An innocent little kiss . . . : According
to tradition, there was a ruler who went away for war and in his absence his
wife had this building built to surprise him when he returned. However, the architect
fell in love with the wife and told her that he would only complete the building
if she would let him kiss her. Well, she wanted the building finished and she
thought her husband would never find out about the kiss, so she consented. However,
the kiss left a mark and when the husband returned he saw the mark, found out
the whole story and ruled that all women should be covered so that other men
woulnd't fall in love with other men's wives. The irong of this story is that
most Uzbek women, although the dress modestly, don't wear a head covering other
than a scarf over their hair.
