Gateway to Merv |
Model of the archeological site of Merv, a UNESCO World Heritage Site |
The Great and Small Kyz kalas, 7th Century |
A large hole in the western wall of the Great Gyzgala |
Kyz Kala (or Gyzgala) is Turkmen for "maiden's fortress" |
Corner of the Greater Kyz Kala of Merv |
Corrugated walls of the Kyz Kalas of Merv are unique in Central Asia |
Southern wall of the Greater Kyz Kala, 7th Century |
The Greater Kyz Kala was built by the Sassanians and were in use until the Mongol conquest 600 years later |
Entering the Greater Kyz Kala you are on the second level. The roof has collapsed burying the ground floor |
Staircase of the Greater Kyz Kala, Merv |
Greater Kyz Kala |
Stairways leading up to the long-gone parapet and down to the buried ground floor |
The Greater Gyzgala is the most impressive of the ancient structures of Merv |
Greater Kyz Kala, Merv |
A group of Turkmen tourists visiting Merv |
Greater Kyz Kala, 7th C. AD, Merv |
Scrubland between the Greater and Small Kyz Kala |
Greater Kyz Kala, 7th C. AD, Merv |
Greater Kyz Kala, 7th C. AD, Merv |
Greater Kyz Kala, 7th C. AD, Merv |
Greater Kyz Kala, 7th C. AD, Merv |
Greater Kyz Kala, 7th C. AD, Merv |
The Small Kyz Kala, also from the 7th Century |
Greater Kyz Kala, 7th C. AD, Merv |
An ancient canal separated the Greater Kyz Kala and Small Kyz Kala |
Ruins of the Small Kyz Kala, Merv |
Small Kyz Kala, 7th C. AD, Merv |
Again, the roof has collapsed burying the structure in debris |
Eroded corner of the Small Gyzgala |
Small Kyz Kala, Merv |
Buried staircase that once led to the ground floor of the Small Kyz Kala |
The Greater Kyz Kala from the Small Kyz Kala |
Small Kyz Kala, Merv |
The Greater Kyz Kala from the Small Kyz Kala |
Greater Kyz Kala, Merv |
Small Kyz Kala, Merv |
Small Kyz Kala, Merv |
Small Kyz Kala looking to the Greater Kyz Kala |
The south side of the Small Kyz Kala still displays the corrugated building style unique to Merv |
The Small Kyz Kala, Merv |
Small Kyz Kala, Merv |
The ancient canal in front of the Greater Gyz Gala |
The Greater Kyz Kala with a deep blue sky |
Inside the Greater Kyz Kala |
Passageway leading to the stairs going up |
The stairs to the ground floor buried in debris |
The worn out remains of the Greater Kyz Kala's staircase |
The walls of Soltangala, or Sultan's Fortress, the largest of Merv's 5 ancient walled cities |
Post-Mongol Timurid-era Ice House in the Abdullah Khan Kala, Merv's 4th walled city |
Stair leading town into the Ice House |
Inside one of the Ice Houses built during Merv's Timurid era |
An interesting brick of the Timurid Ice House, Merv |
Remains of stucco ornamentation |
Merv's 4th walled city, the Abdullah Khan Kala, was founded by Shahrukh (1405-1447) |
Architectural complex (15th century) of Askhab's (7th century) |
Architectural complex of the Askhabs |
The large portals (iwans) date from the Tumurid Period (15th C) while the mausoleums are from the 7th C. |
The tombs belong to Al Hakim ibn Amr Al-Jifari and Buraida ibn al-Huseib al-Aslami |
Remains of 15th Century Timurid tile work, Merv |
The 7th Century tombs are still places of pilgrimage for the Turkmen people today |
Panorama of the massive Seljuk city walls of Soltankala |
The walls didn't stop the Mongols who destroyed Merv in 1221 |
Each pile of dirt is an unexcavated ruin |
Southeast corner of the Soltankala, Merv |
The oldest of Merv's 4 ancient walled cities - the Erk Kala seen from within the 2nd city, the Giaur Kala (Gäwürgala) |
The Erk Kala was founded by the Achaemenids in the 6th C. BC |
Alexander the Great renamed it after himself, Alexandria Margiana |
The massive walls of the Erk Kala were over 25m tall |
An interesting bush at Merv which changes color with the seasons |
Erk Kala, the Citadel, 6th C. BC |
Path leading up the worn out walls of the Erk Kala |
The Sassanians built their larger ancient city, the Giaur Kala, to the south of the Erk Kala in the 3rd C. BC - little remains |
Panoramic view of the Erk Kala from the southern wall |
If you look close, you can make out some ancient bricks that have not yet melted away to mud |
The Citadel Erk Kala was in use through the early Islamic period |
Ruins of a large building in the Giaur Kala |
The Mausoleum of Sultan Sanjar in the center of the Soltankala to the west of the Erk Kala and Giaur Kala |
The large mound in the center of the Erk Kala - the remains of the ancient palace |
Remains of one of the large towers of the Erk Kala |
Tower of the Erk Kala |
Excavations of the gate to the second ancient city, the Hellenistic Giaur Kala |
It's difficult to believe there was once a huge city here - Giaur Kala |
Remains of ancient bricks at an excavation site inside the Giaur Kala |
Excavations of a 7th C. mosque in the Giaur Kala |
Water cistern near the Giaur Kala's 7th C. mosque |
Water cistern near the Giaur Kala's 7th C. mosque |
Excavated cistern, Giaur Kala, Merv |
The modern Mosque of Yusuf Hamadani, an important pilgrimage site with the tomb of a 12th C. holy man |
Northern wall of the Sultan Qala, the largest of Merv's ancient walled cities |
The Sultan Qala was founded by Abu Muslim al-Khorasani in the 8th Century |
...had to talk the guide into stopping...he was in a rush |
Worn staircase |
The main road passing through the Sultan Qala |
Shahryar Ark (Sovereign's Citadel) in the northeast corner of the Sultan Qala |
The Seljuk palace (11th C.) is in the northeast corner of the Sultan Qala |
Shahryar Ark, Ancient Merv |
Shahryar Ark - Soltangala |
Pinnacle-like ruin in the center of the Shahryar Ark |
Merv was at its largest under the Seljuks with perhaps 200,000 inhabitants, the largest city in the world in 1150 AD |
Kepderihana or Kaftar Khana ("pigeon house") - one of the more substantial ruins in the Shahryar Ark |
The Kepderihana may have actually used for pigeons |
Others believe the Kepderihana was a library or treasury due to its location next to the palace |
Eastern entrance to the Kepderihana |
Interior of the Kepderihana in the Shahryar Ark, Merv |
The Kepderihana also preserves Merv's unique corrugated wall architecture |
Kepderihana in the Shahryar Ark, Merv |
Remains of another mudbrick structure inside the Shahryar Ark, Merv |
Little remains of the Seljuk palace in the Shahryar Ark of Sultan Qala, Merv |
A building in the Shahryar Ark with ornate vertical brickwork |
Shahryar Ark, Merv |
Remains of a gate to the Sultan's Palace, Shahryar Ark |
Shahryar Ark, Merv |
Shahryar Ark, Merv |
Panoramic view of the ruins of the Shahryar Ark in the northeast corner of the Sultan Qala |
Southern wall of the Kepderihana, Merv |
Kepderihana - Shahryar Ark, Merv |
Dirt road within the Shahryar Ark |
The road to the main portion of the Sultan Qala |
Remains of a tower of the Shahryar Ark |
Shahryar Ark with the Mosque of Yusuf Hamadani |
Walls of the Shahryar Ark, Merv |
Walls of the Shahryar Ark, Merv |
Walls of the Shahryar Ark, Merv |
...don't remember what the guide called this bush... |
At the center of the Sultan Qala the Mausoleum of Sultan Sanjar |
12th Century Mausoleum of Sultan Sanjar was spared by the Mongols in the tradition of leaving the tallest monument standing |
The Seljuk Sultan Sanjar ruled Merv at its peak from 1118-1153 |
Mausoleum of Sultan Sanjar (1086-1157) |
The interior dome of the Mausoleum of Sultan Sanjar |
Some of the original artwork of the Mausoleum of Sultan Sanjar |
The tomb Sultan Sanjar who died in 1157 after losing his empire in 1153 to the Turkomen (Oghuz Turks) |
Mausoleum of Sultan Sanjar |
Mausoleum of Sultan Sanjar |
Mausoleum of Sultan Sanjar, Merv |
The dome gives the mausoleum amazing acoustics |
The dome of the Mausoleum of Sultan Sanjar |
Original decoration - Mausoleum of Sultan Sanjar |
Latticed window, Mausoleum of Sultan Sanjar |
Well outside the Mausoleum of Sultan Sanjar |
In 1890 the mausoleum was a picturesque ruin |
In my opinion, the restoration was excessive... |
Heavily restored Mausoleum of Sultan Sanjar |
The restoration, however, did not replace the tile work that would have covered the dome |
Mausoleum of Sultan Sanjar |
The Mausoleum of Sultan Sanjar stands alone in the center of the Sultan Qala, the largest of Merv's ancient cities |
A mosque used to stand next to the tomb |
The large square building is 27m per side and the dome is 18m in diameter |
The dome was restored in 1911 and the rest of the mausoleum in the 1990's with the aid of Turkey |
Mausoleum of Sultan Sanjar, Merv |
The Mongol conquest of Merv was one of the bloodiest single actions in human history - only 400 artisans were spared |
Mausoleum of Sultan Sanjar |
Soltan Sanjar yň kümmeti (XII asyr) |
The last stop - the 12th C. Mausoleum of Muhammed ibn Zayed |
The Mausoleum of Mohammed ibn Zayed, also heavily restored |
Ruins next to the Mausoleum of Mohammed ibn Zayed |
Sacred saxaul tree with cloth prayer strips |
Mihrab of the Mausoleum of Mohammed ibn Zayed |
Tombstone - Mausoleum of Mohammed ibn Zayed |
Tombstone - Mausoleum of Mohammed ibn Zayed |
Calligraphy and ornate brickwork, Mausoleum of Mohammed ibn Zayed |
Dome of Mausoleum of Mohammed ibn Zayed, Merv |
Mausoleum of Mohammed ibn Zayed |
Mausoleum of Mohammed ibn Zayed |
Mausoleum of Mohammed ibn Zayed |
Decorate brickwork, Mausoleum of Mohammed ibn Zayed |
Mausoleum of Mohammed ibn Zayed |
Mausoleum of Mohammed ibn Zayed |
Brick dome, Mausoleum of Mohammed ibn Zayed, Merv |
Mausoleum of Mohammed ibn Zayed |
Cistern or icehouse next to the Mausoleum of Mohammed ibn Zayed |
UZTM11 3341.jpg |
The Mausoleum of Mohammed ibn Zayed is an important Sufi pilgrimage site |
Ruins to the west of the Sultan Kala, Merv |
Mausoleum of Mohammed ibn Zayed |
Walls of the Sultan Qala from Mausoleum of Mohammed ibn Zayed |
Mausoleum of Mohammed ibn Zayed |
Mausoleum of Mohammed ibn Zayed |
Mausoleum of Mohammed ibn Zayed |
Mausoleum of Mohammed ibn Zayed |
European Bee-eater (Merops apiaster), Merv, Turkmenistan |
Walls of Merv's 5th walled cits - Bairam Ali Khan Kala, built in the 18th C. near the modern town |
Billboard with the World Heritage of Turkmenistan |
Marysyıahat |
Modern house near the ruins of Ancient Merv |
Downtown Merv |
The Turkmenistan Railway passing through Merv |