Murche

Upon construction of the Karakum Canal to its north in the 1960s, inhabitants of Murche settled at a new site closer to the canal. Murche was left to ruins and crumbling mud-walls and doorways are all that survives. Turkmen archaeologists have rebuilt a mud-tower and fireplace in traditional style — imparting feels of antiquity. == Mausoleum of Zengi Baba ==

The most preeminent shrine of Zangi Baba, this mausoleum dates either from the 13th-14th centuries, when bricks taken from earlier establishments were put to reuse, or the 10th-11th centuries and then reconstructed a few centuries later. It is a square building with an over-span dome — transition between walls and dome is marked with four niche-separated squinches. The cenotaph is tiled with different geometric patterns. Outside the mausoleum, a large collection of ovoid objects (prob. cannon balls; ascribed to be dinosaur eggs in local tradition) and stones of peculiar appearance (esp. ammolites) are preserved and imparted with sacred functions. == References ==