Travellers of the East once called it the "Heart of the World." A thousand years ago, Konye-Urgench was one of the largest cities on the planet, the capital of Khorezm, through which the caravans of the Great Silk Road once passed. At its height, the city covered an area of 1,500 hectares, but in 1221 the Mongol invasion under Genghis Khan destroyed most of its buildings, and a century later the armies of Timur arrived as well.
What survived all those conquests is still astonishing today. The Kutlug-Timur Minaret, standing 60 metres tall, remains the tallest brick minaret in all of Central Asia. Nearby stands the mausoleum of Turabek-Khanum, its dome covered in 14th-century mosaics, and the mausoleum of Il-Arslan, topped with a conical roof — one of the oldest monuments in the city.
The city has been on the UNESCO World Heritage List since 2005. Scholars who once worked here included Ibn Sina and Al-Biruni — for its time, Konye-Urgench was not only a centre of trade but one of the great intellectual hubs of the world.
