KOI DARVOZA - EASTERN GATES

Built in the 19th century, they are located in Palvan Kari street which starts from the eastern gates of Ichan kala. Although their architecture is reminiscent of the Ichan kala doors, their appearance is much more massive and free of any colourful decoration. Between Palvan Darvoza and Koi Darvoza stood a large bazaar where animals, horses, sheep, camels and slaves were sold. Even today, a bazaar is still held in Dichan kala, still very colourful, but fortunately the goods have changed.

Leaving Ichan kala through the east gate, the bazaar is on the left and two minarets stand in line with the gate. The first is the Sayyid Niyaz Shalikarbey Mosque. The complex was built between 1835 and 1845, making it one of the oldest minarets in Khiva. Its flared top, decorated with small niches carved into the structure to give relief to the decorations, resembles more the minarets of Registan in Samarkand than the other minarets of Khiva. A little further on, the Palvan Kari minaret yields 3 m to the first with a height of 21 m. More recently, it was erected in 1905 and is named after the rich merchant who undertook its construction and that of the adjacent madrasah and mosque. With a simpler architecture than the previous one, it seems more massive and its crown less imposing. Looking towards Ichan kala, one can see the impeccable alignment of the two minarets of Dichan kala with the minaret of the Friday Mosque in Ichan kala.