Afrasiyab Museum

A museum in Samarkand built beside the ruins of Afrasiyab, the ancient predecessor of the modern city that flourished before its destruction by the Mongols. Its centrepiece is a set of vividly coloured seventh-century wall paintings recovered from a Sogdian palace, depicting ambassadors, processions and courtly life. The galleries also hold ceramics, coins and artefacts spanning the site's long occupation. The museum interprets the deep history of Samarkand as a Silk Road crossroads well before the Timurid era.