Attractions of Khiva Ichan-Kala

Khanqah of Khoja Zaynuddin, Bukhara

This monument of antiquity is concealed from view in the residential settlement of Bukhara. But the real connoisseur of antiquity and ancient architecture must visit this unique complex od buildings of XVI century.
This mosque-khanqah has the central hall with dome, which was used by Sufi in their religious rites. The hall is vast, high and has the rich ornamentation. 
The khanqah of Khoja Zaynuddin served as a shelter for errant dervishes and fulfilled a function of residential quater mosque. It was the place of meeting of he representatives of Sufism and the burial place of esteemed sheikh Khodja Zaynuddin.
Kukeldash Madrassah of XVI century is the earliest building of the Lyabi Khauz Ensemble. It was buiult during the reign of the Sheybanids dynasty in Bukhara.
This madrassah is the largest madrassah of the city (80 x 60 meters). The madrassah has over 130 hujras, where lived and studied more than 320 students. It became the symbol of powerful state under leading of Abdulla-khan.
It is a two-storied building with a large mosaic portal at the entrance, decorated with deep arched nishes, flanked on the corners by elegant columns of translucent green onyx. The interior decoration is the perfect example of "white interior".
Now the madrassah is under reconstruction.

Magoki-Attori Mosque, Bukhara

The Magoki-Attori Mosque in the city's centre is an example of an urban mosque in a residential quarter. The mosque was built on the site of the pre-lslamic Moh temple mentioned above. Excavations have revealed the fact that even under the Samanids there was a six-pier mosque, which apparently was also domed. However, it was rebuilt substantially in the twelfth century; the floor level was upgraded and the main facade received a new design that survives with little damage only. By the sixteenth century, the thickness of cultural layers had increased so much that mosque seemed to sink deep into the soil and its facade was unearthed only as a result of excavations carried out in the 1930s.
The facade of the mosque is asymmetrical. To the right it has a portal with a recessed vault, fringed with rectangular strips; the architectural decor is composed of covered bricks which form geometric shapes and tiles of carved terra-cotta bearing vegetation patterns. Carved terracotta is also used in decorating the pylons and the vaults of the arches, combined with vegetation patterns with inscriptions covered with blue glaze. All in all, the Magoki-Attori Mosque is an excellent example of Central Asian architecture during the Kara-khanid epoch.