The Turkmen city of Anau has recently garnered international attention, drawing fascination not only for its rich archaeological heritage but also for its designation as the Cultural Capital of the Turkic World for 2024. This prestigious title, decided during the 39th session of the Permanent Council of Ministers of Culture of the Turkic World in Bursa, Turkey, underscores Anau’s historical and cultural significance. Located as a satellite city of Ashgabat and the administrative center of the Ahal region, Anau now stands as a symbol of shared Turkic heritage, promoting unity, solidarity, and fraternity among Turkic peoples.
Each year, the honorary title of Cultural Capital is awarded to cities with histories deeply intertwined with ancient and medieval Turkic states. This initiative reflects a broader cultural objective: fostering closer ties between Turkic nations by celebrating their common legacy. In this context, Anau serves as a profound source of historical reflection and discovery.
As the renowned German writer Thomas Mann once remarked, the past is “a well of unfathomable depth.” The history of any people is often traced back to an arbitrary starting point, yet its true origins remain buried in the vastness of time. Scholars strive to reconstruct this past using various methodologies, including the discipline of linguistic paleontology, also known as the “method of words and things.” By studying ancient languages and cultures, researchers uncover the spiritual and material lives of early societies, complementing the findings of archaeology.
The history of the Turkic peoples is traditionally traced to the 6th century CE, marked by the establishment of the expansive Turkic Khaganate, which stretched from China to Crimea. It is during this era that the ethnonym “Turk” first appeared in Chinese chronicles. However, this does not imply that Turkic peoples did not exist earlier. Some historians associate the ancient Turkic legacy with the Huns, considered descendants of the Xiongnu, a proto-Turkic group active before the Common Era. Beyond these names and references, the Turkic tribes and clans emerged in far earlier times, deeply connected to the histories of their neighboring peoples.
Anthropologists and historians emphasize the intertwined nature of Turkic ethnogenesis. The shared elements among Turkmens, Uzbeks, Karakalpaks, Kazakhs, and Tajiks point to a rich history of interactions between settled agriculturalists, nomadic herders, and pastoral groups. This dynamic synergy played a significant role in shaping the Turkic-speaking communities.
Pliny the Elder, a Roman historian who lived in the 1st century CE, described the tribes of the Scythians and mentioned the existence of settlements and fortresses in the area now known as Anau. During archaeological excavations in the early 20th century, led by the American archaeologist Raphael Pumpelly, artifacts from various periods were discovered. These included ceramics and tools from the Eneolithic period, indicating the settlement’s ancient agricultural economy. The excavations also revealed layers from the 9th–10th centuries CE, when the settlement expanded beyond its fortress. During the Mongol invasion, the citadel was destroyed, but life there resumed, as evidenced by numerous artifacts from the 13th–14th centuries. However, determining the settlement’s original name remains a challenge.
Alexander Semenov, a future Soviet academic who accompanied Pumpelly, suggested that the toponym “Anau” is a Turkmen adaptation of the Persian “Ab-i-Naou,” meaning “new water.” It was named “new” because, in the mid-15th century, the Timurid ruler of Khorasan, Abu’l-Qasim Babur Bahadur Khan, restored the long-abandoned irrigation system, revitalizing the old oasis, which was then named Ab-i-Naou. Other researchers, however, noted that this name only appeared after the crisis of the mid-18th century when the settlement was revived. So, what was its earlier name?
The key to this mystery lies in the mosque built at the edge of the citadel in 1456, as indicated by two Arabic inscriptions on the building’s walls. It is rare for a medieval architectural monument to contain the year of its construction and the names of individuals directly associated with it. These inscriptions mention Sultan Abu’l-Qasim Babur, who ruled from Herat, his vizier or governor in the Nisa region, Muhammad Khudaidad, and the latter’s father, Sufi Sheikh Jamal ad-Din. In memory of his father, the wealthy son built this luxurious memorial mosque, as stated in the facade inscription. In popular tradition, the sheikh’s name is rendered in Turkmen as Jemaleddin, with the honorary title “Seyid,” denoting a descendant of the Prophet Muhammad and the righteous Caliph Ali.
Most intriguingly, a 15th-century written source mentions unrest in Khorasan following the death of Abu’l-Qasim Babur in 1457. The chronicler notes: “Each fortress in that country was under the control of a local leader.” Among them is Emir Muhammad Khudaidad, who is said to have possessed the fortress of Suluk. This provides the answer. Where else could he have buried his father and built the mosque? Suluk is mentioned in Arab and Persian sources from the 13th–15th centuries, referring to cities and villages in the Nisa region, though its precise location remained elusive to scholars.
Returning to the mosque, it was envisioned as a large religious complex, combining a domed prayer hall, a khanqah for Sufis, rooms for pilgrims, and likely a madrasa. The main hall opened to the north with a wide arch. Externally, it featured a portal adorned with polished bricks and colorful glazed tiles. Above the arch was a mosaic depiction of two symmetrical dragons in a heraldic pose. Their snake-like bodies with four clawed legs exuded dynamic energy, seemingly frozen in motion. This effect was achieved through a stylized design of their heads, bulging eyes, tufts of beard and mane, and the overall movement of their coiled forms. The craftsmanship and aesthetic sense of the unknown creator and executors of this work are remarkable.
But why were dragons depicted on a Muslim mosque? This question puzzled many visitors and gave rise to legends attempting to explain the facade’s uniqueness. To answer it, we must delve into the mythology of Turkic peoples, who, since ancient pagan times, revered the image of the malevolent demon-dragon “Ajdarha.” This figure originates from the Avestan Zoroastrian tradition as Aži Dahāka, a demon who seized power over Iran. In other words, he symbolized Turan, a region hostile to the Iranian world, but was not inherently evil to the ancient Turanians, the ancestors of the Turks. Thus, the dragon’s image in Turkmen folklore is less negative.
In the many legends and myths of the Kazakhs, Turkmens, and Uzbeks, dragons inhabit mountain gorges, caves, or underground realms, guarding immense treasures. In the legend of Anau, the people saved the wife of one such dragon, and the grateful pair rewarded them with riches. Allegedly, the mosque was built with these treasures, and the donors were immortalized on its facade. A similar legend is associated with the founding of Kunya-Urgench, where dragons gifted treasures to the people under different circumstances.
The primary researcher of the Anau mosque, architectural historian Galina Pugachenkova, reasonably believed that the dragon was a totem of the Turkmen tribe inhabiting this part of Khorasan in the 15th century, possibly including Sheikh Jamal ad-Din. The dragon’s depiction on the mosque behind his tomb held a magical significance for the local population.
But there is another version. Among all Turkic-speaking peoples, particularly in the myths of Azerbaijanis, Tatars, and Bashkirs, Azhdarchas (dragons) are associated with water and rain clouds. If we are to discuss the actual reason for the appearance of such imagery on the mosque in Anau, it should likely be interpreted as a symbol of fertility. In the Turkic bestiary, dragons are depicted as patrons of agriculture, endowed with the ability to summon winds and rain. This idea was emphasized by architectural historian Muhammad Mamedov, who noted that Azhdarchas are primarily found in the visual arts of Central Asia and the Middle East during the post-Mongol period. An example is the dragon in a 14th-century book miniature, where it soars among the clouds, which the artist depicted with the same sinuous dynamics as the serpent itself. The image of the celestial rain dragon likely entered Islamic art from Southeast Asia, where its cult persists to this day.
By the late 19th century, the Anau complex had suffered significant damage due to soil subsidence, earthquakes, and frequent military actions. It completely collapsed during the Ashgabat earthquake on October 6, 1948. The panel with dragons, which shattered into small fragments after falling from a height of several meters, was buried under a three-meter layer of fallen walls. Fifty-three years later, Turkmen specialists managed to clear the area in front of the mosque’s main façade, partially reinforce the remaining walls, and most importantly, recover all surviving fragments of the dragon mosaic. Unfortunately, only a small portion remained, but all the fragments were pieced together and can now be viewed in the exhibit at the Museum of Fine Arts in Ashgabat. The ruins of the mosque—specifically, the tomb of Seyid Jemaleddin—have long become a revered local shrine. Year after year, century after century, pilgrims come daily to pray and make wishes, hoping for the saint’s blessings.
The image of the vanished Anau Mosque continues to inspire the imagination of scholars and, of course, artists. Not only Turkmen painters but even renowned masters like Martiros Saryan created studies of it. It has been immortalized in carpets and tapestries, and numerous poems, countless articles, and entire books have been written about it. This means it has firmly entered the cultural canon of Turkmenistan.
