Dedicated to the memory of our mentor Saburdzhana Yusupov, who with his interesting stories and tales taught us to love the motherland, native nature, our favorite city Khiva

Palvan Darvaza

This type of gate is the result of several reconstructions. The original gates were a normal fortification, slightly protruding outside from the fortified walls of Ichan-Kala. Hence it was very convenient to survey the area, located outside the city walls. The two massive towers on both sides of the gate adjacent to the fortress walls joined to a single defense system of the city.

The construction inside the gate of multi-domed long corridor (Dalan) by the khan of Khiva Iltuzarhanom (1804 -1806 years) started to be increasingly used as shopping malls.
After completion of the caravanserai and Tim (the barn Bazaar) (1832-1833 years) the value of the gate as shopping malls decreased slightly. But in connection with the construction, in 1835 Allakulikhan’s madrasah was rebuilt, and the western part of the gate in front of it on the part of Ichan-Kala was built two-domed building of new baths with the portal.
Over time, the gate was gradually changing its appearance - most of them were renovated in the construction of new buildings, Gate acquired a completely different look. Once from the ancient gates only foundations remained. But after the restoration of the gate and up to the present time it has not lost its value. Although Palvan-Darvaza was rebuilt, its architectural originality and is now regarded as a model of skill of ancient architects. The volume of construction and its dimensions, taking into account the possibility of construction, was planned and executed in very user-friendly rules. In order for the building to be more stable, it was made with the expectation that a little load was on the arches. In a series of brick, wooden beams, the severity of the dome divided into several arches. For small domes, bricks were lined in the style of "davra" and "Balkhi." At the same time, the interior of the building is plastered. The daylight coming through a hole in several domes, covering half black corridor, gives it an even more attractive appearance. Large dome, towering near the southern walls of madrasah of Allakulikhan, clearly catch the eye, here domes and arches reflect the general structure of the building.
Facades os multi-domed Palvan-Darvaza turned to the west and east. The eastern part of the gate, located on the part of Dishan Qala is made like a large fortress walls and is not intended for the defense, for the gate is decorated with glazed covers, folded in the form of patterned and colored bricks.
From the blind areas, laid out square baked bricks, blue tiles, printed mukarnases, glazed light blue bricks on a construction were made by Khiva masters with great skill and taste. Because of the variety of decorations, at the time this gate was called "the ghoul-Darvaza" ("patterned gate"). One of the towers of the gate (south) on the eastern side was rebuilt in 1930 in a somewhat simplified form. The western side of the gate was built during the construction of madrasah of Allakulikhan. From the outside it is of some kind simple. There is no dome pommels, arches. Only at the top of the wall arches over the portal, there is a cartouche decorated with majolica tiles patterned, with the inscription "Shahri Khiva" ("Khiva"). Abovementioned two words show the history of the building, that is, that the gates were built at a time when the city began to recover again, namely in 1806 - 1807. Old photo of the gate, restoration in 1930, filmed by the famous Khorezm photographer and pioneer of Uzbek cinema Khudaibergen Divanov stored in the collections of the Museum-Reserve "Ichan-Kala." As can be seen in the image in the photograph, the southern part of the gate in 1911 was completely crumbled. Later, the gate was restored again in 1982 and 1997. Baths, which have long remained in a dilapidated state, were reconstructed, unoccupied new shopping arcades were filled with the products, already existing in trading business.