Bibi-Khanym Mosque

Timur ordered the mosque at the end of the fourteenth century, wanting a Friday mosque larger than any in his empire. It is named after his senior wife, and a mausoleum attributed to her stands across the street.

The building was put up quickly and on an enormous scale, and it began to decay early; an earthquake in the late nineteenth century brought down much of it. Large parts were rebuilt in the Soviet and independence periods, so what you see is partly reconstruction.

Inside the courtyard stands a huge marble Quran stand. The main dome and portal are best seen from the courtyard and from the street leading to the bazaar.