Penjikent is an ancient city of Sogdiana. Sogdians lived not only in Sogdiana, with their capital city in Samarkand, but also far beyond its borders. Their settlements were scattered all along the Great Silk Road, from Byzantine to China. Sogdian scrolls have been found in northern India and western China.

Sogdian culture reached its highest point in the early Middle Ages. In the 6th-8th centuries Sogdians acted as trade intermediaries between China and the Mediterranean countries. Sogdians travelled a lot and saw all the achievements of contemporary great civilisations, but failed to create their own unified strong state. Sogdiana was a sort of conglomerate of small city-states, one of which was Penjikent.

Penjikent was founded in the 5th century but abandoned in the 8th century when Arabs conquered it. The ancient city has not been rebuilt since then. Archaeological sites where numerous paintings on the walls of the palaces and temples dating back to the 5th-8th centuries have been discovered. The scholars have excavated and examined almost half of the settlement: a citadel containing the ruler’s palace, two temples with large yards, 12 main streets and 16 back streets, traders’ stores, large workshops, bazaars and strong city walls. Some findings are on display at the Rudaki Museum in modern Penjikent. The museum’s name arises from the claim that Penjikent was the birthplace of Abu Abdullah Rudaki, the Samanid court poet, the father of Persian poetry.