Kutlug Timur Minaret
Interesting facts
- Its nearest rival in Central Asia is the Islam Khoja minaret in Khiva, about 56.6 metres high.
- Some sources put its height at 62 metres rather than 60.
- Kutlug Timur, whose name it bears, is described as a son-in-law of the Golden Horde ruler Uzbek Khan.
- The minaret belonged to the city's principal congregational mosque, and its doorway opened from inside the prayer hall.
- In 1221 the Mongols took Urgench and destroyed the Gurganj dam, turning the surroundings into marshland.
- In 1388 Timur razed the city, wrecked its irrigation and had barley sown where it had stood.
- Writing in the 14th century, Ibn Battuta ranked Urgench as the greatest and most beautiful city of the Turks, with fine bazaars and broad streets.
- A shift in the course of the Amu Darya sealed the city's decline, and by the 16th century Khiva had replaced it as the regional capital.
Why it is worth it
Rising about 60 metres above the steppe at Konye-Urgench, the Kutlug Timur Minaret is the tallest minaret in Central Asia and the tallest monument among the ruins of Old Urgench, one of the historic cities of Khwarezm. Built of fired brick, it narrows from a base about 12 metres across to roughly 2 metres at the top, and its upper part leans visibly — a tilt attributed to earthquakes or to uneven heating of the masonry in a fire. A spiral staircase of 145 steps winds up inside.
The tower's name and date come from its inscriptions. Bands of Kufic lettering worked in brick carry the name of Kutlug Timur, who governed Urgench and its region in the 1320s and 1330s for the Golden Horde, and of Uzbek Khan, ruler of the Horde from 1313 to 1341 and Kutlug Timur's relative. Some scholars, judging by the style of the decorative brickwork, believe the tower is considerably older — possibly dating to the early 11th century under the Khwarazmian rulers — and that Kutlug Timur restored rather than founded it. In its time the minaret adjoined a mosque, and its entrance lay inside the prayer hall; the mosque has not survived.
The minaret belongs to a group of about sixty towers and minarets raised between the 11th and 14th centuries across Central Asia, Iran and Afghanistan, of which the Minaret of Jam is the most famous. Nearby stands the mausoleum of the Khwarazmian sultan Tekesh, and together with the other monuments of the ancient city the minaret forms part of Kunya-Urgench, inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2005. Its image appeared on Turkmenistan's 500-manat banknote of 1993.
Getting there
The minaret stands in the protected historic area of Konye-Urgench in Daşoguz Province, about 2 km from the modern town centre. The nearest airport by straight line is Nukus International Airport (NCU) in Uzbekistan, about 44 km away across the border; the nearest airport in Turkmenistan is Dashoguz International Airport (TAZ), about 84 km away.
Plan your visit
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Nearby places
- Turabek Khanum Mausoleum 0.5 km · mausoleum
On these lists
From the encyclopaedia
Kutlug Timur minaret is a minaret in Konye-Urgench in north Turkmenistan, Central Asia. Constructed in 1011 during the Khwarazmian dynasty, the minaret stands at a height of 60 meters, with a base diameter of 12 meters and a top diameter of 2 meters. In 2005, the ruins of Old Urgench, where the minaret is situated, were inscribed on the UNESCO List of World Heritage Sites.
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