Bukhara - Pearl of Uzbekistan

Bukhara Bukhara, city, western Uzbekistan, capital of Bukhoro Viloyat (region). It is located in an oasis on the Zeravshan River. Also called Bokhara or Bukhara, the city is situated in a region producing natural gas, cotton, fruit, and silk. It has industries manufacturing textiles, processed karakul pelts, carpets, and clothing. Among Bukhoro's many architectural monuments, some dating from the 9th century, are several mosques, the Ark Fortress (now a museum), and the mausoleum of Ismail Samani (9th-10th century). A teachers college is also there.


Bukhara was once a centre of learning renowned throughout the Islamic world. It was here that the great Sheikh Bahautdin Nakshbandi lived. He was a central figure in the development of the mystical Sufi approach to philosophy, religion and Islam. In Bukhara there are more than 350 mosques. Founded by the 1st century ad, Bukhoro was an important trade and cultural center when it was captured (early 8th century) by the Arabs. It was a leading center of Islamic learning under the Arabs and the Persian Samanid dynasty, which held the city in the 9th and 10th centuries. In the 16th century it became the capital of an Uzbek khanate, and in the 18th century became an emirate. The emirate was conquered in 1866 by Russia, which held it as a protectorate from 1868 to 1920; then the emir was removed, and the city was made the capital of the Bukharan People's Soviet Republic. From 1924 to 1991 the city was incorporated into the Uzbek Soviet Socialist Republic (SSR). Uzbekistan became an independent republic in 1991.


PLACES TO VISIT


ARK CITADEL
The time of construction of this monument is thought to be the beginning of the 1st millennium a.d., but it is also possible that some sort of fort or temple stood on this site even earlier.The overall area of the fortress with all palaces, buildings, and fortifications is 34,675 square meters. Before there were two gates, at present time, only the western gate, which was restored in 1921-1923, remains.From the most ancient times the Ark was the fortified residence of the rulers of Bukhara. Everything could be found there - palaces, temples, barracks, offices, the mint, warehouses, workshops, stables, an arsenal, and even a prison. Nowadays there is a museum inside. During the history of existence of the city, the Ark was repeatedly destroyed, but it was invariably restored by the new ruler. In the 16 century under the Shaibanids, the citadel was restored to the form in which it has come down to us. All the buildings on the territory of the Ark were built for the most part from the 17th to the 20th centuries. Archeological excavations are constantly being conducted along the eastern section of the fortress. Archeologists have found remnants of the foundation, sooty flues, and heating passages built under the floors with outlets of ceramic pipe which allow researchers to suggest that there was once a secret water-supply system in case of siege. This supports the theory that there was a secret well in the Ark from which water was drawn be underground water lines from a pond to the south of the fortress.

CHOR-MINOR MADRASSAH, which was built in 1807 by Khalif Niazkul. He built the madrassah with a cozy courtyard and a pond, a summer mosque, and a four-turret building opening into the architectural complex. Char-Minar means "the four minarets". It draws attention to itself with its unusual architectural solution, the main focus of which is the four turrets with their sky blue cupolas, which have nothing in common with ordinary minarets. The cube shaped building is crowned with a slightly flattened cupola, it is without any architectural decor and is finished in ordinary brick. Its facade is partially engulfed by a disproportionably large arched portal against which the corner turrets are pressed, and only cupolas ornamented with glazed tile bands of geometrical figures. The four sky-blue cupolas look majestic and beautiful against the background of the cloudless sky. Among the one-storey buildings of old Bukhara, the original beauty of Char-Minar is a pleasant addition to the skyline of the city.


ISMOIL SAMONIY MAUSOLEUM was built during the reign of Ismail Samani, one of the most outstanding members of the Samanids dynasty, who ruled Bukhara from 892 until 907. Originally, the mausoleum was intended for the grave of Ismail Samani’s father, Akhmad, but later became the burial vault of the Samanids. The external composition of the mausoleum seems rather simple, a hemisphere atop a cube. Burnt brick is used as a building material. All four facades are identical. The unusually beautiful brickwork of the walls gives the building a sort of delicate lightness.


The KALYAN MINARET was erected in 1127 by Arslan-khan and is considered to be the symbol of the city. According to records of the time, the builders made an error in its construction, and it soon collapsed. When the remnants were cleared away, Arslan-khan ordered that a new minaret, stronger and more beautiful, the likes of which hadn’t been ever seen in all of the Muslim East, be built. The craftsman resumed construction only after he was convinced that the mortar had hardened. The Kalian Minaret, built of burnt brick and plaster mortar, rises to a height of forty-six meters above the ground. The minaret is decorated with 14 parallel bands none of which are repeated. During the repairs in 1924, the minaret was faced with glazed bricks where the frieze had been. At the present time, the lower part of the minaret has been restored and the layers of dirt accumulated over the ages cleaned off. The inside of the minaret is hollow. It is possible to go up the minaret via a special foot bridge.  Throughout the eight centuries of its existence, it served as a watch tower and a lighthouse for trade caravans. The guard-post for observers to notify the city of approaching danger remains in place. In the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, the minaret acquired an unsavory reputation and was known as a “tower of death”: the condemned were hurled to their deaths from this tower upon the Emir's order. Today this outstanding work of architecture, the perfect architectural forms of which have long served as an example for similar works in the Muslim East, still remains the tallest minaret in the Muslim East.


MAGOKI-ATTORI MOSQUE. None of the ancient monuments of the city have caused as many puzzles for archeologists and historians as this one. The name of the mosque itself indicates the approximate time of its construction: the first part of the name, “Magoki”, means “pit” or “hole” and suggests that the mosque stood much lower than the present level of the city streets and squares. During the excavations led by a great scientist, V. Shishkin, the remains of two buildings were found: the first one was the ancient Zoroastrian temple, and the second, above the Mosque, named “Magoki-Attori”. The Mosque was rebuilt in the 12th century, but only the southern facade and portals remain till now. An earthquake destroyed the Mosque in 1860 and the double dome collapsed; it was rebuilt in the 20th century.

The LYABI-KHAUZ is considered to be the center of the Old City. Plaza Lyabi-khauz is derived from Persian and means “ensemble near the pool”. The main element of this ensemble is the pool. Ensemble Lyabi-khauz is comprised of three monumental structures. These are:

- Kukeldash madrassah (16th century) built by Abdullah II was, at the time, the biggest Islamic School in Central Asia.

- Nadir Devanbegi Madrassah (16th century) was inteded to be a caravan saray, but according to the order of the ruler Imam Kulimkhan, was reconstructed into a Madrassah.

- Nadir Devanbegi Khanaka (winter mosque) was built at the same time as the Lyabi-khauz (16th century).