The Namazgah mosque stands on the south side of the city, about a kilometer south of the Namazgah gate that shares the same name. The word “Namazgah” simply means “Place of Prayer” in Persian. The monument was established from 1119-20 during the Karakhanid period as an open-air mosque comprising a long, low wall measuring 38 meters in length and a single mihrab niche indicating the direction of Mecca. In the Mongol era (beginning in the mid-13th century), glazed tiles and others decoration were added to the qibla side of the wall. The mosque was further remodeled in the 16th century with the addition of arcades that were awkwardly affixed to the existing structure. Currently the monument stands in partial ruin and is located well to the south of the areas frequented by tourists.

Several fragments of glazed turquoise calligraphy that stand in the north arcade may date from the Mongol period; clearly they predate the addition of the arcades as the composition is clumsily interrupted by the arcade’s presence. If correct, these may be some of the earliest instances of glazed tiles in the Bukhara region apart from those on the Vobkent Minaret and Chashma Ayub, both north of the city. Apart from the glazed tiles, the exterior of the mosque no longer retains any ornament. The tympanum of the central mihrab does retain some high-quality square Kufic designs in high brick relief (resembling a maze) and other ornament, protected as they are from the elements.