Detail of column and ceramics on the wall, Kurinish Khana or Throne Room, 1804-06, Kukhna Ark, Khiva, Uzbekistan, pictured on July 5, 2010, in the afternoon. The Kukhna Ark is the original home of the Khans. Although its foundations are 5th century, most of the complex is 19th century. The Kurinish Khana (throne room), 1804-06, with its arcade or iwan, is the place where audiences were held in the open air in summer and enclosed by a yurt in winter. Khiva, ancient and remote, is the most intact Silk Road city. Ichan Kala, its old town, was the first site in Uzbekistan to become a World Heritage Site(1991). Picture by Manuel Cohen.