Editing Samarkand (section)

===Hellenistic period===
[[File:Afrasiyab ruins in Samarkand.jpg|thumb|upright=1.35|right|Ancient city walls of Samarkand, 4th century BC]]
[[File:Daniël de Blieck - Alexander Slaying Cleitus.jpg|thumb|upright=1.35|''[[Alexander the Great]] Slaying [[Cleitus the Black|Cleitus]] in Samarkand'', by [[Daniël de Blieck]].<br>[[Ferens Art Gallery]], Hull.]]
[[Alexander the Great]] conquered Samarkand in 329 BC. The city was known as '''Maracanda''' (Μαράκανδα) by the Greeks.<ref>''Columbia-Lippincott Gazetteer'' (New York: Columbia University Press, 1972 reprint) p.&nbsp;1657</ref> Written sources offer small clues as to the subsequent system of government.<ref>{{cite book |last=Wood |first=Frances |title=The Silk Road: two thousand years in the heart of Asia |year=2002 |location=London}}</ref> They mention one Orepius who became ruler "not from ancestors, but as a gift of Alexander."<ref>{{cite journal |last=Shichkina |first=G.V. |title=Ancient Samarkand: capital of Soghd |journal=Bulletin of the Asia Institute |year=1994 |volume=8 |page=83}}</ref>

While Samarkand suffered significant damage during Alexander's initial conquest, the city recovered rapidly and flourished under the new Hellenic influence. There were also major new construction techniques. Oblong bricks were replaced with square ones and superior methods of [[masonry]] and [[plastering]] were introduced.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Shichkina |first=G.V. |title=Ancient Samarkand: capital of Soghd |journal=Bulletin of the Asia Institute |year=1994 |volume=8 |page=86}}</ref>

Alexander's conquests introduced classical Greek culture into Central Asia and for a time, Greek aesthetics heavily influenced local artisans. This Hellenistic legacy continued as the city became part of various successor states in the centuries following Alexander's death, the Greek [[Seleucid Empire]], [[Greco-Bactrian Kingdom]], and [[Kushan Empire]] (even though the [[Yuezhi|Kushana]] themselves originated in Central Asia). After the Kushan state lost control of Sogdia during the 3rd century AD, Samarkand went into decline as a centre of economic, cultural, and political power. It did not significantly revive until the 5th century.