Turkmenistan: Ancient Merv – Mausoleum of Sultan Sanjar

Mausoleum of Sultan Sanjar is the crown jewel of the massive and sprawling ancient city of Merv – a true architectural masterpiece! It was built in 1157 to honor Ahmad Sanjar, a prominent Seljuk ruler of the state of Khotasan in the ancient Silk Road city of Merv, at his time one of the world’s largest cities with a population exceeding one million. Ahmad Sanjar commissioned the mausoleum, known as “Dar al-Akhira” (House of the Afterlife) and after his death in 1157, he was buried here, though his remains were later hidden during the Mongol invasion of 1221. The mausoleum is a cube-shaped structure measuring 27m per side, with 14m-high walls and a 38mr-high double dome (originally clad in blue tiles, visible from a day’s march). local legend claims Sanjar fell in love with a peri (fairy) who imposed three conditions: he could not touch her waist, see her feet, or watch her comb her hair. When Sanjar broke these rules, discovering her supernatural nature, she fled. He built the mausoleum with a hole in the dome, hoping she would visit his grave after his death.