Istaravshan, a city steeped in history and one of the few fully preserved ancient cities in Tajikistan, serves as the heart of the country’s artisanal craftsmanship. With a rich heritage spanning over 2,500 years, this ancient city has long been celebrated as a hub for the decorative arts. Today, it continues to uphold its reputation with institutions such as the Folk Art School and the Weapons Museum, which are dedicated to preserving and showcasing these traditions.
The city is renowned for its exquisite suzani embroidery, gold-threaded garments, traditional clothing, and intricate jewelry. While suzani embroidery is also produced elsewhere in Tajikistan, it is neither as widespread nor as commercially driven as in neighboring Uzbekistan, where it is often marketed to tourists.
Among the most distinguished artisans of Istaravshan are Sharof Saidov, Zinnatoy Khaydarova, and Pulotoy Aminjanova, known for their mastery in weaving, suzani embroidery, and the crafting of traditional skullcaps (tubeteikas). Central Asian jewelry, while sharing common traits across the region, bears subtle differences in Istaravshan’s pieces compared to those from Bukhara or Khorezm—often leaning closer to the latter in style.
In the city’s art salons and architectural decorations, a unique style of painting known as kundal is frequently employed. This art form, which originated in the 15th century, blends natural and geometric motifs, creating a distinct national tradition that is carried on by students of the local folk art school.
However, Istaravshan’s strategic location on an ancient mountain pass has historically earned it fame for its weaponry, particularly the kord, a type of local knife. The Tajik kord differs slightly from the Uzbek pichak, featuring a lighter horn handle, a blade made from superior metal—often stainless steel—and a straight upper edge. In contrast, the pichak is usually crafted from softer steel and often has a slightly upward-curving tip. The handles of pichaks can be made from a variety of materials and come in two main styles: sukhma (a solid handle attached to the metal) and yerma (a handle made of two parts joined by copper, brass, or aluminum rivets). Kord handles, predominantly made from horn, are more uniform in style. Here on the picture below, the pichaks are displayed on the right, while the kords are on the left.
Near the blacksmith row stands an imposing building that houses the workshop and museum of Abdumamon Khuseinzoda, known as «Khushang.» Notably, a cuneiform inscription on the wall is a replica of the epitaph from the tomb of Cyrus the Great, declaring, «I am Kourosh, the great king of the Achaemenids.»
The Khuseinzoda family is a well-known dynasty of artisans. Abdumamon’s father, Ohangar, whose portrait graces the workshop, was a master of all the major crafts in Istaravshan. Like his father, Abdumamon is not only a carver and calligrapher but also a scholar of Oriental studies and a professor at the local university. Yet, at first glance, he appears every bit the traditional weaponsmith—stern and somewhat formidable.
The combination of being a weaponsmith and an Orientalist has profoundly influenced Khuseinzoda’s art. The first thing he showed us was the «Shahnameh,» the Persian epic written in the 11th century by Ferdowsi, a poet from present-day Iran, in a region that was once part of the Samanid Empire, which Tajikistan considers its distant ancestor. The «Shahnameh» is the longest poem ever written by a single author, twice the length of both the «Odyssey» and the «Iliad» combined. It recounts the history of the Persian people from the creation of the world to the advent of Islam. The name of Khuseinzoda’s workshop, «Khushang,» comes directly from the «Shahnameh.» Khushang was an ancient king, the grandson of the primordial king Kayumars, known as the tamer of fire and the inventor of blacksmithing.
Moreover, the influence of the «Shahnameh» on contemporary Western pop culture is not immediately apparent but significant, contributing to the fantasy genre almost as much as Celtic legends. For instance, Khuseinzoda showed us a blade he crafted, inspired by the «Shahnameh,» called «The Teeth of the Serpent,» which he linked to the first Conan the Barbarian film. However, the proper name is «Teeth of Zahhak»: Zahhak, who battled the well-known fantasy heroine Xena in another story, was a dark deity from the Realm of Serpents, with snakes instead of hands that devoured human brains. But as Khuseinzoda pointed out (and my mention of Xena and Conan is, of course, purely my own addition!), this is an allegory: the snakes devouring brains symbolize the evil that enslaves the mind.
The sword of Rustam (the main hero of the «Shahnameh»), and according to Abdumamon, it has been reforged more than a million times.
However, most of Abdumamon’s creations cannot even be classified as collectible weapons. Rather, they are entire sculptures on blades.
