Statue of al-Khwarizmi in Urgench

What it is

This is a 2018 photograph of a bronze statue in Urgench that honours Muhammad ibn Musa al-Khwarizmi. The statue shows a robed man with arms outstretched, standing on a stone plinth in front of a white colonnaded canopy near a large building. The photograph was taken by Adam Harangozó.

Why it matters

Al-Khwarizmi was a 9th-century Persian scholar whose work in mathematics and astronomy shaped science for centuries. This statue, built long after his death, shows how later generations in Central Asia remember and celebrate him as a figure of pride and heritage, especially in the region near where he is believed to have been born.

Look closer

• What does the pose of the statue — arms outstretched — suggest about how the sculptor wanted viewers to feel about al-Khwarizmi?
• Why might a modern city choose to build a monument to a scholar who lived over a thousand years ago?
• What does this statue NOT tell us about al-Khwarizmi's actual life or work?