Excursion to historical and cultural reserve Azret Sultan Museum.

“Look at the world.
How to unravel all the secrets of nature?
The more you look, the more confusion grows.
And in the essence of the sun, and the ray, and the atom in the ray
Partially, maybe my mind will find its way.
But how can I comprehend my coming into the world, and how can I comprehend my departure?..”

Turkic medieval Sufi poet Alisher Navoi.

Sights of historical and cultural reserve Azret Sultan Museum.

State historical and cultural reserve - Azret Sultan Museum is located at an altitude of 213 meters above sea level, located in central part of town of Turkestan, Turkestan region. The historical and cultural reserve - the Azret Sultan Museum is a whole complex of archaeological and architectural monuments.
The ancient city of Turkestan (historical name Yasy), in which the museum reserve is located, is literally surrounded by priceless monuments of the past, which allowed it to become a kind of symbol of the medieval history of Kazakhstan, and a center for pilgrimage and historical tourism.
The monuments of Turkestan have always attracted the attention of scientists and museum specialists; back in September 1978, on the basis of the mausoleum of Ahmed Yasawi, the “Republican Architectural Museum-Complex of Ahmed Yasawi” was opened, and 11 years later, it was decided to include all the main architectural monuments in a single organizational space monuments and museums of Turkestan.
Thus, in 1989, the State Historical and Cultural Museum-Reserve "Azret Sultan" was presented. The State Museum Reserve is located at the intersection of the Chimkent - Kyzylorda highway, the corner of Tauke Khan Avenue and Almaty Square.
The pearl and main object of the reserve, of course, was the historical and architectural monument of the 14th century, the mausoleum of the spiritual mentor of the Turkic-speaking peoples, Khoja Ahmed Yasawi, popularly known as Saint Azret (Hazret) Sultan - the Sultan of All Saints.
This is the only architectural monument of the Middle Ages that has survived to this day. The Mausoleum of Khoja Ahmed Yasawi is the first historical monument of Kazakhstan, which in June 2000 was included in the UNESCO World Heritage List.
In addition to this magnificent ancient structure, the cultural reserve - museum “Azret Sultan” includes eight more historical monuments-museums united by a common organizational and scientific infrastructure.
Azret Sultan Nature Reserve includes:
1. Museum of Khoja Ahmed Yasawi of the XIVth century. - exhibition area - 654.98 square meters.
2. Underground mosque “Khilvet” of the XIIth century. – 702 square meters.
3. Museum “Zhuma Mosque” of the XVIIIth century. – 603.6 square meters.
4. Museum of the “Eastern Bath” – 130 square meters. 
5. Museum of the History of the City of Tukestan - 1050 square meters.
6. Museum of Archeology and Ethnography of the XIVth century. – 140 square meters.
7. Museum-mausoleum of Rabia Sultan Begim, XVth century - 62 square meters.
8. Museum “Street of Turkestan” XIX century - 452 square meters.
The total exhibition area of these museums is 3794.52 square meters. Currently, the museum includes 114 historical, cultural, religious, spiritual, archaeological and architectural monuments, including one of international, 50 of republican and 63 of local significance.
The total territory of the protected zone is estimated at 529.4 hectares. The main fund of the reserve museum is 13,800 exhibits, and its scientific library contains over 5,000 books. The state historical and cultural reserve - the Azret Sultan Museum is the most visited tourist attraction in the region and the most important attraction in all of Kazakhstan; it receives more than 350,000 visitors annually.
The main task set before the workers of the museum of the reserve is to turn the ancient city into a city of museums and the spiritual center of all Turkic-speaking peoples.
Azret Sultan Museum has following structural units:
1. Research department
2. Research library
3. Scientific department of funds
4. Department for the protection of historical and cultural monuments.
In the future, it is planned to open new departments: a research department of archeology, ethnography and ethnology, a department of the history of religion, a cultural department and propaganda, an exposition and exhibition department, a security department, a department of restoration and conservation.
"Azret Sultan" conducts active and diverse activities to promote the heritage preserved in historical monuments. Competitions on “Yasawi studies” are held at the republican level; every year since 2007, the museum hosts international scientific and practical conferences on the study and identification of the heritage of H. A. Yassawi in the spiritual and cultural life of the Turkic peoples; several books have been published under the editorship of museum staff. including the bibliographic index "Khoja Ahmed Yasawi".
On-site exhibitions from the reserve's museum funds are regularly held in various cities of Kazakhstan, for example, the exhibition "Seven Wonders of Turkestan" was held in Almaty, where more than 200 exhibits from the museum's funds were presented.
Similar exhibitions were also held in Astana, Aktobe, Atyrau, Taraz, Uralsk, Karaganda, Pavlodar and other cities. The state historical and cultural reserve - the Azret Sultan Museum - is a cultural object of great tourist, scientific and practical importance for the whole of Kazakhstan.
Geographic coordinates of State Historical and Cultural Reserve - Azret Sultan Museum: N43°17'53 E68°16'24

Authority: 
https://culturemap.kz/ru/object/gosudarstvennyiy-istoriko-kul-turnyiy-zapovednik---muze

Photos by:
Alexander Petrov.