May 11, 2026
Bahoutdin Architectural Complex
The Bahouddin Naqshband Memorial Complex was established after Bahouddin Naqshband’s death and has been a place of pilgrimage for many generations. Bahouddin Naqshband lived from 1318 to 1389 and is recognized as the seventh Sufi saint.
Following his death, Bahouddin was buried near his birthplace. A number of buildings grew around his tomb, ultimately becoming what in now the Bahouddin Architectural Complex
The Main Courtyard
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The well in the main courtyard
Several rectangular sections form the Royal Necropolis, and various leaders and nobility are interred in its tombs.
The area serves as a place of pilgrimage, but also simply a place of peace
The five daily prayer times
The Blue Ceramics of Uzbekistan
Ceramist Abduvohid Karimov holding a piece of Ishkor
Through a lot of effort by a lot of people, we were able to visit the studio of ceramist Abdulvahid Bukhoriy Karimov. Abdulvahid began working with clay as a child, learning to make toys in a village in the Bukhara region. He later moved to Tashkent and studied at the Art College and the National Institute of Fine Arts and Design.
Today, he is particularly interested in working with national heritage, using local clays, reviving traditional patterns and techniques. His glazed surfaces are often a deep shade of turquoise, one of Uzbekistan’s most iconic colors, representing skies and water, eternity and peace.
The blue comes from a combination of things. starting with Ishkor, a plant-based alkaline compound extracted from desert plants that grow only in Central Asia. When mixed with copper and cobalt oxides and fired for three days at temperatures exceeding 1,100°C, it transforms into a blue that shifts with the light.
The formula has remained unchanged for eight centuries.
Odds and Ends in Bukhara
We began a walk at this amusement park. We were told that this was once a vast area of tombs, destroyed by the Russians when they discovered that the city’s water was being contaminated by the tombs, causing an outbreak of cholera.
Coca-Cola has wormed its way into Uzbekistan, if not in any other way than ensuring almost every sign is sponsored by the company.
Pomegranates
In 2025, Uzbekistan exported 405.1 tons of pomegranates, generating a total revenue of $620.3 thousand.
Everywhere you go are flower beds. These women were planting new flowers at the Ismail Samani Mausoleum.
The classic door in Bukhara consists of two equal slabs. The space is divided into three sections by horizontal rails. They are often designed with various shapes and sizes of metal ornamentation. I have no idea what that small interior door was used for.