ABSTRACT
For many people in the west the name of Samarqand is highly evocative. They associate it with the Silk Route, the spice trade and long, adventurous journeys through deserts and high mountains. Samarqand might also be known as the capital of Tamerlane the Great, but Bukhara, to most people, is merely an ancient town famous for its carpets. In 1559 the name of Boghar was of particular interest to the shareholders of the London-based Muscovy company, for they were perusing the detailed report of one of their factors, Anthony Jenkinson, sent to investigate the trading potential of the town. In 1550 Bukhara was just one of the towns of the khanate of Ma wara' al-nahr or Transoxiana, situated between the Oxus/Amu-Darya and the Syr-Darya, east of the Caspian Sea.
