Merv

Merv was one of the largest, most cosmopolitan cities of the ancient world. Rising above a lush oasis straddling the Silk Road , it once rivaled Damascus , Baghdad and Cairo as a trading center. Its libraries were legendary, its architecture splendid and rich. Its craftsmen developed highly prized Damascus steel centuries before such a product poured from European foundries. The city of Merv was a commercial power for centuries. Today, Merv is Central Asia 's most extensive archaeological site and excavating it is one of the biggest challenges in all of archaeology.

Spread over more than 60 sq km, Merv is actually the site of no less than four walled cities from different periods, each built beside the last. They are the earliest city of Alexandria , Antiokhia, Islamic or medieval city of Sultan Kala and post-medieval city of Abdullah-Khan Kala .

ALEXANDRIA OR ERK KALA (“ Citadel Castle ”) is in some ways the most imposing site of Merv. Thought to date from the 6th century BC it is enclosed by massive walls still some 30 m in places. Polygonal in form it was probably entered via a drawbridge over the moat in the south, near its highest tower, which still dominates the landscape. Today it is a big earthen basin about 800 m across. Set on the inside a huge built-up platform of mud brick ( 15 m high) was probably the residential palace of a local ruler.

The second city of Merv , known today as ANTIOKHIA OR GYAUR KALA (“Castle of the Infidels”) was founded by the Seleucids, Alexander's successors, in 238 BC. It was approximately square, each wall measuring some 2 km in length. The city was laid out on a regular grid pattern and occupied some 360 ha . The city walls are still solid today, with three gaps where the gates once were. Being occupied for nearly nine centuries it was the longest living of the cities of Merv. It had witnessed the comings and goings of at least three empires of the Seleucids, Parthians and Sasanians. The city was a melting pot where the adherents of the official Zoroastrian faith peacefully cohabited with the followers of Buddhism, Nestorian Christianity and Judaism.

The medieval city of SULTAN KALA began as an extra-mural suburb across the canal that formed the western perimeter of Gyaur Kala from the Arab arrival in the 8 th century. The new occupied area was first walled in the 11 th century. But the city grew so quickly and soon expanded beyond the walls. It is under the Seljuks that Merv attained the highpoint of its development. It grew into the greatest city the region had ever known, called “Royal Merv” or “the Pearl of the East”. As many as one million people crowded the city and its oasis. Merv`s world-famous libraries and observatory attracted scholars from all over the East. Then came the Mongols in 1221. The city's defenses appeared very strong as was proven by the fact that the Mongol army road around the walls for six days trying to find the weak points in the walls. But the Mongols managed to take control of the vital dam on the Murgab River that supplied the city with water. In the end the inhabitants were compelled to surrender. The Mongols` revenge was appalling. They massacred up to one million people and then sacked the city. For two centuries afterwards Merv lay waste. “The city which had been embellished by great men of the world became the haunt of hyenas and beasts of pray”, wrote one of the travelers who happened to visit Merv after the Mongol invasion. Not until the 15 th century did Merv again revive somewhat. In 1409 the Timurid ruler Shah Rukh, heir to Timur, built a new city known today as ABDULLAH KHAN KALA. It was the smallest of the three cities of Merv, occupying some 44 ha . Rectangular in form it was enclosed by thick walls reinforced with four large circular corner towers and some 44 additional towers. The city was originally entered by four gates located in the centers of the walls. There was a large mosque, madrasa and the citadel that housed the ruler`s palace together with a caravanserai and storerooms. Unfortunately, little survives of the city today but the line of the walls.

The landmark of Merv is the imposing MAUSOLEUM of SULTAN SANJAR (mid-12 th century). So prominent was the mausoleum of Sanjar the Great, sultan of the Seljuk Empire, and its turquoise dome so magnificent, that Silk Road caravans could spot it while they were still a full day`s march away across the southern Karakum Desert. Though its beautiful tiles are long since gone, the mausoleum`s wind-weathered dome still dominates the desolate, ruined city of Merv. The square mausoleum measures 27 m a side and consists of a square chamber. Inside is only Sanjar`s simple stone grave. All Seljuk monumental buildings are embellished with elegant с ut brickwork, and the given mausoleum is no exception. Interior decoration is sparse, though fragments of stucco revealed in restoration testifies to the lavish decoration which once adorned the interior.

GREAT and LITTLE KYZ KALAS (‘Maiden`s castles) are among the buildings that remain of Merv`s four ruined cities. These are fort-like structures with corrugated walls. The most impressive castle is the GREAT KYZ KALA. It is nearly square in plan (42 x 37 m ) with the lower story contained within a monumental sloping platform. This is pierced by narrow, wedge-shaped windows, sloping downwards to light the vaulted rooms of the lower story The walls of the upper story rise with a distinct incline or batter and are broken up into corrugations or tall engaged columns. These magnificent corrugations still survive to nearly their original height and end in a series of triangular points, representing the eroded remains of crenellations. The corrugations are semi-octagonal in form and rise smoothly from the platform. The division of the exterior into two zones reflects the internal arrangement into two stories. Entrance was via ramps on the east side to the upper story. Little survives of the interior of the upper story. Only the stubs of some walls provide an idea of its layout and structure. The principal feature would probably have been a central courtyard surrounded by domed and vaulted rooms. The lower story is no longer accessible due to collapse, although there preserved a staircase that once led down. The Little Kyz Kala is located some 100 m to the south of the Great Kyz Kala. Although considerably smaller (22 x 22 m ) and much less well preserved, it appears to have shared the same plan as its large neighbor. This monument is the only one with parts of the lower story visible: at least five vaulted rooms survived with the remains of a staircase in the south east corner.

The religious complex of YUSUF HAMADANI is located near the Islamic city of Sultan Kala . Arrived from the Iranian city of Hamadan in the early 12 the century sheikh Abu Yaqub Yusuf ibn Ayub (1048-1140) lived and died in Merv. He was one of the leaders of suphism here. Although it is likely that a mausoleum was built over the grave soon after his death, nothing survives of this structure. The present mausoleum is a modern rebuilding of a 19 th century reconstruction and houses a black marble cenotaph decorated with inscriptions and floral designs. The main part of the complex is the prayer hall to the west of the mausoleum decorated with tilework. Recently enlarged and refurbished the complex has turned into an important place of worship.

The mausoleum of MUHAMMAD ibn SAYD was built in the early 12 th century and is one of the best examples of an Islamic shrine in the oasis of Merv. It consists of three main elements, the mausoleum itself, a mosque or prayer hall a secondary mausoleum or anteroom. The complex was restored in the mid-20 th century, but part of the original outer facing of fine brickwork on the north wall and the sea-shell decoration of the mosque recess (“mihrab”) in the east wall are original.

Lovers of archaeology can be recommended an interesting day`s outing to MARGUSH, a large excavation site in the ancient delta of the Murgab river on the edge of the Karakum desert ( 100 km north of Mary). It should be noticed that the site can be reached only by a four-wheel drive. When in 1972 Professor V.Sarianidi started excavating the mounds located there he discovered the traces of a vanished Bronze Age civilization whose existence had never been suspected. Since then the archaeologists have unearthed about 300 settlements lost in sands of the Kara Kum desert. It is these settlements that formed one of the earliest farming civilizations in Central Asia mentioned on the famous Behistan rock under the name of Margush. It was also the ancient land of Margiana , as the classical Roman and Greek writers called it.

Of particular interest is the central settlement of Gonur-Depeh (1500 – 1250 BC). It consists of the Royal Palace , Temple of Fire and Necropolis. Located on a natural elevation the Palace was a complicated system of large halls and patios linked with passages and wide corridors. In excavation of the Tower of Fire the archaeologists revealed altars of different sizes, furnaces, hearths and pools. A rich burial material has been obtained in excavation of the Necropolis. It includes lady's adornments made of gold and semi-precious stones, fine pottery, small figurines of animals, etc. The season of 2004 was very fruitful for the archaeologists. When digging out a burial they unearthed worked silver vessels decorated with gold insets, two chariots, bones of a sacrificed animal and lots of pottery shards. Visitors to Turkmenistan can admire at these timeless objects displayed at the museums of Asghabat and Mary.

Photos of Merv

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