Situated in remote western Uzbekistan, just north of the banks of the Amu Darya River lies a a large earthen mound with a flattened summit, oddly out of place in the desert. This is the Chilpik Dakhma, the Tower of Silence, constructed over 2,000 years ago for macabre funerary purposes nearly lost to the sands of time. The windswept summit reveals a platform of stacked rocks and a string of weathered flags, marking the remnants of Zoroastrian burials from two millennia past, where bodies were ritually exposed to vultures who picked the bones clean.

Open to visitors for a modest fee of around $1, the site is best appreciated by clambering up the steep sides, now with steps to help the journey. This Tower of Silence is a unique testament to the Zoroastrian faith that spread through Persia and beyond, playing a large role along the Silk Roads.