Countries<Kazakhstan<Түркістан [Turkistan]<Turkestan< Mausoleum of Khoja Ahmed Yasawi

Mausoleum of Khoja Ahmed Yasawi(Turkestan)

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Description

The Mausoleum of Khoja Ahmed Yasawi, a distinguished Sufi master of the 12th century, is situated in southern Kazakhstan, in the north-eastern section of the city of Turkestan (Yasi). Built between 1389 and 1405, by order of the ruler of Central Asia, Timur (Tamerlane). The mausoleum is one of the largest and best-preserved examples of Timurid construction. This monumental building, 39 m (128 ft) high, is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Timur, himself, is reported to have participated in its construction and skilled Persian craftsmen were employed to work on the project. Its innovative spatial arrangements, vaults, domes, and decoration were prototypes that served as models for other major buildings of the Timurid period, in particular in Samarkand. Considered to be an outstanding example of Timurid design that contributed to the development of Islamic religious architecture, the mausoleum is constructed of fired brick and contains thirty-five rooms, including a library full of ancient books, Hilvet Underground Mosque, a bathhouse, a room for blessing newborns. In the central room, there is ancient Tai-Kazan, a bronze ritual cauldron where water was poured for Muslims to drink after Friday prayer. It is a multifunctional structure of the khanaqa type, with functions of a mausoleum and a mosque. A conic-spherical dome, the largest in Central Asia, sits above the Main Hall (Kazandyk). Other notable attributes include fragments of original wall paintings in the mosque, alabaster stalactites (muqarnas) in the intrados of the domes, glazed tiles featuring geometric patterns with epigraphic ornaments on the exterior and interior walls, fine Kufic and Suls inscriptions on the walls, and texts from the Qu’ran on the drums of the domes. The principal entrance and parts of the interior were left unfinished, providing exceptional evidence of the construction methods of the period. This sacred place is considered "The Little Mecca" and attracts many pilgrims. The Mausoleum of Khoja Ahmed Yasawi is a place of great religious and cultural importance. This is a must-see destination for everyone who comes to the Turkestan Region.

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