Halk Hakydasy Memorial Complex

Ashgabat


Unveiled in 2014, this vast complex features three memorials honouring those that died in the 1948 earthquake, soldiers who perished in WWII and those killed in other Turkmen battles. The Earthquake Memorial features a bombastic bronze rendering of a bull and child (said to be the baby Niyazov).

There is also a museum (entrance US$10) featuring two exhibits: one covering the earthquake and the other focusing on war. The earthquake hall is perhaps Ashgabat's most touching museum and the display includes once-banned photos of pre-1948 earthquakes as well as information about the five-year clean-up effort, the burying of 110,000 bodies and the building of a new city.

It's west of the city, near the Hotel Ýyldyz.