[url=https://orientalarchitecture.com/cid/216/uzbekistan/khiva]Khiva[/url] or Xiva is an oasis city in the northwest of Uzbekistan. [br]The walled historical center of Khiva was been declared as World Heritage by UNESCO in 1990 as the first location in Uzbekistan.[br]The bases of the city walls date from the 10th century. The current 10 m high walls date from late 17th century. There a re lots of monuments In the historical center, mostly dating from the 18th and 19th century.[br]Remarkable are the [i]Kuhna Ark[/i] (fort) and the [i]Tash Hauli[/i] palace (both from 19th century) and their decorations with spiral flower motifs. On the other hand the geometric patterns you find in Khiva mostly are very simple, often based on basic 6-pointed stars.