Main entry:

Herrman, Georgina.

Title & Author:

Monuments of Merv : traditional buildings of the Karakum / by Georgina Herrmann ; with contributions by Hugh Kennedy.

Publication:

London : Society of Antiquaries of London, 1999.

Description:

xv, 244 pages : illustrations (some color), maps ; 31 cm

Series:

Reports of the Research Committee of the Society of Antiquaries of London, 0953-7163 ; no. 62

Notes:
Includes bibliographical references (pages 234-237) and index.
Central Asia and Merv -- Medieval Merv : an historical overview / Hugh Kennedy -- Building materials and techniques -- The köshks, houses and dings of Merv -- Palaces, pavilions, kepter khanas, Kharoba Koshuk, ice-houses and buildings of the modern era -- The buildings in context.
Also issued online.
Includes synopsis in Russian.

Summary:

"The survival of the mudbrick monuments of Merv against all the odds is little short of a miracle. Mudbrick and rammed earth are not building materials famed for their longevity, rather for their economy. However, some buildings of the Merv oasis in the Karakum desert in Turkmenistan have survived for more than seven centuries and some, unbelievably, for a millennium. Mud was the building material of choice, wonderfully flexible and a superb insulator, ideal for the extremes of the Central Asian climate, and one used by the architects of Merv with ingenuity and virtuosity to construct a wide variety of vaults and domes. The survivng monuments include palatial residences, small houses, summer pavilions and watch towers, as well as the earliest examples of tall conical icehouses. Perhaps the most remarkable are the extraordinary corrugated buildings, which, like the icehouses, dominate the flat landscape of the oasis. These are a distinctly Central Asian type of building with a surprising dearth of parallels elsewhere. Merv's key position during the eighth and ninth centuries may suggest that these remarkable buildings originated in the oasis, and they continued to be built through the Seljuk period. They present a unique record of an otherwise lost architechtural heritage and are of such importance that they form a major part of Merv's application to UNESCO for World Heritage Status. Merv was, of course, one of the great cosmopolitan capitals of the day, a centre of learning, industry and of long-distance trade: it was strategically located on the Great Silk Road'." http://books.google.com/books?id=AmpQAAAAMAAJ

ISBN:

0854312757
9780854312757

Subject:

Monuments Turkmenistan Merv (Extinct city)
Vernacular architecture Turkmenistan Merv (Extinct city)
Building materials Turkmenistan Merv (Extinct city)
Architecture, Ancient Turkmenistan Merv (Extinct city)
Monuments Turkménistan Merv (Ville ancienne)
Architecture vernaculaire Turkménistan Merv (Ville ancienne)
Construction Matériaux Turkménistan Merv (Ville ancienne)
Architecture antique Turkménistan Merv (Ville ancienne)
Architecture, Ancient
Building materials
Monuments
Vernacular architecture
Bauwerk
Architektur
Monuments Turkménistan.
Construction Matériaux Turkménistan.
Architecture vernaculaire Turkménistan.
Architecture Turkménistan Merv (ville ancienne)
Merv (Extinct city)
Merv (Extinct city) History.
Merv (Ville ancienne)
Merv (Ville ancienne) Histoire.
Turkmenistan Merv (Extinct city)
Merw
Alexandria/Antiochia/Merv.
Merv (ville ancienne)

Form/genre:

History

Added entries:

Kennedy, Hugh (Hugh N.)
Reports of the Research Committee of the Society of Antiquaries of London ; no. 62.

Holdings:

Location: Library main 212918
Call No.: NA1496. H4 1999
Status: Available