Amir Timur Square

Amir Timur Square lies at the junction of Amir Temur Avenue and Mustaqillik Avenue in the centre of Tashkent, Uzbekistan, and is one of the city's main public spaces. During the Russian Turkestan period the site was a square in the new European quarter, and in the Soviet era it was dominated by monuments to Soviet figures, among them Karl Marx. After independence in 1991 the square was redesigned, and in 1993 a bronze equestrian statue of Amir Timur (Tamerlane) was erected at its centre, replacing the Marx monument.

The statue shows the 14th-century conqueror on horseback, and it faces a landscaped garden with fountains and trees. Around the square stand several landmark buildings, including the blue-domed Amir Timur Museum, the Hotel Uzbekistan, a large Soviet-era hotel, and the old Tashkent clock tower and government buildings near the adjoining streets. The paved layout makes it a popular place to walk in the evening, and local families, couples and wedding parties gather here for photographs.

The square is not a conventional museum or archaeological site, so its historical interest lies in the layers of political symbolism. It records the passage from Tsarist colonial planning through Soviet monumentalism, particularly rebuilding after the 1966 earthquake, to the national memory culture of independent Uzbekistan, in which Timur is presented as the founding figure of Uzbek statehood. Informal signage describes the monument, and a local guide can explain the changes in more detail.

The square is maintained as a landscaped public space, with regular upkeep of fountains, lighting and paving. It is open at all hours, and it is lit in the evening, when the mood is lively and the statue is floodlit. It is also easily combined with the Amir Timur Museum, Independence Square and the metro, which has a nearby station.