On March 21, 1941, a letter from the Commissariat for Culture came to Stalin's table with a request to allow excavations in the Gur-Emir mausoleum in Samarkand, where, according to historians, the remains of the great military leader of antiquity were buried.
Having received permission, the expedition flew to Samarkand. And already on June 1, in the morning, scientists began excavations.
Gur-Emir ("Tomb of the Emir") - the mausoleum of Tamerlane (Amir Timur) and his family (Timurids) in Samarkand
On June 5, the first burial was opened - presumably the grave of Ulugbek - the great astronomer and at the same time friend of Tamerlane. It is known from history that the angry guardians of the Islamic faith executed Ulugbek by chopping off his head.
When archaeologists lifted the lid of the coffin, they saw a half-rotted human skeleton, next to which lay a skull. All doubts disappeared: it really was the grave of the astronomer.
Finally came June 21 - the day of the opening of the tomb of Tamerlane. On this day, work began as never before - from seven in the morning. Soon a slab was discovered on which archaeologists read a strange message.
It began with listing 16 names of Tamerlane, then followed by a text that read: “We are all mortals. The time will come, and we will all leave … ". The inscription ended with a terrible warning: "If anyone disturb the ashes of their ancestors, let him be punished."
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All those present at the word "punishment" seized mystical horror. We remembered the warning of the Sufi sages, who predicted innumerable troubles for those who disturb the ashes of the great commander. They even wanted to suspend the work. But the whole world had already spoken about the expedition, and Stalin also showed particular interest in its results.
And although preparations were very carefully for the opening of the tomb of Tamerlane, the work did not go well from the very morning: the winch broke. And the workers began to complain of dizziness and a feeling of inner anxiety that had come from nowhere.
An attempt to repair the winch came to nothing, and the heavy slab had to be manually moved. Finally, as a result of long and strenuous efforts, a black pit opened. But instead of the expected ashes of Timur, it turned out to be ordinary land.
By one o'clock in the afternoon, a government delegation headed by the First Secretary of the Central Committee arrived. Of Uzbekistan Yusupov. The workers and specialists took a break. One of the expedition members, Malik Kayumov, also left the mausoleum and went to the teahouse to have a snack. Here at the table he saw three gray-haired old men, one of whom was holding an old tome in his hands. Kayumov entered into conversation with the old people.
During the conversation, one of the elders asked Kayumov if he was participating in the excavations and if he could read Persian. Having received an affirmative answer, the old man raised the book to his eyes and read aloud: “You must not touch the ashes of a great commander. Otherwise the war will start. Then he showed this place in the book to Kayumov, who was personally convinced that the old man had not deceived him.
Kayumov immediately returned back to the excavation site and told about the prophecy to the leadership of the expedition. He was laughed at, but, nevertheless, they decided to go to the teahouse. The old men were there. However, instead of calmly talking to them, the learned men began to insult the elders. Those silently rose from their seats, went out into the street and disappeared into a nearby alley. Kayumov, who ran out after, tried to find the old people, but they seemed to have sunk into the water.
After a break, excavations continued. Finally, after clearing the sand, the archaeologists saw three slabs. When they were pushed aside, the coffin lid opened. It was 2 pm. It was at this time that all the lamps in the tomb suddenly went out. Anxiety gripped the audience again.
An hour and a half later, the light in the tomb appeared again. And then they opened the lid of the coffin. It contained the remains of a man whose height was in no way less than 185-190 cm. Few doubted at that moment that these were the remains of Tamerlane. The last doubts were dispelled by the damaged kneecap. Because of this injury, Timur not only fell on his left leg for the rest of his life, but also began to be called Tamerlane ("Tamerlane" - translated from Persian means "iron lame").
Tamerlane's tomb (black stone tombstone)
The work continued until dark. And in the hotel, where the archaeologists returned after the excavations, a lively discussion of the impressions of the past day began. Someone turned on the receiver. The terrible word "war" burst out of the loudspeaker.
Probably, at that moment, each of those present remembered the ominous warning that they saw a few hours ago on the slab above Tamerlane's crypt …
But the strange chain of mysterious events associated with the crypt of Tamerlane did not end there. It just so happened that in 1942 Kayumov, already a front-line cameraman, accidentally found himself next to Zhukov's headquarters. He decided to take advantage of the opportunity and report to the marshal about what had happened in Samarkand.
Zhukov received Kayumov cordially: he treated him to tea, listened carefully and promised to convey his story to Stalin. And Georgy Konstantinovich kept his word. Just at this time, a very tense situation for the Soviet state developed on the fronts: the Germans surrounded Stalingrad, rushed to the Caucasus and Stavropol - the main oil and food regions of the country.
Having learned from Zhukov the truth about what happened in Samarkand on the eve of the war, about the prophecy of Tamerlane and a strange book with a prediction of trouble, Stalin behaved very inadequately to his character: he did not laugh at Zhukov, but took everything very seriously, immediately called Yusupov and ordered to reburial Timur's remains.
By this time the famous archaeologist and sculptor Gerasimov completed the reconstruction of the external appearance of Tamerlane. The bones of the great commander were carefully packed and sent to Samarkand.
The appearance of Timur, reconstructed based on the results of a study of his remains
And on December 20, just on the eve of the Battle of Stalingrad, the remains of Timur and his associates were reburied.
As soon as the ashes of Tamerlane returned to their place, the situation at the fronts also changed: by mystical coincidence or for some other reason, but already on December 21, the first encouraging reports arrived from Stalingrad.
Whether it is true or not, there is evidence that before lowering the relics of Tamerlane into the coffin, they flew around the front line in the Stalingrad area with them in a helicopter. At least, with well-known Orthodox icons, such overflights were made around Moscow, when fascist troops were literally a step away from its outskirts.
Stalin believed so much in the great fortitude of Tamerlane that he even decided to appease him: in the summer of 1943, just before the beginning of the Battle of Kursk, he allocated a million rubles (which at that time was equal to 16 tanks) for the restoration of the Gur-Emir mausoleum, where he rested the remains of Timur.
It is difficult to say what is true in this story, what are the inventions of idle journalists, what are just legends. For example, many are confused by the episode about the three elders and their mysterious book, in which a prophecy was allegedly recorded. It would seem fantastic. But, according to knowledgeable people, such a book really exists, but it can be read by the will of higher powers only by the person who is able to stop the trouble.
As for the strange and not entirely unambiguous role of Stalin in this story, it should be borne in mind that Stalin had long been interested in Timur's biography. He studied it in the most thorough way and, probably, found in it much in common with his life story: both Timur and Stalin created huge empires in which they ruled almost autocratic and cruel.
Perhaps, in the subconscious, Stalin even considered himself a mystical double of Tamerlane, and the fact that Timur was his ideal commander and public figure is undoubtedly.
The Father of Nations even allowed in 1937 to print a biography of Tamerlane in the series "ZhZL", which he personally controlled.