Cultural Heritage - The Times Of Central Asia

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UNESCO World Heritage List

Timur’s Birthplace Languishes on UNESCO List of Endangered Sites

Bukhara, Samarkand, Khiva. Uzbekistan’s cultural heritage draws visitors from around the world, but the troubled modern history of another ancient site, Shakhrisabz, is a reminder that development and mass tourism sometimes overshadow preservation. Shakhrisabz, or Green City, is less known than some other tourist destinations in Uzbekistan that were part of the Silk Road network linking cultures across Asia, Europe, and Africa many centuries ago. Yet the old urban core is more than 2,000 years old and contains spectacular monuments and other structures, some dating from the heyday of the city during the rule of the Turco-Mongol conqueror Timur, also known as Tamerlane, and the Timurids in medieval times. [caption id="attachment_34196" align="aligncenter" width="2560"] Timur Statue; image: TCA, Stephen M. Bland[/caption] UNESCO declared it a world heritage site in 2000. But the historical center of Shakhrisabz, previously called Kesh, was placed on the U.N. cultural agency´s list of world heritage sites in danger in 2016 after large sections were razed to make way for a park and tourist facilities. It has stayed on the danger list ever since as officials in Uzbekistan, assisted by international advisers, try to figure out a way to prevent it from losing its United Nations status altogether. A total of 53 locations around the world are on UNESCO’s danger list. [caption id="attachment_34197" align="aligncenter" width="2560"] The Fayzullah Ravnakhi Museum B&B, one of many buildings demolished to make way for tourist facilities; image: TCA, Stephen M. Bland[/caption] A solution in Uzbekistan’s case appears to be in the works. At a meeting in Paris this month, the UNESCO World Heritage Committee tentatively approved an Uzbek proposal that would restore Shakhrisabz in southern Uzbekistan to the regular heritage list but in reduced form – only four key Timurid monuments would be included, while the rest of the historical center would be labeled as a buffer zone. “The main focus is expected to shift from the concept of a ´complete historic city´ to the conservation of the ensemble of monuments, including the Ak-Saray Palace, while preserving their urban context,” reported Gazeta.uz, a media organization in Uzbekistan. [caption id="attachment_34198" align="aligncenter" width="2560"] Ak-Saray Palace; image: TCA, Stephen M. Bland[/caption] Uzbekistan must conduct archaeological studies, prepare a restoration plan, and take other measures in order for the proposal to succeed, according to Gazeta.uz. Uzbekistan must update UNESCO on its progress in February 2026, and the process could still take several years. Construction of the Ak-Saray Palace began in 1380 after a military victory by Timur, who was born in the city, according to UNESCO. The agency said that not one of the many Timurid monuments in Samarkand, north of Shakhrisabz, can rival the Ak-Saray Palace. “The foundations of its immense gate have been preserved: this architectural masterpiece is outstanding in its dimensions and bold design,” UNESCO said. While Shakhrisabz has less tourist infrastructure than nearby Samarkand, there are efforts to raise its profile. Last year, the Economic Cooperation Organization, whose ten members include Central Asian countries, declared it the tourism capital for 2024. Uzbekistan’s other cultural sites have also faced...

Cultural Heritage

Opinion: Off the Grid in Uzbekistan – A Journey to Sarchashma’s Living Heritage

The Uzbek government’s tourism campaign is aiming to attract visitors to the ancient cities of Samarkand, Bukhara, and Khiva. These places, embodying Central Asia’s rich shared Persian and Turkic heritage, have been given extensive infrastructural and hospitality investments. Today, a stroll through Samarkand features a display of its luxury hotels and brick-paved shopping alleys boasting assortments of vintage ware and mass-produced souvenirs. Bukhara, also transformed by upgrades and restorations, is now host to the trendy Biennial, marketing the city as a new hub for ‘creatives, thinkers and visitors from all over the world’, in line with its legacy as the historical intellectual center of Central Asia. Finally, Khiva’s clay walls have been leveraged to turn the Itchan Kala into an attraction-cum-shopping-town where its distinct floral ornamentation is eclipsed by the fluorescent parade of cheap goods along and around historic monuments. While tourists who limit themselves to this triad will no doubt find heritage between the cracks of the consumerist-package wrapping, they risk missing out on the stuff that makes Central Asia so lovable – its people, nature, and quiet reverence for culture. That is why, for the more adventurous travelers, I recommend going off-piste, deep into the Gilon Valley two hours east of Shahrisabz: to the green little Tajik village of Sarchashma. [caption id="attachment_34153" align="aligncenter" width="2560"] Image: Madina Gazieva[/caption] The picturesque way leading to Sarchashma starts at the Hisorak hydroelectric dam, 30km east of Shakhrisabz, itself a site of historic importance as the birthplace of the famous conqueror Amir Temur. Lasting approximately an hour and a half, the drive from Hisorak to Sarchashma feels like something out of a Kiarostami film: a winding earthen road, towered by the foothills of the Hissor mountain range, bordered by the azure Aksu River that culminates in the Hisorak reserve downstream. One can pause on top of the dam, or at any point, to appreciate the dramatic landscape created by the serpentine Aksu, interrupted by mountains rising from the valley floor. Closer to Sarchashma, two prominent, rounded, equilateral mountains emerge upstream of the river; this is where Sarchashma is cozily nestled amid a sprawling green patch of poplar and walnut trees. As the village’s elders explain, the settlement used to be called ‘Kizilimchak’, denoting ‘red-chested girl’ – the locals’ way of honoring the eminence of their topography. [caption id="attachment_34154" align="aligncenter" width="2560"] Sarchashma Museum; image: Madina Gazieva[/caption] A cultural legacy, unadulterated nature, and welcoming people are what make Sarchashma worth visiting. The village is host to a small but packed museum, comprising three rooms in an old mosque, founded by Kundal artist and schoolteacher Aki Furqat. Furqat, who speaks Russian, spent years collecting scattered archaeological items such as pottery, sewing and farming tools found near what the inhabitants say was an ancient settlement called ‘Ochtepa’, now farmland, a few kilometers from Sarchashma. While formal excavations have yet to be carried out, the temporal range of artefacts points to a rich legacy: more recent items include Persian philosophical texts, Soviet-era photographs, and contemporary books written by local...

Kazakh writer

How The New York Times Came to Publish an Obituary for Kazakh writer Mukhtar Auezov

While browsing old issues of The New York Times, we wondered: “Is there anything here about the Kazakhs or Kazakhstan?” One edition stood out, the June 28, 1961 issue. On page 35, alongside obituaries for several prominent figures, was one for our great writer, Mukhtar Auezov. [caption id="attachment_33412" align="aligncenter" width="378"] “Winner of Lenin Prize in 1959 for 2-Volume Work Dies Mukhtar O. Auezov, the Kazakh poet and philosopher whose two-novel work, ‘Abai’ and ‘The Road of Abai,’ earned a Lenin Prize two years ago, died yesterday in Alma-Ata.”[/caption] The article went on to note that Mukhtar Auezov was born and raised in the Shyngystau region (known today as the Abai District), and later wrote a major work about the life of Abai. It also mentioned that he studied at Leningrad University and authored numerous literary works. In 1960, Auezov visited several U.S. states as part of a Soviet writers’ delegation. Upon returning home, he expressed in interviews his admiration for the towering skyscrapers of New York City. What pleased us even more was that The New York Times included a photograph of Auezov alongside the obituary. This shows that even in the 1960s, American literary circles recognized and took notice of a Kazakh writer. In other words, Auezov left a lasting impression on the American public. Other articles about him may have appeared in the U.S. press, but so far this obituary is the only one we have been able to find. Mukhtar Omarkhanuli Auezov holds the distinction of being the first known Kazakh writer to set foot on American soil. His official visit was well covered by the U.S. press and known to the American public at the time. This likely explains why such a major publication honored him with a dedicated obituary, informing readers around the world of his passing. The gesture reflects a significant level of respect and recognition. Mukhtar Auezov indeed visited the United States from February 17 to March 17, 1960, as part of a delegation of Soviet writers. This trip was part of the “Agreement Between the United States of America and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics on Exchanges in the Cultural, Technical, and Educational Fields.” According to the agreement, four American writers visited the USSR in 1959, and in return, a Soviet delegation traveled to the U.S. in February/March 1960. To give readers a closer look at his journey, we are sharing excerpts from Mukhtar Auezov’s diary, where he reflects on the trip. The entries were later published in a bilingual edition, Mukhtar Auezov: Impressions of America, in 2021, in both Kazakh and English. Below are a few details from Auezov’s impressions of the U.S.: That day we toured Washington, D.C. It’s a very beautiful city. No two houses look alike. Even the cars are all different, though there are many, they never repeat. We visited the old part of the city, the area known as ‘Georgetown.’ All the houses here are old, yet highly stylish, elegant two-story homes. There is one...

History

A British Scholar’s Glimpse into Kazakh Life a Century Ago

A century ago, in 1925, British historian, writer, and revolutionary Ralph Fox published People of the Steppes, a compelling account of his travels offering rare insights into the life and culture of the Kazakh people. Fox (1900–1936) was no ordinary observer. A journalist, Marxist, and author of biographies on Lenin and Genghis Khan, he traveled through Soviet Central Asia in the early 1920s and spent his final years working at the Marx-Engels Institute in Moscow, where he wrote his last major tome. In the foreword to People of the Steppes, Fox states that his aim was not political propaganda but to record what he had witnessed. His observations, written as he journeyed through the steppe from the Orenburg region to the Aral Sea, provide a vivid portrait of nomadic life. As the train carried him across Turkestan, Fox was struck by the sights outside his window: “For the first time I see, through the train windows, the round black tents of the nomads, shaped like broad beehives, and I whisper to myself that under just such a tent was Chingiz Khan born… Sometimes there passes a family on the march, the elders and children perched above their household goods on the beautiful shaggy Bactrian camels, the youths on horseback, small, sturdy ponies. It is all strange to me and I feel a beauty of slowness and order in their movements, the eternal rhythm of a wandering shepherd's life.” Fox shortly visited a nomadic camp, recording his impressions in the sub-section “The Tents of the Kazakhs”. “We sat on some empty crates and watched the hens scutter across the floor," he wrote, "while his wife, a quiet, kindly woman, brought us a bowl of Kummis (Mare’s milk) to drink." The hospitality of the Kazakhs left a lasting impression: “ They roused me when the meal was ready. ‘The Kazaks, men and women, sat round the pot in the dim tent, for smoke filled all the upper part now, and the sun had set. Brown arms were thrust into the mess, or painted wooden spoons, while we dainty whites were given wooden bowls. ‘The meat was tough and greasy, and to me only the little cakes of dough were palatable, though they were gritty with sand, so I did not eat much… It was all fantastic around that evil-smelling fire.” The next day, Fox encountered a group of Lesser Horde Kazakhs migrating from Siberia along the Syr Darya River. He noted that some had already settled in Torgai, while others aimed to reach the Urals. “ Once there, they would willingly sell off their surplus stock to buy their necessities on the bazaars to last them through the following year, at Kazalinsk, at Jussali, at Perovsk and ‘Turkestan, the great bazaars of the Syr Daria.” Fox also explored the broader historical and cultural context of the Kazakhs, noting that their nomadic lifestyle limited the development of written literature but fostered rich oral traditions and epic poetry: “It is hard to unravel their...

Cultural Heritage

The Photographs of Prokudin-Gorsky: A Glimpse of a Lost World

Using the emerging technology of color photography, Sergey Mikhaylovich Prokudin-Gorsky (1863–1944) undertook several photographic expeditions to capture images of the Russian Empire. Most of his work took place between 1909 and 1915, though some photographs date as early as 1905. At the time, the Russian Empire stretched roughly 7,000 miles east to west and 3,000 miles north to south. It encompassed one-sixth of the Earth’s land surface, making it the largest empire in history, spanning what are now eleven time zones. [caption id="attachment_32008" align="aligncenter" width="484"] Abutment for a dam and house belonging to the government. [Kuzminskoe] Prokudin-Gorsky, Sergey Mikhaylovich, 1912[/caption]Tsar Nicholas II supported Prokudin-Gorsky’s ambitious endeavor by granting him travel permits and access to various modes of transportation, including trains, boats, and automobiles. His journeys are preserved in photographic albums that include the original negatives. One album also features miscellaneous images, including scenes from other parts of Europe. The photographs capture a broad array of subjects: religious architecture and shrines (churches, cathedrals, mosques, and monasteries); religious and secular artifacts (such as vestments, icons, and items linked to saints, former Tsars, and the Napoleonic Wars); infrastructure and public works (railroads, bridges, dams, and roads); a variety of industries (including mining, textile production, and street vending); agricultural scenes (like tea plantations and field work); portraits, which often showed people in traditional dress, as well as cityscapes, villages, natural landscapes, and blooming plants. Besides being a photographer, Sergey Prokudin-Gorsky was a chemist who is renowned for his pioneering contributions to color photography in the early 20th century. In 1901, he traveled to Berlin to study photochemistry before returning to Russia, where he outfitted a railroad car as a mobile darkroom with the support of Tsar Nicholas II. As he traveled across the Russian Empire, he documented its people and landscapes, eventually earning recognition in Russia, Germany, and France. In 1906, he was appointed head of the photography section of Fotograf-Liubitel, Russia’s leading photography journal. One of his most famous works is a color portrait of Leo Tolstoy, taken in 1908. “By capturing the result of artistic inspiration in the full richness of its colors on the light-sensitive photographic plate, we pass the priceless document to future generations,” wrote Prokudin-Gorsky. As a nobleman, inventor, professor, and pioneer of color photography in Russia, Prokudin-Gorsky had a deep sense of national identity and heritage. Although he was unable to complete his grand project due to the outbreak of World War I and increasing social unrest across the Russian Empire, he still managed to capture photographs in regions such as the Urals, Siberia, Crimea, Dagestan, Finland, and Central Asia, as well as along the Volga and Oka rivers. Unfortunately, much of his photographic archive was lost in the aftermath of the 1917 Revolution. Prokudin-Gorsky created unique black-and-white negatives using a triple-frame method, taking three separate exposures through blue, green, and red filters. This technique allowed the images to be printed or projected in color, often for magic lantern slide presentations. The complete collection of 1,902 triple-frame glass...

Agriculture

Kazakhstan Launches Ambitious Project to Revive Legendary Aport Apple

Kazakhstan has launched a major initiative to restore one of Almaty's most iconic symbols, the Aport apple variety. The Return of a National Symbol According to the National Agrarian Scientific and Educational Center (NANOC), new Aport orchards will be planted in the Almaty region starting in 2025, covering an area of 110 hectares. The project, set to run through 2028, plans to introduce approximately 25,000 seedlings. Funding has already been secured, and experts from KazNII Horticulture LLP have begun implementing the roadmap. “We are confident that the revival of this variety will be an important step in the development of domestic horticulture and will provide Kazakhstanis with high-quality and tasty fruits,” NANOC stated. The first harvest is expected in eight years. According to scientific forecasts, yields could reach up to 57.7 kilograms per tree in the early stages and up to 100 kilograms as the orchards mature. Aport apples are known not only for their distinctive aroma and taste but also for their durability: with proper storage, they remain fresh until March, and with modern preservation methods, even until June. A Fruit Steeped in History The Aport apple is more than just a fruit, it’s a cultural brand of Almaty. With its large size, vibrant color, and rich aroma, the Aport became a hallmark of the city. Historical records show that in 1865, a peasant named Yegor Redko brought Aport seedlings from Russia’s Voronezh Province to the town of Verny (modern-day Almaty). Within a decade, the variety flourished in the unique climate of the Zailiyskiy Alatau, revealing its full potential. By the early 20th century, Aport apples had gained international acclaim. At an exhibition in Germany in 1908, the variety won a prize. Since then, it has been recognized as a Kazakhstani brand. In 2023, the Aport was officially patented as a national product. Justice Minister Azamat Eskarayev has announced efforts to register the Aport as an international brand, including in European countries. Decline and Recovery Challenges The decline of the Aport apple began in the late 20th century, driven by rapid urbanization and the commercial development of former orchard lands. According to Saule Kazybayeva, Deputy Chair of the Board at the Kazakh Research Institute of Fruit and Vegetable Growing, the Aport was replaced by hardier and more commercially viable varieties like Golden Delicious. Moreover, the Aport requires specific care and environmental conditions, making it less appealing for mass production. Another setback has been the degradation of its genetic qualities. The traditional method of grafting Aport onto wild Sivers apple stock is often not properly followed, especially by private farms, resulting in a loss of the variety’s signature flavor. The Current Outlook According to the Ministry of Agriculture, Aport orchards now cover 2,500 hectares across Almaty and Zhetysu oblasts, with around 416,000 trees in total. Almaty itself has about 230 hectares of Aport orchards. However, local authorities acknowledge that both the orchard area and fruit quality are in decline, largely due to disease susceptibility. Despite these challenges, a revitalization program...