Dressed in colorful quilted robes, residents of Samarkand gather on the steps of the Shir-dor madrassah, one of three Islamic universities on Registan Square. The Registan is the historical heart of Samarkand, a city as old as Babylon and Rome. For centuries, camel caravans carried silks and carpets, spices and dyes, exotic birds and precious stones to the city’s bazaars.

Samarkand’s wealth was a lure for successive waves of conquerors. In the 4th century B.C., Alexander the Great crossed the Oxus River (now the Amu-Darya) to conquer the Persian province of Sogdiana. In the 8th century, the Arabic Conquest brought Islam to the region. Genghis-Khan’s nomadic hordes plundered Samarkand in the 13th century, and his descendent, Tamerlane, ruled his huge empire from the city. In 1868, Samarkand fell under Russian Imperial rule, later to become part of Soviet Uzbekistan. After the Soviet Union’s collapse, Uzbekistan gained sovereignty.

 

Happening Now

Monumental Soviet Paintings

Saturday, April 12, 2025 - Sunday, September 21, 2025

Monumental Soviet Paintings post image
Russia’s Native Mushrooms: Botanical Watercolors by Alexander Viazmensky post image

Chemiakin’s Worlds

Saturday, March 15, 2025 - Sunday, June 22, 2025

Chemiakin’s Worlds post image

Geometric Abstraction: Selections from the Kolodzei Art Foundation Collection

Saturday, February 1, 2025 - Sunday, June 1, 2025

Geometric Abstraction: Selections from the Kolodzei Art Foundation Collection post image
Say No to War: Political Cartoons by Ukrainian and Russian Artists – The 4th Iteration post image
The Permanent Collection Gallery post image