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Antiquities of Samarkand. Tomb of the Saint Kusam-ibn-Abbas (Shah-i Zindah) and Adjacent Mausoleums. Mausoleum of Sha Arap. View of an Upper Section in Ruins

1865
This photograph shows the interior of an unidentified mausoleum in the northern cluster of shrines at the Shah-i Zindah necropolis (Samarkand, Uzbekistan). The photograph was included in the archeological part of Turkestan Album, a six-volume survey produced in 1871-72, under the patronage of General Konstantin P. von Kaufman, the first governor-general (1867-82) of Turkestan, as the Russian Empire's Central Asian territories were called. The album devotes special attention to Samarkand’s Islamic architecture, such as 14th- and 15th-century monuments from the reign of Timur (Tamerlane) and his successors. Of particular note is Shah-i Zindah (Persian for “living king”), built on the elevated site of an ancient settlement known as Afrosiab and revered as a memorial to Kusam-ibn-Abbas, a cousin of the Prophet Muhammad. Although the patron of this mausoleum has not been conclusively identified, it was built in 1360-61, most likely for a maiden of noble birth. The collapse of the dome, probably due to an earthquake, enables this view from the top of the entrance wall. The corner bay (center) culminates in a “honeycomb” (mocárabe) vault. The profuse decoration of the walls in geometric and floral motifs of carved, glazed terracotta suggests the glories of the afterlife. Over the arched niche on the right is an inscription in the ornamental cursive Thuluth script.

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3678.jpg
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acku Afghanistan
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UZBEKISTAN
1865<br /> This photograph shows the interior of an unidentified mausoleum in the northern cluster of shrines at the Shah-i Zindah necropolis (Samarkand, Uzbekistan). The photograph was included in the archeological part of Turkestan Album, a six-volume survey produced in 1871-72, under the patronage of General Konstantin P. von Kaufman, the first governor-general (1867-82) of Turkestan, as the Russian Empire's Central Asian territories were called. The album devotes special attention to Samarkand’s Islamic architecture, such as 14th- and 15th-century monuments from the reign of Timur (Tamerlane) and his successors. Of particular note is Shah-i Zindah (Persian for “living king”), built on the elevated site of an ancient settlement known as Afrosiab and revered as a memorial to Kusam-ibn-Abbas, a cousin of the Prophet Muhammad. Although the patron of this mausoleum has not been conclusively identified, it was built in 1360-61, most likely for a maiden of noble birth. The collapse of the dome, probably due to an earthquake, enables this view from the top of the entrance wall. The corner bay (center) culminates in a “honeycomb” (mocárabe) vault. The profuse decoration of the walls in geometric and floral motifs of carved, glazed terracotta suggests the glories of the afterlife. Over the arched niche on the right is an inscription in the ornamental cursive Thuluth script.