Samarkand - the Capital of Tamerlane
Samarkand is situated in the valley of the river Zarafshan. It is the second largest city of Uzbekistan and is of the same age as the city of Babylon or Rome. The history of Samarkand is about 2,500 years old and has witnessed many upheavals during the times of Alexander the Great, the Arabic Conquest, Genghis-Khan Conquest and lastly Tamerlane's. Hence, the culture of Samarkand was developed and mixed together with the Iranian, Indian, Mongolian and a bit of the Western and Eastern cultures. Majestic and beautiful city Samarkand has a marvelous and attractive power. Poets and historians of the past called it "Rome of the East, The beauty of sublunary countries, The pearl of the Eastern Muslim World". Its advantageous geographical position in the Zarafshan valley put Samarkand to the first place among cities of Central Asia.
Over the history this legendary city on the Silk Road went through growths and decays, suffered from destroying invasions of foreign rulers and again revived, becoming more beautiful. Trade routes to the west, to Persia, to the east, to China, to the south, to India, intersected here and formed intersections of the Silk Road.
Today Samarkand is the treasure of unique antiquity spirit. It is included in the UNESCO World Heritage List due to the abundance of material and spiritual values. Unique monuments of ancient architecture, heritage of scientific and arts schools, artizans workshops are well-known around the world.
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Samarkand History
Samarkand is one of the most ancient cities in the world. As other first centers of human civilization - Babylon and Memphis, Athens and Rome, Alexandria and Byzantium - Samarkand was intended to go through many events and shakes.
History of Samarkand goes back in remote days. Archeological finds and chronicle records of eyewitnesses and ancient historians allowed to establish with full reliability that a man lived on the territory of modern city many centuries before the Common Era.
More on history of Samarkand >>
Sights of Interest in Samarkand
Registan
Bibi-Hanim
Shakhi-Zinda
Gur Emir
Ulugbek's observatory
Mausoleum of Khoja Abdi Darunee
Mausoleum of Imam al-Bukhari
Mausoleum of the Prophet Daniil
Mausoleum of Ishratkhan
Mosque Khazrat-Hyzr
Khodja Akhrar Ensemble
Mausoeum of Imam al-Moturidi
Rukhabad Mausoleum
Sher-Dor madrasah
Tilla-Kori madrasah
Samarkand Railway Station
Samarkand Links
Samarkand Hotels - Review and reserve hotels in Samarkand
Malika Samarkand - part of Malika Hotels Group
