The Ark Citadel is a city within a city. In ancient times, around three thousand people lived and worked within its walls: the ruler and his family, officials, craftsmen, servants. The treasury was kept here, artisans worked here, an arsenal stood here — and all of it rose above Bukhara by 16 to 20 metres, like an unassailable stone island.
According to archaeological findings, the citadel dates back to the 4th–3rd centuries BCE, making it one of the oldest structures in all of Central Asia. References to the Ark appear in Narshakhi's 9th–10th-century "History of Bukhara." Over its long life the fortress witnessed a great deal: in 1220, Genghis Khan conquered Bukhara and broke through even the Ark's walls.
A beautiful legend surrounds the fortress: according to tradition, it was built by the mythical hero Siyavush, who cut a bull's hide into thin strips and laid them out along the boundaries of the future construction site — thereby fulfilling a king's cunning condition in order to win the heart of his daughter. Today, the Ark's walls house a state museum-reserve with tens of thousands of exhibits.
