Fortress · Khiva

Bogcha Gate

Itchan Kala’s 19th-century northern gate: a domed passage between two towers with rooms for guards and customs officers, rebuilt in Soviet times and again in 1997.

UNESCO World HeritageKhanatesXIX10 min1 min read

Photo: Adam Harangozó · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

History and layout

The Bogcha Gate is a symmetrical structure set into the wall of Itchan Kala, built in the 19th century. Its long passage is roofed by domes on longitudinal and transverse arches, with square domed rooms for sentries and customs officers on either side; the northern rooms connect to hollow two-storey towers flanking the wide entrance. The gate originally measured 18 by 16 metres and stood 8.5 metres high, with market stalls alongside. It is almost unadorned, its only decoration being bands of polished brick on the towers. It was reconstructed in 1959–1960 and again in 1997.