Architecture, art and music

Palaces, mosques, madrasas, minarets, mausoleums, trading halls and caravanserais were built in Samarkand, Bukhara, Urgench, Termez, Uzgen and Merv. The Ismail Samani Mausoleum in Bukhara (10th century), the Kalon minaret, and the Vobkent and Jarkurgan minarets (12th century) are examples of the architecture of this period. The Ismail Samani Mausoleum is built of baked brick laid in decorative patterns. According to the book, the 10th-century Khonbandi reservoir in the Nurota range was made of granite and water-resistant mortar. From the 10th century timber-frame buildings (a wooden frame filled with mud brick) became widespread; pakhsa and mud brick were also main building materials. Decorative painting and carving developed, and the portals and doors of buildings were decorated with inscriptions. Because books were copied by hand, calligraphy was a widespread art. Musicians played instruments such as the oud, tanbur, qobuz, rubab, nay, surnay, karnay and qanun; tunes such as “Rost”, “Navo” and “Buzruk” later became the foundation of the Shashmaqom. Shashmaqom — “six maqoms” — is the classical music collection of the Uzbek and Tajik peoples.