Excursions on the Great Silk Way.

“If you follow the ancient maps written on the stars, no person will ever understand you. So if you could read these maps, would you follow them? And forever be misunderstood? Or would you close your eyes tightly and pretend to be like everyone else?” 

C. JoyBell C.

Tour of a safari on jeeps across Uzbekistan.

These photos of the madrasah Nadir Divan-Begi in Samarkand (Uzbekistan) are from the archeological part of Turkestan album. The six-volume photographic survey was prepared and published in 1871 - 1872 under the patronage of General Konstantin P. von Kaufman, first Governor-General (1867 - 1882) of Turkestan, as it was called at that time the territory of Central Asia, which belonged to the Russian Empire.
The album devotes special attention to the Islamic architectural heritage of Samarkand. This madrasah (religious school), located near the tomb of Khoja Ahrar, was built in 1631 by Nadir Divan-Begi, vizier and uncle of the Bukhara ruler Imam-Quli Khan.
The madrasah was planned as a rectangular courtyard surrounded by one-storey covered arcade for scientists. The photo shows the upper right part of the niche formed by the main arch of the Iwan (vaulted hall with one end open, surrounded on three sides by walls), facing the street.
The wall surface is covered with ceramic tiles, geometric patterns, and contains the sacred texts written in kufi script. In the place where the wing is bent a niche behind the arch is a horizontal inscription of handwritten letters.
The main colors of the tiles are blue and blue with elements of white, yellow and orange.

Authority:
http://www.wdl.org