In Central Asia, bazaars were a unique phenomenon, distinctly different from European markets. They served not only as commercial and artisanal centers, but also as cultural hubs, gathering places for city dwellers and villagers, oasis inhabitants and steppe nomads. Everyone who encountered a Central Asian bazaar for the first time was struck by this distinctive characteristic. The renowned Russian artist V.V. Vereshchagin, invited in 1867 by the governor of the Turkestan region, K.P. von Kaufman, to create a series of drawings depicting local scenes and people, described one such bazaar day in Tashkent:
“In the bazaar square, near the shops, <...> a multitude of people on horseback and on foot thronged, having gathered from all the surrounding areas, not so much for shopping, of course, but to meet relatives and acquaintances, to gather news and gossip; some would hurry from 20 versts away, afraid of being late – for what? To gawk at the crowd, to spend the whole day chatting amongst the chattering people, to poke their noses into all the deals, sales, exchanges, into all the arguments, quarrels, if any occur, to put their mouths under refreshments, if offered, and with a wealth of information and a clear conscience, return home.”
You can learn more about the topic in the book-album “Uzbekistan in historic photographs of the 19th - early 20th centuries in the collections of Russian archives” (Volume XXXVII) in the series “Cultural Legacy of Uzbekistan”.
The general sponsor of the project is the oilfield services company Eriell-Group.
