Architectural and Cultural Significance of Personal Memorial Museums in Uzbekistan: Insights from the Fayzulla Khodjayev House Museum in Bukhara
Yulduz M. Kalonova, & Otabek N. Babakandov
Abstract
Yulduz M. Kalonova, & Otabek N. Babakandov
Abstract
Personal memorial museums play an important role in presenting the lives and memories of individuals through the houses, spaces and objects associated with them. Unlike conventional museums, these museums preserve and interpret a specific domestic environment in which a person has lived and whose architectural features and material objects provide a connection with their personal and family history. In Uzbekistan, historic houses associated with prominent figures have become important sites for representing individual memories, family life and cultural heritage. The Fayzulla Khodjaev House Museum in Bukhara provides a relevant example, as the house and its interiors are associated with the life of Fayzulla Khodjaev and his family. In this context, this study examines the architectural and cultural significance of the house as a personal memorial museum, with particular attention to its spatial organisation, interior decoration and museum exhibits and their role in presenting the history and memory of the Khodjaev family. The research employs a qualitative case study approach centred on the Fayzulla Khodjaev House Museum in the Goziyon quarter of Bukhara. Primary data were collected through on-site architectural observations, spatial documentation and photographic documentation during a field research visit in April 2026. To support the analysis, the field findings were considered alongside museum records, historical documents and published sources related to the house, Fayzulla Khodjaev and the historical context of the building. The analysis focuses on the spatial organisation of the house, including the Havli Berun (outer courtyard), Havli Darun (inner family courtyard), domestic rooms, interior decorative elements and the objects displayed in the museum. The findings demonstrate that the architectural character of the Fayzulla Khodjaev House Museum is closely connected with the history and memory of Fayzulla Khodjaev and his family. The spatial organisation of the house, particularly the distinction between the Havli Berun (outer courtyard) and Havli Darun (inner courtyard), reflects the domestic environment of the family and helps visitors understand the way the residence was organised and used. The memorial character of the museum is also expressed through the combination of original materials related to Fayzulla Khodjaev and reconstructed elements of the historical domestic environment. Documents, photographs, books and other materials related to Khodjaev provide direct connections with his life and activities, while furniture, household objects, clothing, ceramics, musical instruments and other exhibits help recreate the atmosphere and everyday setting of a wealthy Bukharan household of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. The interior decoration, including floral and geometric wall paintings and carved wooden elements, further strengthen the historical character of the house. Together, these spaces, decorative elements and museum exhibits create a material and visual context through which the life of Fayzulla Khodjaev, his family environment and the historical period in which they lived can be understood. In this way, the house functions not only as an example of traditional Bukharan residential architecture, but also as a personal memorial museum in which individual memory is presented within a reconstructed historical domestic environment.
Keywords:
Courtyard House, Bukhara, Vernacular Architecture, Wall Paintings, Spatial Organisation, Uzbekistan.