Antiquities of Samarkand. Tomb of Saint Kusam-ibn-Abbas (Shah-i Zindah) and Adjacent Mausoleums. Mausoleum of Emir Hussein. Inscription to the Left Half of the Facade (Bottom)

1865
This photograph of ornamentation on the Emir-Zade mausoleum at the Shah-i Zindah necropolis in Samarkand is from the archeological part of Turkestan Album. The six-volume photographic survey was produced in 1871-72 under the patronage of General Konstantin P. von Kaufman, the first governor-general, in 1867-82, of Turkestan, as the Russian Empire’s Central Asian territories were called. The primary compilers for the visual material were Aleksandr L. Kun, an Orientalist attached to the army, and Nikolai V. Bogaevskii, a military engineer. They devoted special attention to Samarkand’s Islamic architecture, such as 14th- and 15th-century monuments from the reign of Tamerlane and his successors. Built on the site of an ancient settlement known as Afrosiab, Shah-i Zindah (Persian for “living king”) is revered as a memorial to Kusam-ibn-Abbas, a cousin of the Prophet Muhammad. The Emir-Zade mausoleum was built in 1386 by a member of Tamerlane’s court. Despite losses to its polychrome ornament, the facade remains a major example of the accomplishments of Central Asian decorative art. The ceramic work in this view of the lower left side of the facade includes vertical strips composed of majolica tiles in floral and geometric patterns, as well as an inscriptional band in the cursive Thuluth form of Arabic script. At the base are panels with elaborate floral designs.

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Filename: 3642.jpg
Copyright: acku Afghanistan
Image Size: 1800x2531 / 277.1KB; 1865 Uzbekistan Samarqand Samarkand Antiquities Tombs Saint Kusam-ibn-Abbas Shah-i-Zindah Mausoleum Emir Hussein Inscriptions Archaeological Sites Islamic Architecture Sepulchral Monuments Photo WDL 010102
Contained in galleries: UZBEKISTAN

1865<br />
This photograph of ornamentation on the Emir-Zade mausoleum at the Shah-i Zindah necropolis in Samarkand is from the archeological part of Turkestan Album. The six-volume photographic survey was produced in 1871-72 under the patronage of General Konstantin P. von Kaufman, the first governor-general, in 1867-82, of Turkestan, as the Russian Empire’s Central Asian territories were called. The primary compilers for the visual material were Aleksandr L. Kun, an Orientalist attached to the army, and Nikolai V. Bogaevskii, a military engineer. They devoted special attention to Samarkand’s Islamic architecture, such as 14th- and 15th-century monuments from the reign of Tamerlane and his successors. Built on the site of an ancient settlement known as Afrosiab, Shah-i Zindah (Persian for “living king”) is revered as a memorial to Kusam-ibn-Abbas, a cousin of the Prophet Muhammad. The Emir-Zade mausoleum was built in 1386 by a member of Tamerlane’s court. Despite losses to its polychrome ornament, the facade remains a major example of the accomplishments of Central Asian decorative art. The ceramic work in this view of the lower left side of the facade includes vertical strips composed of majolica tiles in floral and geometric patterns, as well as an inscriptional band in the cursive Thuluth form of Arabic script. At the base are panels with elaborate floral designs.