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Mausoleum Gur Emir, the tomb of the ruler. Between 1400 and 1401 Tamerlane’s favorite grandson, Mohammed Sultan, erected a madrassah and khanagha complex. Mohammed’s death in 1403 prompted Tamerlane to complete the ensemble with mausoleum. Spanish envoy Clavijo reported how the ageing Emir, carried to the site in late 1404, had demanded it rebuilt with added grandeur in only ten days “under threat of a terrible forfeit to the workmen”. Although he intended burial in his hometown Shakhrisabz, Tamerlane was soon laid to rest beside his grandson and followed by descendents down to Ulugbek, whose presence has spurred recent restoration. Mohammed Sultan’s blue-tiled portal opens onto a courtyard once cornered with minarets and flanked by madrassah and khanaga, but today only the foundations survive. Their absence emphasizes the simple monumentality of the Gur Emir itself, based on an octagonal chamber decorated with geometric girikh. Above it, belting the tall, cylindrical drum, the inscription “God is Immortal” thunders in white Kufic script three meters
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