Panjakent Murals

The Panjakent murals can be considered as one of the first unearthed paintings with Iranian themes which make familiar us with the lesser known corners of the culture of Transoxiana. Panjakent is a city in north of Tajikistan, located on the Zerafshān River, 60 km east of Samarkand. The old part of the city which is more than 1500 years old, and lost its prosperity after the Arab conquest of Transoxiana, is located south of present-day Panjakent, and had been the capital of a realm of the same name for at least the last hundred years of its development.
After the end of World War II, as a result of excavations by a group of Soviet archaeologists, unique artworks were unearthed in the buried buildings of the old part of Panjakent. These artworks provide valuable information about the art of Transoxiana/Sogdia and its connection to the culture, myths and traditions of Iran, India, China and Greece.
The unearthed artworks in the excavations include murals, carved wood, and clay sculptures. But in terms of number, the murals are considerable. However many of these murals had been completely destroyed, but a huge number of the murals of places that had not been burned remained almost intact, many of the contents of which are difficult to decipher or only be interpreted hypothetically and presumptively. This documentary attempts to introduce and interpret the Panjakent murals.