Registan Square

The three madrassas that flank the Registan in Samarkand are Ulugh Beg, Tilla Kari, and Sher-Dor, each opening onto the great public square with towering portal arches that are fundamental to the composition and convey the ambition of the Timurid era. The portals are sheathed in faience tilework that ranges from pale turquoise to deep cobalt, with geometric patterns and calligraphic inscriptions that reward extended attention from any angle. The Ulugh Beg Madrasa dates from the early fifteenth century and housed a university where the Timurid astronomer-prince taught mathematics and astronomy to scholars from across the known world. Its pishtaq, the great arched portal facing the square, is considered one of the finest examples of Islamic tilework in Central Asia.

The Tilla Kari Madrasa is named for the gilt that once covered its dome, and its interior courtyard is entered through a portal that opens into a surprises of colour and light. The space inside the main iwan is faced with painted and gilded muqarnas that seem to dissolve the ceiling into shimmering three-dimensional geometry. The Sher-Dor Madrasa, built between 1636 and 1660, takes its name from the tigers depicted on its famous tilework mosaic above the entrance arch. The mosaic shows a sun with a tiger and a lion, a rare and unusual departure from the usual aniconic prohibitions in Islamic art and a vivid reminder of the living artistic culture of the Bukhara region. At sunrise and sunset the low angle of light turns the tilework from blue to gold, and the square fills with the sound of vendors and visitors in one of the most perfectly preserved historic public spaces in Central Asia.

The Registan is a UNESCO World Heritage Site inscribed in 2001 as part of the Samarkand entry, and it remains the symbol of the city and one of the most recognisable cultural landscapes in the world. The name Registan means place of sand in Persian, a reference to the open square that was used for public assemblies, executions and royal proclamations during the Timurid period. Today the three madrassas house small museums and workshops where craftsmen continue to practice the tilework and gilding techniques that define the sites visual character. The best time to visit is early morning before the tour groups arrive, when the light is soft and the square is quiet enough to appreciate the scale and detail of the facades without distraction.

The Registan is Samarkand's central public square, framed by three monumental Timurid-era madrassas whose tilework facades and towering portals are among the finest examples of Islamic architecture in Central Asia.