Abdulaziz-khan

Abdulaziz-khan madrasah

Today is the first day of May. So our first destination was Abdulaziz-khan madrasah. All groups except ours came on time. Because this place not easy to find. Despite the fact that we have been living in Bukhara for a long time, we did not know about this place😅 Soo, finally we find this madrasah.

              Built in 1652, a few centuries later than Ulugh-Beg Madrasah (built in 1417), Abdulaziz-Khan Madrasah, which stands across from it, is an integral part of Bukhara’s most outstanding architectural ensemble. Abdulaziz-Khan Madrasah marks the remarkable progress of medieval Central Asian architecture; it shows us how amazingly high the skills of Central Asian architects, builders and artists were at the time.

 Abdulaziz-Khan Madrasah is often compared with Ulugh-Beg Madrasah, since they are a duet of completely different structures of different times. Ulugh-Beg Madrasah, built during the reign of the Timurid dynasty, is moderate in size and decoration, while its counterpart is grand and ornate.

The pishtaq portal of the madrasah is amazingly high and splendidly decorated. The iwan gateway has many facets and ornamental stalactites. While the iwan of Ulugh-Beg Madrasah is plain and has inscribed citations from the Koran, Abdulaziz-Khan Madrasah’s is covered with verse lines of famous poets.

The decorative patterns of the latter are also different. They are not precisely geometrical or astral, as it was common; they are bright and rich wavy plant designs.There are even images of a Chinese dragon and a mythical bird called Simorgh inside them, which is a sign of Bukhara’s close relations with Silk Road kingdoms at the time. The walls and chambers of the madrasah show almost all the decoration techniques used in those times: relief majolica, marble carving, tile and brick mosaic, wall painting and even gilding.