DUSHANBE, 08.09.2022 (NIAT Khovar) – On September 8, the Founder of Peace and National Unity — Leader of the Nation, President of the Republic of Tajikistan, Emomali Rahmon, and the Chairman of the Majlisi milli Majlisi Oli of the Republic of Tajikistan, Mayor of the city of Dushanbe, Rustami Emomali, inaugurated in the capital city the “Istiklol” Square and the architectural complex – «Istiklol» Symbol in honor of the 31st anniversary of State Independence, then took part and spoke at the grandiose cultural program.

First, the President of the country, Emomali Rahmon, and the Mayor of the city of Dushanbe, Rustami Emomali, solemnly opened the “Istiklol” Square and the “Istiklol” Symbol Complex by unveiling the curtain from the symbolic board.

The 121-meter height of the “Istiklol” complex is symbolic, that is, the lower part of the complex is 30 meters — a symbol of the 30th anniversary of State Independence, and the upper part — 91 meters — personifies the gaining of Independence in 1991.

The total area of the symbolic “Istiklol” complex is 11,900 square meters, the area of the facility under construction is 4,761 square meters.

At the top of the complex is an 8-meter crown made of titanium. In the «Independence» symbol the crown embodies the symbol of statehood, independence, state property and civilization, and knowledge of the history of the ancient Tajik people. The base of the complex embodies an octagonal pyramid and consists of 7 entrances.

Recall that on May 26, the Government of the country signed an Order on the establishment of an Interdepartmental Commission for holding a tender between domestic and foreign individuals and legal entities with a view to selecting the best draft design of the “Istiklol” garden with an architectural complex symbolizing «Independence and Freedom» in the city of Dushanbe, in honor of the 30th anniversary of the State Independence of the Republic of Tajikistan. The results of the tender were summed up on March 11, 2020 by members of the commission and field experts. In total, 32 projects were presented at the open tender.

The project with the symbol «Crown», developed by the creative team of the Main Department of Architecture and Urban Planning of the Executive body of state power of the city of Dushanbe under the leadership of the Mayor of the city of Dushanbe Rustami Emomali, won first place. This project with a predominant advantage meets all the requirements of the tender and embodies the symbols of statehood, history and recognized civilization of the Tajik people. When designing the “Crown” symbol, the designer relied on the “Tree of Life” symbol as a basis, which represents and embodies broad ideas and context.

In particular, the «Tree of Life» with its roots, trunks and branches symbolizes eternal life, prosperity and stability, the base of the crown is a symbol of the durability and inviolability of the crown, the seven domes around the monument symbolize 7 layers of earth and sky, 7 climates, 7 primary colors of nature and 7 steps of the formation of science, enlightenment, self-knowledge and worldview of mankind.

The “Istiklol” Square complex consists of separate sections, and the complex with the “Istiklol” symbol is built in the center of the park, which is surrounded by 14 walls measuring 9 by 5.20 meters from the outside.

These fourteen wall frescoes reflect more than six thousand years of history of the Tajik people, depending on the historical stages, with drawings and symbols under different names.

Murals with different titles such as «Kayumars and Jamshed as the first kings of the Aryan peoples, familiarization with the book of Avesta», «The rise to power of Cyrus the Great and the unification of the Aryan lands», «The battle of Spitamen with Alexander the Great» under the name of the battle of «The Sogdian Stone», about three ancestral superpowers — Ashkanians, Kushanians, Sassanians, «Devashtich. Statehood of Tahirids and Saffarids», «Samanids. Ismoil Somoni. Ministers, people of science and literature», «Tajiks in the 11th — 16th centuries», «Temurmalik – Hero of the Tajik people», cultural achievements of a long period of the history of the ancestors by showing photos of medieval books and inscriptions and examples of arts and crafts, poets and writers from Abdurrahman Jami to Ahmad Donish about the great historical cities of Tajiks, Sarazm, Gonur, Balkh, Nisa, Marv, Samarkand, Bukhara, Takhti Sangin, Khujand, Ancient Panjakent, Bunjikat, Hulbuk, Hisar Fortress, Herat, Ghazni, «New History, Great Constructions», «The period of Independence. Arbob Palace, XVI Session of the Supreme Council of the Republic of Tajikistan. Dusti Square. The construction of the century — «Rogun» HPP” and the achievements of the independence period provide information for the viewer.

On the first floor of the “Istiklol” complex, the Head of State, Emomali Rahmon, together with the Mayor of the city of Dushanbe, Rustami Emomali, became familiar with the conditions and possibilities for servicing the complex, including exhibitions of folk crafts, samples of the achievements of artists, a cinema hall and offices.

The ground floor of this facility consists of 7 open and spacious exhibition halls, a VIP reception and a 12-seat 5D cinema hall.

A historical museum of the city of Dushanbe has been organized on the second floor of the “Istiklol” complex of the “Istiklol” square in Dushanbe.

The Dushanbe City Museum consists of a gallery and the «Throne of the Tajiks» and has 15 offices, conference rooms and surveillance cameras.

The museum includes various historical stages, in which mainly finds were collected, discovered during archaeological excavations on the territory of the city of Dushanbe. In particular, the museum of the city of Dushanbe presents stone axes extracted from the Luchob mahalla and the Dushanbe river and related to the Stone Age. The presence of such monuments indicates that Dushanbe has an ancient history, various crafts, cultures and rituals have developed on its territory since ancient times.

The building was built in accordance with the modern requirements of museum work and modern decor. The exhibits of the museum provide viewers with detailed information about the ancient history of Dushanbe and the development of the city in the newest period. The exhibits are arranged according to historical chronology.

In the museum, the President of the Republic of Tajikistan, Emomali Rahmon, got familiar with the symbolic throne of King Ismoil Somoni, built taking into account historical values.

This throne is fully decorated and carved in the national style. It was reported that the crown placed on the throne was made of pure gold produced by Tajikistan. The crown is decorated with precious stones, such as diamonds with a diameter of 3 and 2 millimeters, a blue sapphire with a diameter of 15 millimeters, gold and white gold, and Badakhshan lapis lazuli measuring 22 by 15 millimeters. The scepter, which is a symbol of statehood, throne and crown, is decorated with 68 rays of beadwork and is associated with a golden crown, which indicates a new revival of independent Tajikistan and 68 cities and districts of the republic. Each embroidered yarn is drawn with golden metallic thread.

On both sides of the throne are vultures or winged lions with an eagle’s beak, found in the form of a bracelet from the Amu Darya treasury. It should be noted that the image of the winged lion as the guardian of the throne and power was very popular among the ancient Bactrians. The throne is located between four arches and is surrounded by wooden columns decorated with local precious stones. The back of the throne is decorated with paintings of Ancient Penjikent, Varakhsha, Afrosiab and Bunjikat using precious stones.

Around it are seven symbolic golden keys from the seven cities of the current territory of the Republic — Dushanbe, Sarazm, Khujand, Istaravshan, Hissar, Yamchun and Hulbuk, as well as copies of high art samples of the Amu Darya treasury — a golden bracelet and a golden chariot.

Given the high historical value of the collected items, the Head of State, Emomali Rahmon, instructed the responsible persons to promote the activities of the museum in order to familiarize the citizens of the country, the younger generation, domestic and foreign tourists with a rich history and civilization, and attract the best specialists to represent its stands.

During his visit to the museum, the President of the Republic of Tajikistan, Emomali Rahmon, gave scientists and archaeologists, the city authorities, responsible persons of the museum, useful instructions and recommendations on the comprehensive protection of these valuable monuments, expanding the activities of the newly created museum, attracting more visitors to museum excursions, familiarizing adolescents and youth with history and ancient civilization of the people through exhibits.

After visiting the museum, the President of the country, Emomali Rahmon, and the Mayor of the city of Dushanbe, Rustami Emomali, viewed the beauties of the city on the observation deck of the capital.

It should be said that one of the interesting places of the “Istiklol” Symbol Complex is its observation deck. It is located on the 14th floor at a height of 94 meters. The observation deck is round and has 4 large telescopes.

The total perimeter of the “Istiklol” Square is 30 hectares, of which 2.7 hectares are used as a venue for political and cultural events.

More than 200 local residents, a large number of whom are women, are provided with jobs in the “Istiklol” Square.

This grandiose building consists of a complex symbolizing Independence, a tribune, a central gate and a north-south gate, fountains, fences, platforms for processions, squares, parking spaces, etc.

The central gate of the square, 43.8 meters long, 9 meters wide and 32.67 meters high, was built using high quality materials and is located in the part of Rudaki Avenue.

More than 7.5 thousand rare evergreen and ornamental trees were planted on the “Istiklol” Square at the initiative of the Head of State in two years.

It should be especially noted that the Leader of the Nation, Emomali Rahmon, personally brought most of the rare trees from abroad 20 years ago and grew them in the garden of the Palace of the Nation. These trees were planted with the direct participation of the Head of State in different parts of Independence Square.

The project for the construction of this attractive area with unique art and in compliance with all the norms for the construction of cultural and entertainment centers with a high taste of aesthetics and love for nature was developed by the Head of State Emomali Rahmon.

Now, after the commissioning of “Istiklol” Square, this place has become the main and central place, the heart of the capital and the place of hope for Tajikistanis and Tajiks of the world, since here is a symbol of independence and freedom, which is the desire and aspiration of the glorious Tajik nation.

From now on, high-level events will be held in this breathtaking and unique architectural wonder, representing the achievements of the era of Independence of Tajikistan.

After the opening of the “Istiklol” Square and the “Istiklol” Complex, the President of the country, Emomali Rahmon, addressed the guests and participants of the festive event and congratulated all those present and, in their person, all the glorious people of the country in honor of the 31st anniversary of State Independence.

In honor of the anniversary of State Independence, the program of the solemn holiday was continued by the performance of Tajik masters of art, artists of Tajikistan, as well as a procession of students of colleges and higher educational institutions of the capital, numbering more than 30,000 people.

At the solemn festive event, artists presented songs celebrating the beauty of the ancient land, the greatness of the Motherland, the achievements of State Independence, glorifying world initiatives and the humane qualities of the Leader of the Nation.