Samarkand’s Shah-i-Zinda necropolis features some of the best Islamic tile work. We heard that the best tile work was done in the 14th and 15th centuries. In the first post from here, I showed some of the exterior tile work. This post, we will go inside some of the mausoleums to see some of the tile work there. I’ll repeat that most of the tile work is not just repeating patterns. Most of the tile was made for once place on the wall or ceiling.

The first three photos are just examples of tile work in three different mausoleums. I chose these photos just to show some that were different from the others. We probably went into most of the more than twenty mausoleums so we got to see a large variety of tile work and decorations. The third photo was in the mausoleum of Qusam ibn-Abbas, the cousin of the Prophet Mohammed. It was very crowded in there but at least there was a fan in that tomb.

The fourth photo might seem odd. I was not taking a photo of the cleaners broom and mop cloth. Vicky had me take this photo because she loved the ancient “barber poles” on either side of the door entry area. I guess the idea of barber poles must go back to at least the 14th or 15th century. The carved wooden door was also impressive.

The last photo was behind this complex. It was the regular Samarkand cemetery. It was also quite impressive as you can see in this photo. I’m not sure that I’ve ever been in a U.S. cemetery as impressive as this one.