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Samarkand recovered from the initial shock of conquest and quickly adopted the new techniques afforded by the Hellenic influence . Classical Greek became the norm for architects and artisans alike , something that is still felt to this day .
Successive empires followed Alexander ’ s death , all having influence on Samarkand until it fell into decline in the third century AD and took two hundred years to recover . This led to the Iranic and Turkic people taking , and keeping , control of the city until an invader from the east set desires on Samarkand . During the time of the Iranic and Turkic peoples religion flourished , being diverse and inclusive amongst the Buddhists , Hindus , Jews , and Christians , although it was Zoroastrianism that was the most popular .
Chinggis Khaan was again seeking new lands , and Samarkand seemed a likely target . The year 1220 saw the city fall to the Mongols who sought to destroy what they feared and consume what they believed
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