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Bibi-Khanym Mosque is a famous historical mosque
Mosque

A mosque is a place of worship for followers of Islam. Muslims often refer to the mosque by its Arabic name, masjid, ? . The word "mosque" in English refers to all types of buildings dedicated for Islamic worship, although there is a distinction in Arabic between the smaller, privately owned mosque and the larger, "collective" mosque ,...
 in Samarkand
Samarkand

Samarkand , is the second-largest city in Uzbekistan and the capital of Samarqand Province.The city is most noted for its central position on the Silk Road between China and the West, and for being an Islamic centre for scholarly study....
, Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan

Uzbekistan, officially the Republic of Uzbekistan , is a Landlocked_country#Doubly_landlocked_country country in Central Asia, formerly part of the Soviet Union....
, whose name comes from the wife of 14th-century warlord
Warlord

A warlord is a person with power who has military dictatorship over a subnational area due to armed forces loyal to the warlord and not to a central authority....
, Timur
Timur

Timur , among his other names, commonly known as Tamerlane in the West, was a 14th century Turko-Mongol conqueror of much of western and Central Asia, and founder of the Timurid dynasty in Central Asia, which survived until 1857 as the Mughal Empire of India....
.

After his Indian campaign in 1399 Timur
Timur

Timur , among his other names, commonly known as Tamerlane in the West, was a 14th century Turko-Mongol conqueror of much of western and Central Asia, and founder of the Timurid dynasty in Central Asia, which survived until 1857 as the Mughal Empire of India....
 decided to undertake the construction of a gigantic mosque in his new capital, Samarkand
Samarkand

Samarkand , is the second-largest city in Uzbekistan and the capital of Samarqand Province.The city is most noted for its central position on the Silk Road between China and the West, and for being an Islamic centre for scholarly study....
. The outer walls () are 167 metres (182.63 yards) in length and 109 metres (119.20 yards) in width.






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Bibi-Khanym Mosque is a famous historical mosque
Mosque

A mosque is a place of worship for followers of Islam. Muslims often refer to the mosque by its Arabic name, masjid, ? . The word "mosque" in English refers to all types of buildings dedicated for Islamic worship, although there is a distinction in Arabic between the smaller, privately owned mosque and the larger, "collective" mosque ,...
 in Samarkand
Samarkand

Samarkand , is the second-largest city in Uzbekistan and the capital of Samarqand Province.The city is most noted for its central position on the Silk Road between China and the West, and for being an Islamic centre for scholarly study....
, Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan

Uzbekistan, officially the Republic of Uzbekistan , is a Landlocked_country#Doubly_landlocked_country country in Central Asia, formerly part of the Soviet Union....
, whose name comes from the wife of 14th-century warlord
Warlord

A warlord is a person with power who has military dictatorship over a subnational area due to armed forces loyal to the warlord and not to a central authority....
, Timur
Timur

Timur , among his other names, commonly known as Tamerlane in the West, was a 14th century Turko-Mongol conqueror of much of western and Central Asia, and founder of the Timurid dynasty in Central Asia, which survived until 1857 as the Mughal Empire of India....
.

After his Indian campaign in 1399 Timur
Timur

Timur , among his other names, commonly known as Tamerlane in the West, was a 14th century Turko-Mongol conqueror of much of western and Central Asia, and founder of the Timurid dynasty in Central Asia, which survived until 1857 as the Mughal Empire of India....
 decided to undertake the construction of a gigantic mosque in his new capital, Samarkand
Samarkand

Samarkand , is the second-largest city in Uzbekistan and the capital of Samarqand Province.The city is most noted for its central position on the Silk Road between China and the West, and for being an Islamic centre for scholarly study....
. The outer walls () are 167 metres (182.63 yards) in length and 109 metres (119.20 yards) in width. The cupola
Cupola

File:Faneuil Hall Boston Massachusetts.JPGIn architecture, a cupola is a small, most-often dome-like structure, on top of a building. Often used to provide a lookout or to admit light and air, it usually crowns a larger roof or dome....
 of the main chamber reaches a height of 40 metres , and the entranceway is 35 metres high. There is a large marble
Marble

Marble is a nonfoliated metamorphic rock resulting from the metamorphism of limestone, composed mostly of calcite . It is extensively used for Marble sculpture, as a architecture material, and in many other applications....
 Qur'an
Qur'an

The Qur?an is the central religious text of Islam. Muslims believe the Qur?an to be the book of divine guidance and direction for mankind, and consider the original Arabic text to be the final revelation of God....
 stand in the centre of the courtyard
Courtyard

For alternative meanings of the word "court", see: Court .A court or courtyard is an enclosed area, often a space enclosed by a building that is open to the sky....
.

History

Bibi Khonym Mosque
The mosque was built immediately after Timur's return in 1399 from his campaign in India
Timur

Timur , among his other names, commonly known as Tamerlane in the West, was a 14th century Turko-Mongol conqueror of much of western and Central Asia, and founder of the Timurid dynasty in Central Asia, which survived until 1857 as the Mughal Empire of India....
 using precious stones captured during his conquest of India
India

India, officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and outlying territories by total area country by geographical area, the List of countries by population country, and the most populous liberal democracy in the world....
. According to Ruy Gonzáles de Clavijo
Ruy Gonzáles de Clavijo

Ruy Gonz?lez de Clavijo , Kingdom of Castile traveler and writer.Clavijo was the ambassador of Henry III of Castile to the court of Timur, founder and ruler of the Timurid Empire....
, 90 captured elephants were employed merely to carry precious stones, so as to erect a mosque at Samarkand — Bibi-Khanym Mosque
Bibi-Khanym Mosque

Bibi-Khanym Mosque is a famous historical mosque in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, whose name comes from the wife of 14th-century warlord, Timur.After his Indian campaign in 1399 Timur decided to undertake the construction of a gigantic mosque in his new capital, Samarkand....
. Construction
Construction

In the fields of architecture and civil engineering, construction is a process that consists of the building or assembling of infrastructure. Far from being a single activity, large scale construction is a feat of multitasking....
 was completed between 1399 and 1404. However, the mosque slowly fell into disuse, and crumbled to ruins
Ruins

Ruins is a term used to describe the remains of man-made architecture: structures that were once complete but which have fallen into a state of partial or complete disrepair, due to lack of Maintenance, repair and operations or deliberate acts of destruction....
 over the centuries. Its demise was hastened due to the fact it pushed the construction techniques of the time to the very limit, and the fact that it was built too quickly. It eventually partially collapse
Collapse

selfref|For collapsible table on Wikipedia, see...
d in 1897 when an earthquake
Earthquake

An earthquake is the result of a sudden release of energy in the Earth's crust that creates seismic waves. Earthquakes are recorded with a seismometer, also known as a seismograph....
 occurred.

However, in 1974 it began to undergo reconstruction () by the Government of Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan

Uzbekistan, officially the Republic of Uzbekistan , is a Landlocked_country#Doubly_landlocked_country country in Central Asia, formerly part of the Soviet Union....
, although the current mosque is effectively a brand-new building, as no original work remains. The bazaar
Bazaar

File:Railway Road by Ajaz Anwar.jpgA bazaar , , is a permanent merchandising area, marketplace, or street of shops where goods and services are exchanged or sold....
 at the foot of the Bibi-Khanym () has changed little since 600 years ago.

See also

  • Gur-e Amir
    Gur-e Amir

    The Gur-e Amir is the mausoleum of the Asian conqueror Tamerlane in Samarkand . It occupies an important place in the history of Islamic Architecture as the precursor and model for the great Mughal architecture tombs of Humayun in Delhi and the Taj Mahal in Agra, built by Timur's descendants, the ruling Mughal Empire of North India....
  • Shah-i-Zinda
    Shah-i-Zinda

    Shah-i-Zinda is one of the world-known necropolis of Central Asia, which is situated in the north-eastern part of Samarkand .The Shah-i-Zinda Ensemble includes mausoleums and other ritual buildings of 9-14th and 19th centuries....
  • Registan
    Registan

    File:Registan - Sherdor madrasa.jpgThe Registan was the heart of the ancient Samarkand, Uzbekistan. The name Registan means "Sandy place" in Persian language....
  • Tourism in Uzbekistan
    Tourism in Uzbekistan

    Uzbekistan is a country with vast underused capabilities in tourism. The cities of Central Asia were the main points of trade on the Silk Road, linking Eastern world and Western worlds....


External links