Posted on 30.05.2013, 09.10.2014
According to the Iranian epic poem Shahnameh, it was founded by King Siavash, son of Shah Kai Kavoos, one of the mythical Iranian kings. Officially, it was founded in 500 BCE, subsequently being mastered by Alexander the Great, Seleucid Empire, the Greco-Bactrians, and the Kushan Empire. When the Islamic armies arrived here in 650 AD, they found a multi-ethnic and multi-religious collection of peoples, and didn't managed to impose their religion until 751. In 850 it became the capital of the Samanid Empire, which brought about a revival of Iranian language and culture, becaming the intellectual center of the Islamic world. In 999 AD the Samanids were toppled by the Karakhanid Turkic dynasty, later it became part of the kingdom of Khwarazm Shahs, and in 1220 it was leveled by Genghis Khan. It recovered and was part of first the Chaghatay Khanate, then the Timurid Empire. Capital city of the Khanate of Bukhara in 16th century, and since 18th century of the Emirate of Bukhara, in 1920 was conquered by russians. You guessed it, of course, that it's about Bukhara,.situated on the Silk Roads, "one of the best examples of well preserved Islamic cities of Central Asia of the 10th to 17th centuries, with an urban fabric that has remained largely intact", reason why was designated an UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1993.
In the first postcard, in the left, is the Minaret Kalyan (Great Minaret), the only structure belonging to the mosque built between 1121 and 1127 by the Karakhanid ruler Arslan-khan which survived Genghis Khan's wrath. It is a circular-pillar brick tower, narrowing upwards, of 9m diameter at the bottom, 6m overhead and 45.6m high, also known as the Tower of Death, because until as recently as the early 20th century criminals were executed by being thrown from the top. Its base has narrow ornamental strings belted across it made of bricks which are placed in both straight or diagonal fashion, and the frieze is covered with a blue glaze with inscriptions. In the first postcard is also the main portal of Kalyan Mosque (Maedjid-i kalyan), arguably completed in 1514, and equal with Bibi-Khanym Mosque in Samarkand in size. The inscription under arch portal dates time of reconstruction. This is a poem from Quran, at the end of which can be seen the date 1514-1515. In 1541 at the entrance of main portal was fixed a marble board with cut text of Abdullaziz I, this order runs that Bukharan inhabitants were free of some taxes payment.
In the second and the third postcard is a monument not as old, but which is notable for its architecture - the Chor-Minor Madrassah, 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", which have nothing in common with ordinary minarets. The cube shaped building is crowned with a slightly flattened cupola, without any architectural decor. Its facade is partially engulfed by a disproportionably large arched portal, and the four sky-blue cupolas look majestic and beautiful against the background of the cloudless sky.
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