PAKHLAVAN MAKHMUD MAUSOLEUM

Pakhlavan Makhmoud (1247-1325) is the city's patron saint. An extraordinary character: a furrier by trade, an outstanding wrestler, a great warrior and a poet. A member of the Kungrad tribe, he is considered the spiritual founder of the dynasty. His tomb was built on the site of his furrier's workshop and, in 1810, was included in the dynastic mausoleum of the Kungrad khans. Although the first mausoleum was modest in appearance, it was not until the ^19th century that it acquired its current physiognomy.

A high gateway leads to an inner courtyard overlooking the khanaka (house for religious and learned people), topped by a turquoise-blue drum and dome, a summer mosque and annex buildings housing the tombs of Isfandiar Khan's mother and son. In the courtyard is a well where newlyweds wishing to have a child come to drink. The majolica decorations inside the khanaka are breathtakingly beautiful. The walls and dome are entirely covered with blue and white plant arabesques, in which poems by Pakhlavan Makhmoud are inserted. The majolica was created by the famous Abdullah Djinn.

Pakhlavan Makhmoud's tomb is located in an adjoining room to the left of the main hall. Pilgrims gather in front of the openwork grille protecting his tomb. The tombs of the khans Abdoul Gazi (1663), Anoucha (1681) and Muhammad Rakhim are located in the khanaka.