Gur-e-Amir is the resting place of Amir Timur (Tamerlane) and his descendants, crowned by one of the most photographed domes in Central Asia: a ribbed, melon-shaped cupola sheathed in turquoise tile. Its proportions and gilded interior directly inspired the great Mughal tombs of India, including the Taj Mahal.
Don't miss
- The towering azure dome, best seen from the entry courtyard
- The gold-and-blue interior chamber, richly worked overhead
- Timur’s dark jade cenotaph, once the largest single piece of jade in the world
Good to know
Best time
Best after dark when the dome and portal are floodlit.
Entrance
Modest ticket; the actual tombs lie in a crypt below the symbolic cenotaphs.
The Curse of the Tomb
When Soviet archaeologists opened Timur’s grave in June 1941, they reportedly found an inscription warning that whoever disturbed it would unleash an invader more terrible than Timur himself. Two days later, Nazi Germany invaded the Soviet Union. Timur was reburied with full Islamic rites in 1942, and Stalingrad turned soon after.
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