The State Historical and Cultural Park Ancient Merv is the oldest and best preserved of the oasis cities along the Silk Road in Central Asia. Several cities have existed on this site, with a history span of 4,000 years. A number of monuments are still visible inside the historical park, most of them are from the last two millennia.

The ancient Merv is located in the territory of Mary of Turkmenistan; it is supposed that the ancient centers played an important role in the history of the East connected with the unparalleled existence of cultural landscape and exceptional variety of cultures which existed within the Murgab river oasis being in continually interactions and successive development.  It reached its apogee during the Muslim epoch and became a capital of the Arabic Caliphate at the beginning of 9th century and as a capital of the Great Seljuks Empire at the 11th-12th centuries.

State Historical and Cultural Park "Ancient Merv" contains of a series of adjacent walled cities, Erk Kala, Gyaur Kala and the medieval Sultan Kala or Marv al-Shahijan. Inside the park, it is the Mausoleum of Sultan Sanjar that could be seen from different corners of the park; it is almost restored with the help of Turkish funds. There are also other walls or palace fortresses left which remind the prosperous of the ancient cities.