KALTA MINOR OR "SHORT MINARET"

This superb headless cylinder, covered in blue majolica, can be seen from afar! Located outside the madrasa, Kalta Minor should have been 70 m high. An architectural challenge for its time, but above all a height that was never reached, as the work was abandoned after the khan's death, when the minaret reached 29 m.

According to legend, the Emir of Bukhara, hearing of the project of his rival from Khiva, and unable to bear living in the shadow of a minaret taller than the one built in Bukhara, the Kalon minaret, planned to have the architect removed. His aim: to build an even taller minaret. Knowing what his rival was up to, the khan of Khiva decided to murder the architect as soon as his work was completed, to prevent the architect's skills from being used by anyone else... The khan of Bukhara had the same idea, so the poor architect fled without a second thought, leaving the minaret truncated forever.

The "short minaret" therefore rises to just 29 m, leaving Bukhara with the title of highest minaret: the Kalon minaret measuring 49 m! The Kalta Minor, however, rests on a broad base measuring 14 m on each side. It is entirely and superbly decorated with blue majolica blended with Khiva's distinctive green. You can't climb it, as it's closed to tourists, but you can try your luck with the staff at the Orient Star Hotel (open in the adjoining madrasa).