The Samanid Mausoleum: The Tomb That Survived Genghis Khan

In the ruins of a city Genghis Khan's army burned to the ground in 1220, one small brick tomb was left standing: the mausoleum of the Samanid dynasty in Bukhara, Uzbekistan. This film traces its construction around 900 CE, its pioneering use of squinches and geometric brickwork, its disputed patronage, and the accident of geography that hid it from the Mongols. It follows the building from burial under centuries of silt to its rediscovery by Soviet archaeologists in the 1920s and its place today in Bukhara's UNESCO World Heritage Centre. Chapters: 0:00 Cold Open: The Sack of Bukhara 0:26 The Rise of the Samanids 0:48 Raising a Tomb in Bukhara 1:51 A Masterpiece in Fired Brick 3:12 Genghis Khan Comes to Bukhara 5:01 Buried, Rediscovered, Preserved This is a true story. Primary sources: • Wikipedia 'Samanid Mausoleum'; Smarthistory • Wikipedia; UNESCO World Heritage documentation for the Historic Centre of Bukhara • Wikipedia; Smarthistory • Wikipedia, citing Soviet archival research • Wikipedia 'Samanid Mausoleum' • Wikipedia; UNESCO-related summaries • Wikipedia; Archnet ('Ismoil Somoniy Maqbarasi') • Smarthistory; Wikipedia Images & archives (via Wikimedia Commons): • Samanid Mausoleum in Bukhara 3.jpg — Maksimsokolov (CC BY-SA 4.0) • Samanid Mausoleum in Bukhara 1.jpg — Maksimsokolov (CC BY-SA 4.0) • Bukhara Samanid Mausoleum 1.jpg — Ymblanter (CC BY-SA 4.0) • Bukhara Samanid Mausoleum 2.jpg — Ymblanter (CC BY-SA 4.0) • Ismail Samani Mausoleum, Buchara, Uzbekistan (6133867029).jpg — Fabio Achilli from Milano, Italy (CC BY 2.0) • Symbols over the entrance to the Mausoleum of Isma‘il Samani, Bukhara, 9th – 10th centuries CE.jpg — Jean Housen (CC BY-SA 4.0) • Mausoleo Ismail Samani 5.jpg — Viaggiamocela (CC BY-SA 4.0) • Kalon Minaret, Karakhanid, 1127; Bukhara, Uzbekistan (2).jpg — Richard Mortel (CC BY 2.0) • Detail of Reception and Coronation Court - The Ark (Original Settlement) - Old City - Bukhara - Uzbekistan (7515808320) (2).jpg — Adam Jones from Kelowna, BC, Canada (CC BY-SA 2.0) • Bujará, Samani 3.jpg — LBM1948 (CC BY-SA 4.0) • Samanid Mausoleum and surroundings.jpg — Adam Harangozó (CC BY-SA 4.0) • Kalyan Minaret, Bukhara (Минарет Калян в Бухаре, Minorai Kalon).jpg — Petar Milošević (CC BY-SA 4.0) • Old city walls of Bukhara from distance.jpg — Adam Harangozó (CC BY-SA 4.0) • Modern Center of Dushanbe, Tajikistan (43804970971).jpg — Ninara from Helsinki, Finland (CC BY 2.0) • Archeological excavations.jpg — Patisserie (CC BY-SA 3.0) • Bukhara Samanid Mausoleum 4.jpg — Ymblanter (CC BY-SA 4.0) • Po-i-Kalân Mosque.jpg — Piero d'Houin (CC BY 2.5) • Early Morning Bukhara (246492803).jpeg — Angshuman Chatterjee (CC BY-SA 3.0) • Peta: Somoniylar maqbarasi, Havzi Bodom ko'chasi, Buxoro shahri — OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL 1.0) • Peta: Buxoro shahri, Buxoro Viloyati, Oʻzbekiston — OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL 1.0) • Wikipedia: Samanid Mausoleum — Wikipedia contributors (CC BY-SA 4.0) • Wikipedia: Siege of Bukhara — Wikipedia contributors (CC BY-SA 4.0) • Wikipedia: Samanid Mausoleum — Wikipedia contributors (CC BY-SA 4.0) • Mausoleo Ismail Samani 2.jpg — Viaggiamocela (CC BY-SA 4.0) • Bukhara Samanid Mausoleum 3.jpg — Ymblanter (CC BY-SA 4.0) • Samanid mausoleum bukhara.jpg — Hylgeriak / Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 3.0) • Ismail Samani Mausoleum - Old City - Bukhara - Uzbekistan (7515802636) (2).jpg — Adam Jones from Kelowna, BC, Canada (CC BY-SA 2.0) • Ark of Bukhara (Цитадель Арк. Buxoro arki).jpg — Petar Milošević (CC BY-SA 4.0) • Tomb of Ismail Samani (526604223).jpg — Alastair Rae from London, United Kingdom (CC BY-SA 2.0) Public domain / CC0 via Wikimedia Commons: Historic Centre of Bukhara 2023.9.jpg; Boukhara 1.JPG; Mongol empire conquests-ka.jpg; MongolsBesiegingACityInTheMiddleEast13thCentury.jpg; Samanid Mausoleum, Bukhara.jpg; Genghis Khan's sermon to the people of Bukhara.jpg Music & sound (via Openverse, Creative Commons): • Music: "Ambient Documentary | Cinematic background" — tyops (CC BY 4.0) https://freesound.org/people/tyops/so... • SFX: "Metal Shovel Digging in Shallow Earth (Pá de metal Cavando em terra rasa)" — Dachou21 (CC BY 4.0) https://freesound.org/people/Dachou21... [Source links for every image are in the pinned comment below.]