One of the most ancient cities of Uzbekistan, Samarkand, is ready to welcome travellers with its brand-new tourist centre. The Silk Road Samarkand features several modern hotels, a huge congress centre and much more. Constructors are hoping that this tourist hub will become one of the hospitability stars of Central Asia.
A bridge that connects the future and the past brings us into the heart of Silk Road Samarkand: a modern interpretation of a medieval town, named the Eternal city. It was created by Uzbekistan’s craftsmen.
Bobur Ismoilov, is an artist, author and Сurator of the Eternal City Historical Ethnographical Park, “This complex, is interesting because it was handmade by craftsmen, artists, artisans, skillful woodworkers, ceramics, who live there, that makes it a showcase of the best that our people can do”.
The fact that the craftsmen who created it have stayed there to live and work and to welcome guests, makes the city feel alive. Abduvali Nabiev decorated the Eternal city with ceramics. Every region of Uzbekistan has its own style and Abduvali is a master of the ancient Samarkand ceramics technique, which he has studied and researched for many years,
“We travelled all over the republic and studied ceramics, our Samarkand ceramics is different, our drawings are different, our colours are different”.
Firdavs Umarov has spent a lifetime researching the recipe of the famous Samarkand Silk Paper. It was produced here in the times of the Great Silk Road centuries ago and was famous across Europe. Firdavs works with his children who are mastering the complicated process.
Samarkand silk paper is made from mulberry bark, which is first boiled for a long time, then crushed, the process is incredibly laborious, and requires long hours of work. Firdavs speaks about why it is important for him to keep the ancient traditions alive,
“I am doing this for posterity and so that the whole world knows that silk paper has been revived in Samarkand. There are no artificial elements and it is stored for a very long time, up to a thousand years, that’s the kind of special paper here”.
It was on such paper that the Great Silk Road times calligraphers wrote, and artists drew their miniatures.
Craftsmen of the Eternal City have no doubts that soon Silk Road Samarkand and the artisan Eternal City will be famous all over the world.
Copyrights: EuroNews
Article: Galina Polonskaya, Richard Cadey
Photo & Video: EuroNews, Khikmatilla Ubaydullaev
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