Bukhara
Bukhara (also spelled Buxoro) is a historic city of 255,000 people located 250km downstream from Samarkand on the Zervshan River in Uzbekistan.
Bukhara is central Asia's holiest city and was once home to more than 300 mosques and 100 medressas. In the 9th and 10th centuries, it was the region's religious and cultural heart, hosting the famed philosopher-scientist Avicenna as well as the Persian poets Firdausi and Rudaki.
Bukhara has been well preserved over the centuries and is still home to an astonishing array of mosques, mausoleums, and medressas. According to UNESCO, which has designated it a World Heritage Site, "Bukhara is the most complete and unspoiled example of a medieval central Asian town which has preserved its urban fabric to the present day." The city center includes some 140 historic buildings and monuments, most of which are religious in nature. Non-religious sites of Bukhara include several bazaars and caravanserais.
Bukhara Map
Our own detailed, interactive satellite map of Bukhara, plus links to more online Bukhara maps. |
Bukhara Hotel Reviews
Unbiased reviews, ratings and price comparisons on hotels in Bukhara. |
Uzbekistan Travel Forum
Get travel advice and insider tips on Uzbekistan from fellow travelers. |
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Char Minar
Its name means "four minarets," but this interesting little building with four dome-topped towers was actually a gatehouse of a medressa. |
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Ismail Samani Mausoleum
This small, elegant 10th-century mausoleum is one of Bukhara's oldest monuments. Built for the founder of the Samanid dynasty, its delicate terracotta brickwork disguises 2m-thick walls that have never needed repair. |
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Kalon Minaret
The 12th-century brick Kalon Minaret is one of the most impressive monuments in Bukhara and can be climbed for fine views. Next to it is the 16th-century Kalon Mosque, built on the site of an earlier mosque. |
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Maghoki-Attar Mosque
This 12th-century mosque is the oldest in Central Asia. It also has a long history of sacredness - remains of a Zoroastrian temple and a Buddhist temple have been found beneath it, and Jews once used it in the evenings. |
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Mir-i-Arab Medressa
This impressive medressa with two blue domes stands opposite the Kalon Mosque. Founded in the 16th century, it was a working seminary until its closure in 1920. Stalin reopened it in 1944. |
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Ulughbek Medressa
Built in 1417, this is central Asia's oldest medressa and the model for many others. The elegant structure is decorated with blue tiles. |
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