Kalta Minor Minaret
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Nigel Shaw
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About this spot
Kalta Minor Minaret (built 1852-55)
The Kalta Minor is an unfinished minaret located near the west entrance to the Ichan Kala (old city). It was commissioned in 1851 by Mohammed Amin Khan, the ruler of Khiva, as an architectural marvel intended to rise over 70 metres—supposedly high enough to see Bukhara in the distance to the east, though this would have been impossible as the city is about 390 kilometres away. Even so, a height of 70 metres would have made a formidable watchtower, as the Khan's men could have monitored the desert sands for 30 kilometres in all directions, alert for traders, pilgrims, bandits and armies.
The Khan's untimely death while encamped on a Persian battlefield in 1855 put an end to the project when the minaret reached a mere 26 meters. However, even in unfinished form, the structure is dazzling, covered from top to bottom with Khiva's signature blue-green tiles and various geometric patterns. A band of tiles near the top encircles the minaret with an inscription in nastaliq script, a calligraphic font commonly used for writing in Persian.
The Kalta Minor is an unfinished minaret located near the west entrance to the Ichan Kala (old city). It was commissioned in 1851 by Mohammed Amin Khan, the ruler of Khiva, as an architectural marvel intended to rise over 70 metres—supposedly high enough to see Bukhara in the distance to the east, though this would have been impossible as the city is about 390 kilometres away. Even so, a height of 70 metres would have made a formidable watchtower, as the Khan's men could have monitored the desert sands for 30 kilometres in all directions, alert for traders, pilgrims, bandits and armies.
The Khan's untimely death while encamped on a Persian battlefield in 1855 put an end to the project when the minaret reached a mere 26 meters. However, even in unfinished form, the structure is dazzling, covered from top to bottom with Khiva's signature blue-green tiles and various geometric patterns. A band of tiles near the top encircles the minaret with an inscription in nastaliq script, a calligraphic font commonly used for writing in Persian.
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