Uzbekistan: Samarkand – Shah-i-Zinda, Gur-e-Amir Mausoleum, and Bibi-Khanym Mosque

Besides the famous and spectacular Registan, Samarkand has a trip of other spectacular Timurid monumental complexes – Shah-i-Zinda, Bibi-Khanym Mosque, and Gur-e-Amir Mausoleum. First, Shah-i-Zinda is a collection of mausoleums and tombs in three groups – lower, middle, and upper. The lower groups has a massive blue-domed 16th century mosque, in the middle part there several 14th century tombs with blue-tiled iwans facing each other. And finally the upper part contains the oldest tombs from the 13th century. Gur-e Amir means “Tomb of the King” in Persian and is the tomb of Timur (Tamerlane), the ruler of Samarkand. Interestingly the tomb was originally being built for Timur’s son who died early and Timur himself was buried here upon his death. Structurally, it’s similar to other things in Samarkand – massive iwan (portal), tons of blue mosaic, and humongous bulbous dome, but it’s all beautiful no matter how much of it you see. And finally, Bibi-Khanym Mosque was one of the largest mosque in the entire Islamic world in the 15th century. It was seriously ruined over the years but a lot of it is being restored diligently and meticulously. The mosque was built in 1404 on orders of Timur (Tamerlane) who wanted to built the most magnificent mosque in the world. The mosque is rectangular where the walls enclose a country yard. A massive blue dome is the most spectacular part of the structure with a iwan (vault) that is just stunning in decoration.