SomeThing Historic

Merv

  • UNESCO World Heritage
  • c. 6th century BCE
  • Achaemenid, Seljuk
  • Mary Province, Turkmenistan

Seljuk capital that was briefly the largest city in the world.

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Founded
c. 6th century BCE
Civilization
Achaemenid, Seljuk
Location
Mary Province, Turkmenistan
UNESCO
Listed 1999

The story

Merv is a set of walled cities side by side, built over 2,000 years as the settlement moved across the oasis: Erk Kala, Gyaur Kala, Sultan Kala and others.

Under the Seljuk Sultan Sanjar in the 12th century Merv was a city of libraries, observatories and gardens. His mausoleum, finished around 1157, still stands with its great double dome.

In 1221 the Mongols under Tolui, son of Genghis Khan, destroyed the city and killed most of its people. Merv never recovered.

Must-see

  1. The Mausoleum of Sultan Sanjar
  2. Erk Kala, the oldest fortress
  3. The walls of Gyaur Kala and Sultan Kala
  4. The Great and Little Kyz Kala, corrugated mud-brick castles

Through the ages

  1. c. 6th century BCE Erk Kala is built
  2. c. 1157 Mausoleum of Sultan Sanjar is completed
  3. 1221 The Mongols destroy Merv
  4. 1999 Listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site

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