Samarkand ( about 500 thousand  inhabitants) also belongs to the most ancient cities. The city celebrated its 2500 years jubilee earlier than Bukhara did. Samarkand was also situated on the Great Silk Road, which gradually determined its economic and cultural development.

  The word Samarkand consists of  2 words: “samar”- fertile and “kand”- place, settlement. The city was really widely wellknown by its fruit gardens and beautiful green streets and squares. In economic  plan Samarkand also had  a great importance. Since old times they manufactured  here different fabrics, high quality silk and cotton paper and other industrial goods.

  Like other cities and villages of  the area Samarkand  had known both the periods of a particular rise and flourishing and periods of severe defeat. The paticular period in the history of Bukhara comes in the 14^th century when Timur comes to power. Samarkand becomes the capital of the great empire  and gets the glory of one of the most beautiful cities of Central Asia.

Most of the cultural monuments presereved up to now are dated back to the period of Timur and Timurids. Timur ( the end of the 14^th – the beginning of the 15^th cc.) liked to repeat: “The whole world  does not worth to have more than one leader. Of course he himself – the only person – wished to rule the whole world. And according to that wish his capital had been to be built with big and beautiful palaces. The service of Persian , Khoresm, Indian, Chinese and other masters is the fact that the city was started to be called “the pearl of the east”.

  In the latest history Samarkand  also plays a very important role. After the revolution of the beginning of the 20^th century  the city was in  1924-1930 the capital of th Soviet  Usbekistan.

 Nowadays Samarkand is the center of the same named region, where the big industrial enterprises are functioning ( textile, electronic, engineering, food industries). There are universities, institutes, theater of opera and ballet, palaces of culture and stadiums here.

Splendid architectural monuments of architecture  which really make the city unmemorible are famous all over the world.

  Visit the famous Registan Square, Bibi Khanum Mosque , Gur Emir Mausoleum and you will also agree with this statement.

  Registan Square  has its modern view  since the 17^th century. During Timur the squre was covered with thick layer of sand,  from here its name appeared ( the word “Registan” means “sandy square” ). From here Timur started his numerous military compains. If residents wanted to celebrate something or to express a protest they also came here. The first building in the square design was  Ulugbek Madrassah ( 15^th century). It is one of the oldest madrassahs in Central Asia. Ulugbek was one of Timurs’ grandsons, famous not only as one of the most educated persons of that time, but also as the great astronomer. He did a lot to  enlighten his

Citizens: by his order they built 3 large madrassahs, the buildings of which are preserved up to now. Samarkand Madrassah  differs from 2 others  by big size, severe propotions and beautiful décor. The building is beautifully decorated with mosaics and majolika both inside and outside.

The portal which occupies two third of fasade is also decorated with geometrical ornaments “girih” and quatations from Koran. The main colours of hand made plates are  light blue, green and white. Two floors of Madrassah are occupied by classes and living rooms, there are also a mosque and lecture halls here.

  In the 17^th century the construction of registan square was continued.  The ruler of Samarkand Yalangtush ordered to build another madrassah opposite Ulugbek Madrassah which later got the name Sher Dor. The name means “building with lions”, as the portal is decorated with pictures of lions ( which looks more as tigers). This building by its size and plan fully repeats its visavi.

 Later (but also in the 17^th century ) Yalangtush ordered to build one more madrassah in Registan.  First they erected mosque on one line with Ulugbek Madrassah but  the square still did not have completely designed view, as the nothern part  remained opened. That’s why it was decided to attach a mosque to the building. The third madrassah in Registan got the name Tillya-kori which means “Decorated with gold”. In interia design they really used a lot of gold. So the construction of Registan was finished and since that time it has its modern veiw.

   Bibi-Khanum Mosque was built at the beg. of the 14^th – the end of the 15^th cc  According to Timur wish it had to become the biggest mosque in Central Asia. Its size was 110x170 m.

Timur wanted to see it finished as soon as possible,  that is why 2000 artizans did not stop a work here even at night.    The construction was done very fast and that’s why it started to be damaged  gradually even during Timurs life. By the remained fragments of the décor you can imagine how beautiful the building was after it was finished.

   Complex of mausoleums is located in the northern part of the city on one of the hills of Afrasiab. By the order of Timur some membes of the dynasty and his neariest  comrade in arms

were burried here. Mausoleums built on their graves and some mosques form the real street,

where you can see  both tourists and Muslims-pilgrims every day.

   Gur Emir mausoleum( “tzar’s grave”) became the family sepulca. It was erected over the grave

of Muhammad-Sultan, one of the beloved grandsons of Timur at the end of the 14^th century.

Timur himself, his sons Shahruh and Miranshoh , grandson Ulugbek  and some more persons were burried here too. Many artizans took part in the  design of  the Mausoleum , it is remarkable for  it’s unusual  magnificence and  diversity of décor.  Its ribbled blue dome is attracting your eyes from far away. In the inner rooms you are admired by  majolika ornaments,  stone carving and  marvelous  gildy motiffs of the vault of the inner dome, which are made not from the carved ganch (as you could imagine) but from the  gildy paper- mashe.

In this upper  hall  there are only stones over Timurids graves, but the graves themselves are  on the “lower flore”.  Grave stone  of dark green nefrite is lying over the grave of the person who wanted to become the only ruler of the Universe…

   Observatory of Ulugbek is undoubtedly the witness of the greatest level of the development of science in the epock of Timurids.   In the observatory built by the order of Ulugbek he worked  together with his  like- minded persons Kasy Zade Rumi, Ali-Kushchi and others.  With the help of his instruments and  exact calculations Ulugbek could position 1018 stars and  constellations.

And the results of his research were so exact that they could hardly deffer from the modern ones,

performed by the electronic equipment. After Ulugbek was murdered his enemies ruined the building of the observatory. During many years nothing was known about the location of the observatory and the trace of the famous Ulugbek library are not discovered till now.

Only in 1908 Russian archaeologist Vyatkin discovered the ruins of the observatory and  ascertained that secstant- the main instrument of Ulugbek- is preserved by fortune.

There are other monunments in Samarkand  worthy to be visited.  Samarkand market is worth to be visited ; there you can watch the everyday life, habits and traditions.

Samarkand