The Gur-e Amir (Persian: گور امیر) is the mausoleum of the Asian conqueror Tamerlane (also known as Timur) in Samarkand (now in Uzbekistan). A mausoleum ( plural: mausolea is an external free-standing building constructed as a monument enclosing the interment space or burial chamber of a deceased person or persons Timur also written Emir Timur or Amir Temur ( Chagatai: تیمور - Tēmōr " Iron " (1336 – 19 February 1405 among Timur also written Emir Timur or Amir Temur ( Chagatai: تیمور - Tēmōr " Iron " (1336 – 19 February 1405 among Samarkand (Samarqand Самарқанд سمرقند UniPers: "Samarqand" is the second-largest city in Uzbekistan and the capital of Uzbekistan, officially the Republic of Uzbekistan ( Uzbek: O‘zbekiston Respublikasi or Ўзбекистон Республикаси is a doubly It occupies an important place in the history of Islamic Architecture as the precursor and model for the great Mughal tombs of Humayun in Delhi and the Taj Mahal in Agra, built by Timur's descendants, the ruling Mughal dynasty of North India. Islamic architecture has encompassed a wide range of both secular and religious styles from the foundation of Islam to the present day influencing the design and construction Background Babur's decision to divide the territories of his empire between two of his sons was unusual in India but it had been a common Central Asian practice since the time of Delhi (दिल्ली ਦਿੱਲੀ دلی d̪ɪlːiː sometimes referred to as Dilli) is the second largest metropolis of India, with a population The Taj Mahal (tɑdʒ Agra ( pronounced) (आगरा آگرا is a city on the banks of the Yamuna River in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh, The Mughal Empire ( Persian and self-designation گورکانی; مغلیہ سلطنت) was an Islamic imperial power which ruled most India, officially the Republic of India (भारत गणराज्य inc-Latn Bhārat Gaṇarājya; see also other Indian languages) is a country
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History of its Construction
Gur-e Amir is Persian for "Tomb of the King". This architectural complex with its azure dome contains the tombs of Tamerlane, his sons Shah Rukh and Miran Shah and grandson Ulugh Beg and Muhammad Sultan. See Shahrukh Khan for the actor of that name Shāhrukh Mīrzā ( - Šāhrukh Mīrzā, also known as Shāhruh Miran Shah (1366-1408 (میران شاہ was a son of Timur, and a Timurid governor during his father's lifetime Ulugh Beg ( Chaghatay / - also Uluğ Bey, Ulugh Bek and Ulug Bek) (c Also honoured with a place in the tomb is Timur's teacher Mir Sayyid Baraka.
The earliest part of the complex was built at the end of the 14th century by the orders of Muhammad Sultan. Now only the foundations of the madrasah and khanaka, the entrance portal and a part of one of four minarets remains. "Madrasa" and "Medrese" redirect here For the village in Azerbaijan see Mədrəsə. For the mountain formation see Minarets (California. Minarets ( Arabic manara (lighthouse منارة but more usually مئذنة
The construction of the mausoleum itself began in 1403 after the sudden death of Muhammad Sultan, Tamerlane's heir apparent and his beloved grandson, for whom it was intended. Timur had built himself a smaller tomb in Shahrisabz near his Ak-Saray palace. Shahrisabz or Shahr-e Sabz (Shahrisabz/Шахрисабз is a city in Uzbekistan located approximately 80 km south of Samarkand with the population of However, when Timur died in 1405 on campaign on his way to conquer China, the passes to Shahrisabz were snowed in, so he was buried here instead. China ( Wade-Giles ( Mandarin) Chung¹kuo² is a cultural region, an ancient Civilization, and depending on perspective a National Ulugh Beg, another grandson of Tamerlane, completed the work. During his reign the mausoleum became the family crypt of the Timurid Dynasty. The Timurids, self-designated Gurkānī ( were a Persianate Central Asian Sunni Muslim dynasty
Architecture
The entrance portal to the Muhammad Sultan ensemble (see picture) is richly decorated with carved bricks and various mosaics. The decoration of the portal was accomplished by the skilled craftsman (ustad) Muhammad bin Mahmud Isfahani.
Outwardly the Gur-e Amir Mausoleum is a one-cupola building. It is famous for its simplicity of construction and for its solemn monumentality of appearance. It is an octahedral building crowned by an azure fluted dome (see picture). The exterior decoration of the walls consists of the blue, light-blue and white tiles organized into geometrical and epigraphic ornaments against a background of terracotta bricks. The dome (diameter - 15 m (49. 21 ft), height - 12. 5 m (41. 01 ft)) is of a bright blue color with deep rosettes and white spots. Heavy ribbed fluting gives an amazing expressiveness to the cupola.
During the reign of Ulugh Beg a doorway (see picture) was made to provide an entrance into the mausoleum.
Inwardly the mausoleum appears as a large, high chamber with deep niches at the sides and diverse decoration. The lower part of the walls covered are by onyx slabs composed as one panel. Each of these slabs is decorated with refined paintings. Above the panel there is a marble stalactite cornice. Large expanses of the walls are decorated with painted plaster; the arches and the internal dome are ornamented by high-relief papier-mache cartouches, gilded and painted (see picture).
The ornate carved headstones in the inner room of the mausoleum merely indicate the location of the actual tombs in a crypt directly underneath the main chamber. Under Ulugh Beg's government a solid block of dark green jade was placed over the grave of Tamerlane (see picture). Jade is an Ornamental stone. The term jade is applied to two different rocks that are made up of different Silicate minerals. Formerly this stone had been used at a place of worship in the Chinese emperor's palace, then as the throne of Kabek Khan (a descendant of Genghis Khan) in Karshi. Next to Tamerlane's grave lie the marble tombstones of his sons Miran Shah and Shah Rukh and also of grandsons - Muhammad Sultan and Ulugh Beg. Tamerlane's spiritual teacher Mir Said Baraka, also rests here.
Subsequent History
In 1740, the Persian warlord Nadir Shah stole the stone, but it broke in two and he started to have a run of extremely bad luck. Year 1740 ( MDCCXL) was a Leap year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Leap The Persian Empire was a series of Iranian empires that ruled over the Iranian plateau, the original Persian homeland and beyond in Western Asia Nāder Shāh Afshār ( also known as Nāder Qoli Beg - نادر قلی بیگ or Tahmāsp Qoli Khān - تهماسپ قلی خان) (November His advisors urged that he return the stone to its rightful place immediately. The second time the stone was disturbed was in 1941 when Soviet archaeologists opened the crypt. Year 1941 ( MCMXLI) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (the link will display 1941 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. A soviet (сове́т, "council" originally was a workers' local council in late Imperial Russia. The anthropologist Mikhail Gerasimov was able to reconstruct Tamerlane's facial features from his skull, and it was also confirmed that he was a giant for his day, was 172 cm, and would have walked with a pronounced limp. Mikhail Mikhaylovich Gerasimov (Михаи́л Миха́йлович Гера́симов ( September 2, 1907 &ndash July 21, 1970 Further historical information about the assassination of Ulugh Beg and the authenticity of the other graves was also confirmed. However, the archaeologists involved also invoked the curse, as a short time later, the Nazis invaded Russia. The tomb inscription reads: "Anyone who violates my stillness in this life or in the next one, will be subjected to inevitable punishment and misery". Timur's skeleton and that of Ulugh Beg, his grandson, were reinterred with full Islamic burial rites in 1942.
Nearby Monuments
Some consider the Gur-e Amir, Ruhabad mausoleum and Aksaray mausoleum to be a combined ensemble because of their closeness.
Ruhabad (14th c. ) is a small mausoleum (see picture) and is said to contain a hair of Prophet Muhammad. IMPORTANT PLEASE READ ##### For all questions relating to the addition of (pbuh peace be upon him or other honorifics The one story madrasah now accommodates craftsmens' shops. There is a functioning mosque next door to the madrasah. All three combine into one good-looking ensemble (see picture).
The Aksaray mausoleum (15th c. ), unrestored, is located on a quiet street behind Gur-e Amir (see picture).
See also
External links
- Samarkand - the Capital of Tamerlane
- Gur Emir complex, Rukhobod, Aksaray mausoleums. Information, photos,location
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