Matniyoz Devonbegi Madrasa

History and layout

One of Muhammad Rahim Khan II’s most senior officials, Muhammad Niyoz Devonbegi — Matniyoz in the Khorezmian dialect — built this madrasa in 1871. It is a single storey, with upper rooms only above the main façade, and follows the usual plan of lecture hall, winter mosque and a courtyard ringed with cells, with guldasta turrets at the four corners. Since 1979 it has been part of a tourist complex with the Muhammad Amin Khan Madrasa and now houses a restaurant. The 14th-century Sayid Alovuddin Mausoleum is built against its east wall.