From Uzbek past to European present… a journey through photography!
- APPO
- May 21
- 3 min read
Paris, January 2025. I arrive at the exhibition hall at UNESCO headquarters to see the photography exhibit Timeless Treasures: Jewish Cultural Heritage Through the Eyes of Young Photographers, where Behzod Boltaev is representing Uzbekistan alongside a select group of six young international photographers united by a common theme: Jewish cultural heritage.
Upon arrival, I had trouble finding the entrance, but then I spotted the Uzbek flag proudly waving among the flags of the United Nations—and so I found my way again. Inside, two large panels read: The Cultural Legacy of the Jews of Uzbekistan and Uzbekistan, Historic Center of Bukhara. Both confirmed I was in the right place.
Indeed, a Jewish diaspora has lived in Uzbekistan, and especially in the city of Bukhara, since the 10th century BCE. Bukharan Jews have long been linked to the Silk Road and the trade routes that crossed it for centuries. Even today, they
continue to contribute meaningfully to the country’s economy. Preserving their language, a Tajik dialect with Persian roots, they have offered the world a unique cultural heritage. Nevertheless, today, only 1% of the 200,000 Bukharan Jews remain in Uzbekistan; nearly 60% live in Israel and 30% in the United States. One could say that Bukharan Jewish culture is now endangered.
Through Behzod’s lens, the exhibit reveals traditions kept alive by those who still live in Bukhara—traditions that inspire his work as a cultural protector. Among the images, one sees:
A woman celebrating Yusvo (a Bukharan Jewish memorial rite marking the anniversary of a person’s death),
A young man and an elder praying in the synagogue of Bukhara,
A child playing in the living room of a typical 19th-century Bukharan Jewish home, lived in by four generations,
The chazan (cantor) at the synagogue of Mahalla-i-Nav (the “New Jewish Quarter”),
A gravedigger at the Bukharan Jewish cemetery, and
The present-day Magok-i-Attari Mosque, standing since the Post-Medieval era, built atop the remains of a Zoroastrian temple, and once serving as a shared place of worship for both Muslims and Bukharan Jews.
There is no doubt that Behzod’s work is monumental. But it must be supported by concrete actions from national and international organizations, efforts that revive ancestral knowledge and craftsmanship, promote the study of traditional cultures, and ensure this heritage is shared widely. Uzbekistan is at a crossroads of rapid economic and tourist development, and will need prompt and strong investments to safeguard its cultural values at risk.
As I finish my visit to the gallery, I head back toward the Cambronne métro station in Paris. Boarding the train, another flashback overtakes me—like a dervish returning to Bukhara, I find myself once again traveling through the past of the past, immersed in one of those tales from One Thousand and One Nights, in the parlor of an old Uzbek home with Persian flair, accompanied by the artist who, camera in hand, defies oblivion and reminds us that every image is a doorway into the soul of an ancient people he preserves through his art… Behzod Boltaev!
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