Varakhsha
Varakhsha, also Varasha or Varahsha, was an ancient city in the Bukhara oasis in Sogdia, founded in the 1st century BCE.[1] It is located 39 kilometers to the northwest of Bukhara. Varakhsha was the capital of the Sogdian dynasty of the kings of Bukhara.[1][2] It ultimately never recovered from the Muslim conquest of Transoxiana.
![]() Ruins of Varakhsha | |
![]() ![]() Shown within West and Central Asia ![]() ![]() Varakhsha (Uzbekistan) | |
Alternative name | Varakhsha |
---|---|
Location | Uzbekistan |
Coordinates | 39°51′46.5″N 64°04′23.5″E |
Type | Settlement |
Site notes | |
Condition | Ruined |
Murals
Beautiful murals have been recovered from the palace area, dated to the 8th century CE.[3][1] They show a king and his retinue riding elephants and fighting tigers and monstruous beasts.[4]
- Varahsha mural from the red room of the Palace. Hermitage Museum.
- Varahsha, Relief of a hunter, 5th-7th century CE. State Museum of History of Uzbekistan

Wall Paintings in the Palace at Varakhsha. Hermitage Museum.
References
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Varahsha. |
- Azarpay, Guitty; Belenickij, Aleksandr M.; Maršak, Boris Il'ič; Dresden, Mark J. Sogdian Painting: The Pictorial Epic in Oriental Art. University of California Press. p. 201. ISBN 978-0-520-03765-6.
- Starr, S. Frederick. Lost Enlightenment: Central Asia's Golden Age from the Arab Conquest to Tamerlane. Princeton University Press. pp. 118–119. ISBN 978-0-691-16585-1.
- Azarpay, Guitty; Belenickij, Aleksandr M.; Maršak, Boris Il'ič; Dresden, Mark J. Sogdian Painting: The Pictorial Epic in Oriental Art. University of California Press. p. 49. ISBN 978-0-520-03765-6.
- "A painting on the palace - wall at Varaksha shows a king hunting a tiger riding on elephant back along with his retenue" in Kumāra, Braja Bihārī. India and Central Asia: Classical to Contemporary Periods. Concept Publishing Company. p. 6. ISBN 978-81-8069-457-8.
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