Palace of Culture "Arbob"

The design and construction of the complex began in 1946 and continued until 1957, with prior agreement with the Leningrad Regional Committee of the Communist Party ^[4] . According to other sources, the construction was completed in 1959 ^[5] .

The palace is located in the Gafurovsky district of the Sughd region . The main building has three wings; the main one houses a theater with a capacity of 800 people. A museum is currently located in the south wing that tells the story of Arbob and the collectivization that took place in Tajikistan during the Soviet period.

From the building, a series of fountains and rose gardens lead to the driveway and to the bust of Lenin .

The complex was built on a hill called Arbob, hence the name of the Palace ^[6] .

The central building was built in the 1950s under the leadership and initiative of twice Hero of Socialist Labor , chairman of the Moscow collective farm Saidkhoja Urunkhodzhaev , also known in Tajikistan as an innovator in collective farm production. Having once visited Leningrad , in Peterhof and having seen the famous palaces, he invited architects to the collective farm of Leningrad who built a mini-copy of one of these palaces. According to other sources, the author of the project was H. Yuldashev, chairman of the Tajik branch of the Union of Soviet Architects (1948-1959) ^{[7] [4]} .

G. M. Malenkov came to the opening of the Palace, and during the construction visited I. V. Stalin ^[1] .

The building gained special significance in 1992, when it officially declared independence of the republic from the USSR . In the same building, the Flag of Tajikistan was selected and approved.

In the late 1990s, in the Arbob building, a peace conference was held after the Tajik Civil War . In particular, the President of Tajikistan, Emomali Rahmon , first gained fame speaking in this palace in 1992, when the so-called “peace pilaf” was organized in order to reconcile the warring inter-Tajik armed forces and aimed at ending the civil war.

Since January 20, 2011, by the decision of the chairman of the Sughd region, the Palace has been on the balance of the culture department of the Sogd administration and is considered the historical and cultural heritage of Tajikistan. It should be noted that previously the palace and park complex was on the balance sheet of OJSC named after Urunkhodzhaev and the transition to the balance of the state was connected with the financial insolvency of the Joint Stock Company ^[1] .

In 2012, the Palace was reconstructed and commissioned during the celebration of the anniversary of the 16th session of the Supreme Council of the Republic of Tatarstan with the participation of the President of the Republic. Starting December 15, 2012, weekly excursions for schoolchildren, students and citizens are held at the Palace. For foreign tourists coming to the Sogd region, the Arbob Palace has become the main attraction for visiting ^[8] .

With the advent of new fountains, the palace and park complex was transformed ^[9] .

In March 2015, next to the Palace of Culture with the participation of President Emomali Rahmon, a new amphitheater building was opened, which is part of the palace and park complex. The amphitheater of the Arbob complex, has a semicircular shape, covers an area of ​​3.5 hectares, and is designed for 7000 seats. Also, this cultural and sports facility has a platform for high-ranking guests, separate rooms are provided for warm-up athletes and rehearsals of artists. And also, it has two assembly halls and other utility rooms ^[10] .

The dimensions of the stage, for cultural and recreational events, have an attractive shape, and are 80x54 meters. The stage and corners of the amphitheater are decorated with painted columns. The entrance to the amphitheater is also decorated with spherical fountains, and the territory of the amphitheater is decorated with decorative trees, flower beds and shrubs ^[10] .

• BBC (Taj.)
• Video - Arbob Palace