YARTYGUMBEZ MAUSOLEUM (AHMED AL-HADI)

One of the most outstanding monuments built by medieval masters is located 7-8 km from the modern Sarakhs. At present time, there left only the southern part of the mausoleum, and its eastern and western walls, that gave modern name of the place – Yartygumbez (meaning «half a mausoleum»). Arabic inscription on one of the walls decrypted in the last century, determined the time of the monument᾽s construction, i.e. 491 AH (1098). According to a medieval scholar and historian al-Samani (1113-1167) from Merv, the mausoleum was built over the grave of a famous religious leader Ahmed al-Hadi. In the Middle Ages there was a settlement Andukan near the monument. Ahmed al-Hadi lived in the 10th-11th centuries and was one of the famous religious leaders greatly respected by people. The second cycle of recovery works had been conducted in 1994-1995, and then in 2004, masters from Sarakhs and Koneurgench continued restoration works.