During the excavation

During excavations on the site in front of the south-western (facade) wall, a façade collapse was discovered, in which fragments of architectural decor with epigraphy were recorded. Analysis of the found fragments made it possible to identify two groups of fragments.

view of the area.aerial photo

The first group

The first group is unglazed fragments of rectangular (less likely, square) yellowish-brown bricks that served as facing slabs. According to researchers, the carving was done on fired bricks. The handwriting of the surviving letters is one of the styles of blooming kufi , typical of monuments of the 11th - early 13th centuries in Central Asia.

Analogies to similar facing bricks with epigraphy are found on the Kalon minaret in Bukhara, the minaret in Vabkent, the Uzgen mausoleums and other architectural monuments. The facing terracotta bricks have patterns on the background of letters in the form of shoots and trefoils, chains of round rosettes paired into signs resembling the mathematical symbol for "infinity" ( ∞ ). Apparently, these are the borders of the inscription (above and below it).

The background of the patterns and inscriptions was tinted with red ocher (its remains have been preserved). The described fragments do not provide grounds for reconstructing the content of the inscription. We assume that these carved bricks with epigraphy were used in the U-shaped frieze that decorated the facade during the construction of the Khalifa Erezhep (in the first stage of its existence).

the first group of fragments

The second group of fragments

The second group is represented by fragments of terracotta slabs (height 44-45 cm, width 27-28 cm with thickness 4.8 x 5.4 cm), covered with turquoise glaze with plant patterns and parts of the inscription. The carving was apparently made after the primary firing, before applying the glaze (secondary firing). The handwriting of the inscription is monumental suls.

Close analogues in style of execution and features of paleography are found on some monuments of the Mongolian era, in particular, on the dedicatory inscription on the outer perimeter of the portal on the mausoleum of Khoja Akhmad at Shakhi-Zinda (Samarkand), the inscription on the mausoleum of Buyan-Kuli Khan (Bukhara). The paleography of the inscription, the style of decoration and analogues provide grounds to date the inscription to the end of the 13th - first half of the 14th centuries.

Based on the available fragments, orientalist B. Babadzhanov reconstructed individual words:
" ... the pious, the slave [of Allah] .... ";
"for the sake of [his] benefits (or: "his rewards")";
“… the master of those close (to Allah)…”;
“... sayyid , close (to Allah) ...”.

According to the researcher, perhaps in this case the word “sayyid” is a title applied to the descendants of the Prophet, and the word “al-wali” /close/ is a title of Sufis from the highest spiritual hierarchy; "Muhammad". Without the full text it is difficult to say whether this name is a component in the genealogy of the deceased, or part of his own name; "Helper" (defender). Based on the usual content of titles in such texts, this is the initial word in an izafet construction, like "helper of faith".

The remaining fragments contain parts of letters from which it is impossible to form words, much less reconstruct the text.
Despite this, according to B. Babajanov, the restored set and meaning of the titles allow us to conclude that the majolica inscription on the mausoleum was a text dedicated to a religious figure (most likely a Sufi leader). Usually, such texts were composed according to a standard scheme (even in cases where their authors tried to move away from established cliches with complex and high-flown phrases): the purpose of the building, the name of the deceased and the builder with the corresponding titles and praises. At the end, the date of construction was given.

Fragments of the epitaph

Along with fragments of facade decoration, during excavations in 1986-1988, several dozen glazed fragments of a tombstone (tombstones?) were discovered in layers inside the mausoleum and at its main facade.

Most likely, the tombstone inside was a prismatic pedestal (sagana, dakhma ), faced with kashin tiles, which were covered with elegant tiles using blue, white and light blue colors. The closest analogues are the tombstones of the mausoleums of Najm ad-Din Kubra (Kunya-Urgench) and Sheikh 'Ala ad-Din (Khiva), which date back to the first half of the 14th century.

On one of the fragments, the beginning of two lines has been preserved, which are read as: "Died ..." (first line) and "... the owner of ..." (second line). By analogy with similar tombstone epitaphs, the izafet of the second line can be reconstructed as follows: "The owner (of the ability) to work miracles." If this reading is correct, then the fragment of the epitaph confirms that the tombstone was erected over the grave of a Sufi sheikh.

Conclusion

Analysis of epigraphic data allows us to draw several conclusions.

In the history of the existence of the Khalifa Eredzhep there were two construction stages, during which the building had a specific purpose.

The first stage marks the construction of the monument - the second half of the 12th century - the beginning 13th century. The decoration of the facade of the first group corresponds to it. The time of construction is confirmed by radiocarbon analysis of organic materials used in construction. There is no information about the original purpose of the monument.

The second stage corresponds to the renovation works, which, judging by the addition to the facade decoration (the appearance of a ktaba with an inscription/decor of the second group), are dated to the beginning – first half of the 14th century. Probably, at the second stage, tombstones appeared in the building and it began to be used as a mausoleum, where some significant representative of the Sufi community was buried.