The Samanid Mausoleum is the 10th-century mausoleum in Bukhara regarded as one of the earliest surviving Islamic mausoleums.
The small brick tomb was built in Bukhara, in present-day Uzbekistan, for members of the Samanid dynasty. It is generally dated to the late ninth or early tenth century, and tradition associates it especially with Ismail Samani, who ruled from 892 to 907. Its nearly cubic form is covered by a dome and enclosed by carefully patterned brickwork.
Rather than relying on colored tiles or carved stone, the monument creates decoration through the arrangement of baked bricks. Interlocking geometric and woven-looking patterns change subtly with the light. This makes it an important early example of the architectural language that later flourished across Central Asia.
The mausoleum survived partly because it was buried by soil and protected from destructive flooding. It is often confused with Samarkand’s grander Timurid tombs, such as Gur-e-Amir, but the Samanid building is several centuries older and much more compact.