Chashmah-Ayyub

 Today we visited Chashmah-Ayyub. 

In the days before Bukhara even existed, a millennium before Islam was even a glimmer in the Prophet's eye, the prophet Job came to the Zerafshan Valley and witnessed a great and terrible drought. As people perished of thirst around him, Job struck the dusty earth with his staff and a cool source of sweet spring water brought liquid salvation. Sudden appearance of a well had astonished the people by its vivifying spring and its crystal clear water. The Chashma Ayub, the Spring of Job, commemorates this site. It is commonly believed that the water still keeps its clearness and herbal power.

Chashmai Ayub relates to the honored "track places" ("kadamjoy"), left as a heritage by sacramental people. According to the historical beliefs, cultic construction had already existed at this location before the 14th century. First erected in the 12th century, the plain and slightly austere mausoleum you see today was raised by Timur in 1380 to protect the sacred tomb below. Two domes, one suspended beneath the other, are designed to give the cupola the same appearance inside and out. The shape, atypical in the region, is thought to have been derived from the roof of a Khorezmian nomads' tent.

The present day mausoleum stands in fortress-like austerity, almost devoid of decoration, a few hundred metres from the Ismael Samani Mausoleum. It consists of four domed chambers, each built during a different epoch and topped in a different style of cupola to form a remarkable visual spread of architectural history. The construction suffered some losses, but the preserved parts represent a combination of a harmonious entrance portal, and adjoining it are the remains of the western curtain wall.