Merv Photo Gallery by Brian McMorrow at pbase.com

Merv

Gateway to Merv	Model of the archeological site of Merv, a UNESCO World Heritage Site	The Great and Small Kyz kalas, 7th Century	A large hole in the western wall of the Great Gyzgala
Kyz Kala (or Gyzgala) is Turkmen for "maiden's fortress"	Corner of the Greater Kyz Kala of Merv	Corrugated walls of the Kyz Kalas of Merv are unique in Central Asia	Southern wall of the Greater Kyz Kala, 7th Century
The Greater Kyz Kala was built by the Sassanians and were in use until the Mongol conquest 600 years later	Entering the Greater Kyz Kala you are on the second level. The roof has collapsed burying the ground floor	Staircase of the Greater Kyz Kala, Merv	Greater Kyz Kala
Stairways leading up to the long-gone parapet and down to the buried ground floor	The Greater Gyzgala is the most impressive of the ancient structures of Merv	Greater Kyz Kala, Merv	A group of Turkmen tourists visiting Merv
Greater Kyz Kala, 7th C. AD, Merv	Scrubland between the Greater and Small Kyz Kala	Greater Kyz Kala, 7th C. AD, Merv	Greater Kyz Kala, 7th C. AD, Merv
Greater Kyz Kala, 7th C. AD, Merv	Greater Kyz Kala, 7th C. AD, Merv	Greater Kyz Kala, 7th C. AD, Merv	The Small Kyz Kala, also from the 7th Century
Greater Kyz Kala, 7th C. AD, Merv	An ancient canal separated the Greater Kyz Kala and Small Kyz Kala	Ruins of the Small Kyz Kala, Merv	Small Kyz Kala, 7th C. AD, Merv
Again, the roof has collapsed burying the structure in debris	Eroded corner of the Small Gyzgala	Small Kyz Kala, Merv	Buried staircase that once led to the ground floor of the Small Kyz Kala
The Greater Kyz Kala from the Small Kyz Kala	Small Kyz Kala, Merv	The Greater Kyz Kala from the Small Kyz Kala	Greater Kyz Kala, Merv
Small Kyz Kala, Merv	Small Kyz Kala, Merv	Small Kyz Kala looking to the Greater Kyz Kala	The south side of the Small Kyz Kala still displays the corrugated building style unique to Merv
The Small Kyz Kala, Merv	Small Kyz Kala, Merv	The ancient canal in front of the Greater Gyz Gala	The Greater Kyz Kala with a deep blue sky
Inside the Greater Kyz Kala	Passageway leading to the stairs going up	The stairs to the ground floor buried in debris	The worn out remains of the Greater Kyz Kala's staircase
The walls of Soltangala, or Sultan's Fortress, the largest of Merv's 5 ancient walled cities	Post-Mongol Timurid-era Ice House in the Abdullah Khan Kala, Merv's 4th walled city	Stair leading town into the Ice House	Inside one of the Ice Houses built during Merv's Timurid era
An interesting brick of the Timurid Ice House, Merv	Remains of stucco ornamentation	Merv's 4th walled city, the Abdullah Khan Kala, was founded by Shahrukh (1405-1447)	Architectural complex (15th century) of Askhab's (7th century)
Architectural complex of the Askhabs	The large portals (iwans) date from the Tumurid Period (15th C) while the mausoleums are from the 7th C.	The tombs belong to Al Hakim ibn Amr Al-Jifari and Buraida ibn al-Huseib al-Aslami	Remains of 15th Century Timurid tile work, Merv
The 7th Century tombs are still places of pilgrimage for the Turkmen people today	Panorama of the massive Seljuk city walls of Soltankala	The walls didn't stop the Mongols who destroyed Merv in 1221	Each pile of dirt is an unexcavated ruin
Southeast corner of the Soltankala, Merv	The oldest of Merv's 4 ancient walled cities - the Erk Kala seen from within the 2nd city, the Giaur Kala (G�w�rgala)	The Erk Kala was founded by the Achaemenids in the 6th C. BC	Alexander the Great renamed it after himself, Alexandria Margiana
The massive walls of the Erk Kala were over 25m tall	An interesting bush at Merv which changes color with the seasons	Erk Kala, the Citadel, 6th C. BC	Path leading up the worn out walls of the Erk Kala
The Sassanians built their larger ancient city, the Giaur Kala, to the south of the Erk Kala in the 3rd C. BC - little remains	Panoramic view of the Erk Kala from the southern wall	If you look close, you can make out some ancient bricks that have not yet melted away to mud	The Citadel Erk Kala was in use through the early Islamic period
Ruins of a large building in the Giaur Kala	The Mausoleum of Sultan Sanjar in the center of the Soltankala to the west of the Erk Kala and Giaur Kala	The large mound in the center of the Erk Kala - the remains of the ancient palace	Remains of one of the large towers of the Erk Kala
Tower of the Erk Kala	Excavations of the gate to the second ancient city, the Hellenistic Giaur Kala	It's difficult to believe there was once a huge city here - Giaur Kala	Remains of ancient bricks at an excavation site inside the Giaur Kala
Excavations of a 7th C. mosque in the Giaur Kala	Water cistern near the Giaur Kala's 7th C. mosque	Water cistern near the Giaur Kala's 7th C. mosque	Excavated cistern, Giaur Kala, Merv
The modern Mosque of Yusuf Hamadani, an important pilgrimage site with the tomb of a 12th C. holy man	Northern wall of the Sultan Qala, the largest of Merv's ancient walled cities	The Sultan Qala was founded by Abu Muslim al-Khorasani in the 8th Century	...had to talk the guide into stopping...he was in a rush
Worn staircase	The main road passing through the Sultan Qala	Shahryar Ark (Sovereign's Citadel) in the northeast corner of the Sultan Qala	The Seljuk palace (11th C.) is in the northeast corner of the Sultan Qala
Shahryar Ark, Ancient Merv	Shahryar Ark - Soltangala	Pinnacle-like ruin in the center of the Shahryar Ark	Merv was at its largest under the Seljuks with perhaps 200,000 inhabitants, the largest city in the world in 1150 AD
Kepderihana or Kaftar Khana ("pigeon house") - one of the more substantial ruins in the Shahryar Ark	The Kepderihana may have actually used for pigeons	Others believe the Kepderihana was a library or treasury due to its location next to the palace	Eastern entrance to the Kepderihana
Interior of the Kepderihana in the Shahryar Ark, Merv	The Kepderihana also preserves Merv's unique corrugated wall architecture	Kepderihana in the Shahryar Ark, Merv	Remains of another mudbrick structure inside the Shahryar Ark, Merv
Little remains of the Seljuk palace in the Shahryar Ark of Sultan Qala, Merv	A building in the Shahryar Ark with ornate vertical brickwork	Shahryar Ark, Merv	Remains of a gate to the Sultan's Palace, Shahryar Ark
Shahryar Ark, Merv	Shahryar Ark, Merv	Panoramic view of the ruins of the Shahryar Ark in the northeast corner of the Sultan Qala	Southern wall of the Kepderihana, Merv
Kepderihana - Shahryar Ark, Merv	Dirt road within the Shahryar Ark	The road to the main portion of the Sultan Qala	Remains of a tower of the Shahryar Ark
Shahryar Ark with the Mosque of Yusuf Hamadani	Walls of the Shahryar Ark, Merv	Walls of the Shahryar Ark, Merv	Walls of the Shahryar Ark, Merv
...don't remember what the guide called this bush...	At the center of the Sultan Qala the Mausoleum of Sultan Sanjar	12th Century Mausoleum of Sultan Sanjar was spared by the Mongols in the tradition of leaving the tallest monument standing	The Seljuk Sultan Sanjar ruled Merv at its peak from 1118-1153
Mausoleum of Sultan Sanjar (1086-1157)	The interior dome of the Mausoleum of Sultan Sanjar	Some of the original artwork of the Mausoleum of Sultan Sanjar	The tomb Sultan Sanjar who died in 1157 after losing his empire in 1153 to the Turkomen (Oghuz Turks)
Mausoleum of Sultan Sanjar	Mausoleum of Sultan Sanjar	Mausoleum of Sultan Sanjar, Merv	The dome gives the mausoleum amazing acoustics
The dome of the Mausoleum of Sultan Sanjar	Original decoration - Mausoleum of Sultan Sanjar	Latticed window, Mausoleum of Sultan Sanjar	Well outside the Mausoleum of Sultan Sanjar
In 1890 the mausoleum was a picturesque ruin	In my opinion, the restoration was excessive...	Heavily restored Mausoleum of Sultan Sanjar	The restoration, however, did not replace the tile work that would have covered the dome
Mausoleum of Sultan Sanjar	The Mausoleum of Sultan Sanjar stands alone in the center of the Sultan Qala, the largest of Merv's ancient cities	A mosque used to stand next to the tomb	The large square building is 27m per side and the dome is 18m in diameter
The dome was restored in 1911 and the rest of the mausoleum in the 1990's with the aid of Turkey	Mausoleum of Sultan Sanjar, Merv	The Mongol conquest of Merv was one of the bloodiest single actions in human history - only 400 artisans were spared	Mausoleum of Sultan Sanjar
Soltan Sanjar yň k�mmeti (XII asyr)	The last stop - the 12th C. Mausoleum of Muhammed ibn Zayed	The Mausoleum of Mohammed ibn Zayed, also heavily restored	Ruins next to the Mausoleum of Mohammed ibn Zayed
Sacred saxaul tree with cloth prayer strips	Mihrab of the Mausoleum of Mohammed ibn Zayed	Tombstone - Mausoleum of Mohammed ibn Zayed	Tombstone - Mausoleum of Mohammed ibn Zayed
Calligraphy and ornate brickwork, Mausoleum of Mohammed ibn Zayed	Dome of Mausoleum of Mohammed ibn Zayed, Merv	Mausoleum of Mohammed ibn Zayed	Mausoleum of Mohammed ibn Zayed
Mausoleum of Mohammed ibn Zayed	Decorate brickwork, Mausoleum of Mohammed ibn Zayed	Mausoleum of Mohammed ibn Zayed	Mausoleum of Mohammed ibn Zayed
Brick dome, Mausoleum of Mohammed ibn Zayed, Merv	Mausoleum of Mohammed ibn Zayed	Cistern or icehouse next to the Mausoleum of Mohammed ibn Zayed	UZTM11 3341.jpg
The Mausoleum of Mohammed ibn Zayed is an important Sufi pilgrimage site	Ruins to the west of the Sultan Kala, Merv	Mausoleum of Mohammed ibn Zayed	Walls of the Sultan Qala from Mausoleum of Mohammed ibn Zayed
Mausoleum of Mohammed ibn Zayed	Mausoleum of Mohammed ibn Zayed	Mausoleum of Mohammed ibn Zayed	Mausoleum of Mohammed ibn Zayed
European Bee-eater (Merops apiaster), Merv, Turkmenistan	Walls of Merv's 5th walled cits - Bairam Ali Khan Kala, built in the 18th C. near the modern town	Billboard with the World Heritage of Turkmenistan	Marysy�ahat
Modern house near the ruins of Ancient Merv	Downtown Merv	The Turkmenistan Railway passing through Merv

comment |

gerrit		23-Oct-2012 18:56
A very good representation of an old, in history famous, place.V

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