Shah-i-Zinda Necropolis
A street of mausoleums on the slope of Afrasiab.
In memory of Qutham ibn Abbas
The necropolis is tied to Qutham ibn Abbas, a Muslim martyr who died in the 670s. Tradition holds that he died in Samarkand.
Sources: https://iranturan.leiden.edu/cities/samarqand-2/the-shah-i-zinda-necropolis-12th-15th-century/
Legend of the Living King
A legend tells that during the first Arab siege Qutham escaped death by hiding in a niche or a well and lives on underground. Hence the name Shah-i-Zinda, the Living King.
Sources: https://depts.washington.edu/silkroad/cities/uz/samarkand/shahix.html
Built over centuries
The first buildings here, mausoleums and a madrasa, date to the Qarakhanid period. But most of what you see was built after 1350. Many mausoleums belong to Timur's amirs and to women of his family.
Sources: https://iranturan.leiden.edu/cities/samarqand-2/the-shah-i-zinda-necropolis-12th-15th-century/
A catalogue of tilework
The facades of Shah-i-Zinda read like a catalogue of ceramics: carved majolica, glazed terracotta, polychrome overglaze painting, monochrome glaze and tile mosaic.
Sources: https://iranturan.leiden.edu/cities/samarqand-2/the-shah-i-zinda-necropolis-12th-15th-century/