Ruhabad Mosque in Samarkand

Ruxobod Mosque is a Friday mosque located in the historic center of the city of Samarkand, Uzbekistan. It is located on Ruxobod Street, not far from the Ruxobod mausoleum and the Gori Amir mausoleum, and is connected with the Ruxobod madrasa. The well‑known intellectual and Jadidist Khoja Muin Shukrullaev was born and lived there, and a historic house and courtyard are attached to the south side of the mosque. The mosque belongs to the Samarkand branch of the Parliament of Uzbekistan.

At the present site of the Ruxobod Mosque, at least since the time when the Ruxobod mausoleum was built, there has been an ancient mosque. There are records that a mosque was built there during the time of Mirzo Ulugbek. In 1880–1882, within the project to improve the area around the Ruxobod mausoleum, a new mosque was built on the site of the old one. The Ruxobod madrasa was also built at the same time. These three structures were located on the left side of the famous “Shah-Rah” (Shah Road) asphalt road that ran from the Gori Amir mausoleum to the southern gate of the Samarkand fortress. Part of this road is now the present-day Ruxobod Street, which was called “Kizil Tong” in the Soviet period. The current building of the mosque was constructed in 1903. Until the 1960s, the mosque, madrasa and the area around the Ruxobod mausoleum formed part of a large neighborhood of the same name, which included private houses, tea houses and other public buildings. Later, most of the neighborhood was destroyed during the Soviet era and turned into a large green park.

Ruhobod Friday Mosque has been rebuilt and renovated many times during its operation. The mosque is located on a low hill and is made of baked brick. Currently it is a one‑storey building with a high ceiling, surrounded on the east and north sides by an iwan, whose wooden ceiling is decorated with traditional colorful patterns and ornaments. The iwan has 12 wooden carved columns on a marble base. The mosque also contains several rooms and service spaces. A small minaret is built at the entrance to the mosque area. During Friday prayer, Muslims pray not only inside the mosque building and under the iwan, but also on the hill made of fired brick that is considered part of the mosque area. In the 1920s the mosque and madrasa were closed and the mausoleum was used for purposes other than worship. At various times the mosque area housed enterprises, a library, and a cultural house. After Uzbekistan gained independence, the mosque was fully renovated and reopened for believers and tourists.

In the late 1880s and 1890s the mosque’s imam‑khatib was Hojja Muin Shukrullayev’s grandfather — Imam Mir Said Sharif, who knew Arabic, Persian and Uzbek well. The historic house where Imam Mir Said Sharif and the Hojja Muin Shukrullayev family lived, attached to the southern side of Ruhobod Friday Mosque, has been preserved. At the entrance to the house a Hojja Muin Shukrullayev boutique has been installed, and a souvenir shop is operating.

Mosque iwan ceiling

The iwan ceiling of Ruhobod Mosque is one of the most beautiful wooden ceilings in Samarkand. This iwan’s ceiling is decorated with traditional colorful patterns and ornaments.