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Historic Centre of Shahrisabz

Amir Temur's home town, a UNESCO World Heritage site since 2000, with Timurid monuments from the Ak-Saray palace to the Dorut Tilavat complex.

EnsemblesUNESCO World Heritage14th century

About the place

Shahrisabz, known in early sources as Kesh, lies about 90 km south of Samarkand across the Zarafshan range. Amir Temur was born nearby in 1336, and in the 14th and 15th centuries he and his successors filled the town with monumental buildings. In 2000 its historic centre was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List.

The main sights stand along a line through the centre: the huge entrance arch of the Ak-Saray palace in the north, the Dorus Saodat memorial complex, and the Dorut Tilavat ensemble with the Kok Gumbaz mosque built under Ulugh Beg. Since 2016 the site has been on the List of World Heritage in Danger, after large-scale clearance and rebuilding around the monuments.

Why go

  • Ak-Saray palace entrance arch
  • Dorus Saodat and Dorut Tilavat
  • Birthplace region of Amir Temur

Sources (2)

  1. 1.en.wikipedia.org
  2. 2.whc.unesco.org

Nearby

  • Chubin MadrasaEnsembles

    Under 1 km awayUNESCO World Heritage

    Chubin Madrasa

    A 16th-century madrasa facing Ak-Saray in Shahrisabz, named after the old timber market and now home to the city's history museum.

  • Chorsu Trading Dome, ShahrisabzBazaars

    Under 1 km awayUNESCO World Heritage

    Chorsu Trading Dome, Shahrisabz

    A 16th-century domed market hall in the historic centre of Shahrisabz, between the Ak-Saray palace and the Dorut Tilovat complex.

  • Amir Timur Monument, ShakhrisabzEnsembles

    Under 1 km awayUNESCO World Heritage

    Amir Timur Monument, Shakhrisabz

    A statue of Amir Timur in the historic centre of Shakhrisabz, his home town, unveiled in 1996 for the 660th anniversary of his birth.

  • Dorus Saodat ComplexMausoleums

    1 km awayUNESCO World Heritage

    Dorus Saodat Complex

    The family burial ground Timur planned for himself and his sons; today the tall mausoleum of his eldest son Jahangir is its main surviving building.