The Khwarezm Shahs were a Persianate Turkish Sunni Muslim dynasty that ruled over Iran; Turkmenistan; Uzbekistan and western Afghanistan from a succession of capitals at Urgench; Samarkand; Ghazni and Tabriz.

Trade contacts between the Khwarezmids and China's Song Dynasty (960-1279) were maintained via the Silk Road as well as by sea; but while Chinese porcelain techniques and designs strongly influenced Islamic potters; there is little indication of Chinese artistic influence on Iran and Central Asia through paintings.

In 1218 Genghis Khan sent ambassadors to Khwarezm; but they were seized and executed; prompting a Mongol invasion in 1220 that captured Bukhara; Urgench and Samarkand; resulting in the total destruction of the Khwarezmian state. Pictures From History