The exhibition was organized by the Uzbekistan Art Academy, Samarkand Joint Historic-Architecture and Art Museum-Preserve, Tashkent Photography House and UNESCO Office in Uzbekistan. The exhibition will last till 5 October 2011.

The exhibition will present 85 images for the first time. Images were printed from rare plate negatives from the funds of Samarkand Museum-Preserve.

In 2008, Samarkand Museum-Preserve and the UNESCO launched a project on digitalization of plate negatives. The museum has over 18,000 such plate negatives. Part of plate negatives has images of holy places and mosques of Samarkand, Bukhara and Khiva in 1926-1940s. Images show changes to unique architecture form of ancient Samarkand, Bukhara, Khiva and Urgench. Collection reflects political, social-economic and cultural life of Samarkand, Bukhara and Khiva in the end of 19th century and in the beginning of the 20th century. It also has valuable materials on life, religion and holidays of Jews, who life in old block of Samarkand.

The project is aimed at documentation and preservation of important historic documents. After full inventory, some 70% of plate negatives were digitalized. These images are unique and they were never published. Digitalization of these images will provide new opportunities for scientists and experts to study history and cultural heritage of Uzbekistan.

Within the project, plate negatives from collections of regional museums of Khiva and Bukhara were also digitalized.