Emir were locked up. One of the niches housed a lantern that burned permanently, to celebrate the memory of Siyavush. It is through this corridor that visitors enter the Ark where souvenir vendors have replaced the prisoners. Most of the buildings such as the apartments of the kushbegi or the kori khana have been transformed into museums: museums of History, Archaeology and Numismatics.
The korunishkhana or throne room. The vast courtyard surrounded by iwan dates from the 17th century. Almost entirely destroyed in the fire of 1920, it has been restored. In the iwan at the back of the court is the throne of the emir in engraved marble, made by craftsmen from Nourata in 1669. During the coronation and official events, the floor was covered with carpet. In the agorakhana, or musical pavilion, an orchestra punctuated the various events of the day, and traditional makom accompanied the Emir's outings and all the official events that took place in the main square. The western part of the fortress offers a splendid view of the monuments of Bukhara, especially Poy Kalon. You can also climb to the steel tower in front of the fortress on the other side of the boulevard (40,000 soums). There you will have a dominant view of the historical center of Bukhara. At sunset, low lights illuminate the fortress walls.
KHUDAIAR KHAN PALACE
Read moreThe construction of the palace of Khudaiar Khan, the last khan of Kokand, took 11 years from 1863 to 1873. It mobilized no less than 16,000 workers and 80 craftsmen from Rishtan, Samarkand and other cities in the country. Five years later, the Russians destroyed most of it. The building had a large enclosure with twelve gates bearing the names of the cities to which they led.
The palace is now reached by a paved road that leads up to a monumental gate flanked by two fine turrets. The long façade of the building is entirely decorated with glazed bricks, which owe much to the restorers. The majolica on the left wing were made by craftsmen from Namangan and Andijan, those on the right by craftsmen from Kokand. All the courtyards were renovated after 2010.
Originally, the palace had 7 courtyards and 114 rooms, which is as many suras as the Koran counts. Only 4 courtyards and 19 rooms remain today, most of which have been converted into showrooms.
The visit usually begins in the left wing of the palace, where the former reception hall of the khan used to be. It is decorated from floor to ceiling in the traditional Uzbek style. A model of the palace shows the harem (the khan had 43 wives) which was destroyed during the Soviet takeover of Kokand. Admire the quality of the decorations. On the top right, you will notice a darker space: these are the original, unrenovated colours. Guests entered the reception hall through a small room to the north, where the khan's secretary was located. The complex overlooks a sumptuous inner courtyard bordered by a magnificent 15th century iwan from a mosque built by Tamerlan at Chakhimardan. On the eastern flank, the wooden posts supporting the iwan are new. The original posts are exposed under the south iwan, itself supported by original wooden columns.
It is said that the khan liked to have the heads of his enemies brought to him and stacked at the foot of one of the pillars of this iwan. Of these warlike customs, only two cannons remain: the first, short and artistically twisted, is a local production of the 18th century; the second, long and thin, comes from China and was taken from the enemy during the war of 1840 against the Kashgar khanate.
In the southwest corner of the courtyard, a small reception room housed Khudaiar Khan's secret talks. It is decorated with 114 different motifs, as many as there were rooms in the original palace.
The other wings of the palace, especially those where European diplomats and dignitaries were received, have been transformed into a museum. There are various archaeological finds from the valley, as well as interesting photographs of the construction of the Ferghana Canal and the excavation of the 47 tombs of the village of Pap. Other areas are devoted to the weaponry of the Timurid period, but also exhibit some rifles and two unusual French and Italian shields from the 15th century which were donated to the museum on the occasion of an exhibition in 1924.
A second and then a third inner courtyard lead to the old mosque and other rooms with ceilings decorated in the traditional style. They are transformed into showrooms. In the last room, you can take a look at Khudaiar Khan's diary.
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