Bukhara
A labyrinth from the tales of "1001 Nights" — a living open-air museum where trading domes and madrasahs predate most European capitals.
The face of Bukhara
Under UNESCO protection
Bukhara has survived three thousand years — and has lost almost nothing. The historic centre with two hundred monuments is wholly UNESCO-listed, and you can walk across it in half a day. No tours needed here: every turn of a narrow street opens onto a mosque, madrasah or caravanserai.
The minaret Genghis Khan spared
The Kalon Minaret has stood since 1127 — the one building that Genghis Khan ordered spared, struck by its beauty. Beside it is the Kalon Mosque, fitting 12,000 worshippers, and the Mir-i-Arab Madrasah, still operating since the 16th century.
Domes where worlds were exchanged
Bukhara's 16th-century trading domes still work: under Toki-Zargaron they sold jewellery, under Toki-Telpak-Furushan headwear, under Toki-Sarrafon they exchanged Western coins for Eastern. Today the same domes house engraving workshops, suzani shops and teahouses.
«Throughout the world light descends from the heavens — only in Bukhara does it rise from the earth.»
— Eastern wisdom
Getting to Bukhara
What to see in Bukhara
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