What fate awaits modern culture? We have talked about the tragic fate of just one sunken city in the waters of the lake. Researchers know of more than a dozen such cities beneath the waves of Issyk-Kul, which perished as a result of disasters. What nature did these disasters have? Academician L. S. Berg had no doubt: “The underwater ruins at Issyk-Kul,” he wrote, “are due to the subsidence of part of the shore as a result of earthquakes.” Tectonic disasters at Issyk-Kul, located in a highly
1600 Years of the Great Road In the decades following the death of Zhang Qian, his plan of "10,000 li" began to yield results. Dayuan and Wusun came under the sphere of Chinese influence. Trade communications, once fragmented and disconnected, now merged. Trade caravans from China began their journey from Chang'an and traveled to Dunhuang — a city on the border, near the Great Wall. From there, two routes branched out: the northern and the southern. The southern branch went
Wild Custom Kunbag fell ill. His younger wife fussed around him with tears in her eyes. But she was soon pushed aside by the stout, powerful daughter of the steppes. The old man was moved to the Big Tent. — Oh, dear...— groaned the old man. — Even the dog laughs at the old wolf... What to do? Death is an uninvited guest for everyone.
How the Palace in Chigu Was Built A person gets used to everything! The princess got accustomed to her situation, In Chigu, there was a famous market (primitive from the perspective of a resident of Chang'an). Here, local craftsmen sold grain grinders, crudely made clay dishes, pestles, hammers, anvils, whetstones, sickle-shaped knives, and even hoes—some of the herders tried to cultivate the land. Trade was mainly barter. People came from all around to the market.
Unyielding Ferganans In 105 BC, a Han embassy led by the official Chelin passed through the capital of the Xiongnu. This was the same one who advised the emperor to marry off the Lotus Flower. The angry princess did not even come out to greet her compatriots. Chelin was heading to Dayan to buy "heavenly" horses.
“The City of the Red Valley” In connection with the discovery of a large settlement from the 1st millennium BC, only partially freed from the underwater captivity of Lake Issyk-Kul, we are entitled to raise a quite reasonable question: could the settlement of Sarybulun be the ruins of the long-sought city of Chigu? In favor of the legitimacy of our proposed identification, the following arguments can be put forward:
Sarybulun Palace at the Issyk-Kul Settlement The "Jianhanpu" contains significant details that allow for a representation (albeit quite vague) of the external and internal appearance of the Usun residence in the 1st century BC. The ruler preferred to live in a "round hut covered with felt." Does this mean that the Usun ruler lived in a portable yurt? Apparently not, as the yurt in the full sense of the word, i.e., a dwelling of nomads with a disassembled lattice frame,
On which shore of Issyk-Kul was the ancient Chigu located? Sarybulun is the only known large settlement of the 1st millennium BC in the Issyk-Kul basin. Written sources mention the name of only one settlement in this territory — the residence of the Usun ruler, Chigu. This raises the question: could Sarybulun be the ruins of Chigu? Let us turn to ancient chronicles. The earliest information about Chigu comes from the "Shiji" ("Historical Records") as told by the involuntary
Findings from the Saka-Usun Period Strict scientific evidence for the development of agriculture in Usun society has been scarce, with excavations of settlements from the first centuries AD at Lugovoe (A. N. Bernsham) and Karabalta (A. K. Abetekov) yielding little. The discovery of grain grinders, even in conjunction with the remains of adobe houses, does not yet constitute indisputable evidence of agricultural practices by the population that left them. Findings of agricultural tools, such as
Idealization of Nomads in Ancient Greek Literature In ancient Greek literature, there is a clear idealization of nomads. The goal: to improve Greek society. The method of improvement: a return to the lifestyle of heroic ancestors. For clarity, the morals of those raised in the harsh and free natural conditions of "barbarian" steppe life were contrasted with the refined and corrupted morals in Greek city-states. This idealization reached its peak in the biography of the Scythian
Saka and Scythians through the Eyes of Cherilus The author of the poem "Persica," the ancient Greek poet from the island of Samos, Cherilus, wrote: Saka, shepherds of sheep, of Scythian lineage, Living in Asia, with abundant wheat. Although the poem, written in the 5th century BC, has survived to us in fragments, there are few poetic lines that so succinctly and concisely address two main controversial questions of the real history of the Saka, which have long been the subject of
Internal Political Struggle of the Usuns for Supreme Power The internal political history of the Usuns is a story of constant infighting and struggle for supreme power among the highest aristocracy, which was interfered with by Han emperors and Hunnic rulers. Only during the reign of the Kumbag Tsylimi (45—14 BC) did the lands of the Usuns experience "deep silence and peace," as he "acted with firmness." Ultimately, Tsylimi also fell victim to a conspiracy—he was
Usuns This text will discuss the people of the Usuns. Few Central Asian-Kazakh ethnonyms have such a long history. Emerging on the historical stage in the 2nd century BC, the Usuns retained their self-designation in sources from the 10th to 12th centuries. Finally, under the tribal name "Uysun," "Uyshun," their descendants entered the composition of the Kyrgyz and Kazakh peoples in the 16th century.
The Disgraced Monk with Seditious Prayer Beads In early May 1853, in the cold cell of the St. Alexander Nevsky Lavra in St. Petersburg, a lonely and forgotten prominent Russian sinologist, a scholar of international renown — the monk Iakinf — was dying. He had long ceased to eat and respond to the questions of the novice who was voluntarily caring for him. The day before his death, one of his colleagues from the Asian Department visited him. The old man's faded brown eyes were motionless.
Sakas The ancient herders who inhabited Central Asia left no historical writings. The ancient Greeks wrote more about the Central Asian herders than anyone else. However, few of the ancient Greek authors actually visited such remote areas, so their information is not only sparse and fragmented but also contradictory and vague. Generations of scholars have analyzed this information, yet there remains no consensus on many questions regarding the history of the ancient herders of the Eurasian
Late Medieval Period (14th—15th centuries). Saka-Usun Period (5th century BC). This period is represented by a large mass of ceramics, primarily vessels with handles in the form of protruding flattened or conical appliqués. Such handles are characteristic of the eastern Fergana settlements of the Shurabashat culture. They are often found in burial mounds from the Saka period in Semirechye, including in the Pre-Issyk-Kul region. There are noticeable connections with the ceramics of Sarabulun
Early Saka Period (VIII—VI centuries BC). It is represented by metal artifacts: an amulet with a solar symbol, a mace head, as well as, most likely, a fragment of a celt and a dagger. This early stage in the history of ancient nomads has not yet been distinguished in the archaeology of Kyrgyzstan, as burial mounds from that time have not yet been found or excavated, not to mention settlements. The initial stage of the formation of the culture of ancient pastoralists in Kyrgyzstan is currently
When was life flourishing? Even a brief overview of the material culture with a short excursion into its chronology indicates a long life of the underwater settlement of Sarabulun. Determining the time of its origin, flourishing, and demise is associated with significant difficulties that traditional archaeology does not encounter. Moreover, the study of underwater monuments is immeasurably more complex, as it is impossible to trace the spatial arrangement of cultural layers and the dating
Searches at the bottom of the bay continue The remote-controlled probe is a device that helped underwater archaeologists find more than a dozen metal artifacts in just one month of work. This has never happened before. Externally, the device is very simple: a small metal circle on a long handle. But its internal mechanism is complex, as it instantly emits a sound signal from one to one and a half meters away from any metal object—whether on the ground, underground, or underwater! With its
After the Marriage On the day of the wedding, the city was filled with people. And when night fell, in honor of the high-profile couple, thousands of fiery birds soared into the sky. The famous Usun warriors, wrapping the tips of their arrows with burning tow, shot them into the starry darkness one after another. A magnificent sight! The princess had never seen anything like it even in Chang'an. It seemed as if the starry rain had suddenly defied the laws of the universe and instead of
Meeting the Bride The bride's train was met by the nomads twenty li from the encampment — a sign of the greatest respect. A gray, beautiful, yet somehow absurd "foreign" evening was approaching. Red-bearded dignitaries, adorned with golden badges, dismounted from their wonderful swan-like horses and knelt down. Following them, an innumerable (as it seemed to the princess) army instantly dismounted and followed the example of their leaders. The princess, reclining in her
The Choice of the Bride Whose chest was adorned with such a precious and exotic bead? Was it not the beautiful guest from another, distant country, who became the mistress of Chigoo? The Usun rulers rose so high that they even became related to the Chinese emperor. The princesses of Hanjiye often became wives of the Kumbags and lived in Chiguchene on the shores of Lake Issyk-Kul. Let us tell the fate of one of them.
Little Guest Such finds are not anticipated. They come from a fairy-tale land and are always unexpected, especially under underwater conditions with a muddy bottom — almost unbelievable. This is about a beautiful large black chalcedony bead. The bead was so well polished that no sediment could accumulate on it. It seemed as if it had just recently been dropped into the lake. In reality, its age is measured in millennia. The bead is a long cylinder with a slight thickening towards the middle.
Stone Tools of Sarybulun Even in the best books about the culture of ancient pastoralists, which showcase the rarest items made of gold and gemstones, beautiful examples of artistic crafts made from wood, leather, and felt, miraculously preserved in the permafrost of burial mounds, there are universally weak sections. In these monographs, the tools of labor of ancient pastoralists are clearly insufficiently covered or not covered at all. This is not because the authors did not master the
Underwater Treasures At the ancient settlement of Sarybulun, a fairly solid collection of material culture items has been gathered over three new seasons, which in some way provide insight into the lives of its inhabitants, their occupations, and daily life. All items had been underwater for a long time and were covered with lime deposits. Sometimes these deposits form thick layers that obscure the very shape of the object. They are so firmly "cemented" to the ancient artifacts that
Bronze Items from the Bottom of Lake Issyk-Kul (VII—V centuries) Settlement at the Bottom of the Bay The well-known local historian and teacher at secondary school No. 31 in Bishkek, M.K. Sinusov, has repeatedly told Kyrgyz archaeologists, including us, that in the area of the Dry Ridge in the Tyup Bay of Lake Issyk-Kul, many shards of clay vessels and grain grinders are found on the shallows. According to his hypothesis, the advancing waves of the lake once destroyed a large burial ground,
World Practice in the Study of Marine Depths The study of underwater cities is an extremely difficult, often dangerous, and costly endeavor, and the scientific results obtained here are incomparably lower than those from excavations of settlements on land. Therefore, archaeologists very rarely undertake underwater work. In world practice of underwater archaeological research, preference is rightly given to the study of sunken ships. For example, many valuable items have been raised from
Recent Research Extensive research work on Issyk-Kul in the 1920s was conducted by a native of Kyrgyzstan, the subsequently well-known orientalist P. P. Ivanov. He was the first to approach the study of the underwater mysteries of Issyk-Kul with expertise and professionalism. After surveying the coastal waters of the lake by boat, P. P. Ivanov registered underwater ruins of settlements in the areas of Chon-Koysu, the Tyup Bay, and Koy-Sary. He attributed them to a single time period, believing
Ruins at the bottom of Lake Issyk-Kul Attention remains focused on the underwater ruins of Issyk-Kul However, interest in the underwater mysteries of Issyk-Kul has not disappeared. In 1886, geologist I. V. Mushketov presented a report titled "Motives and Objectives of Research on Khan-Tengri" to the Physical Geography Section of the Russian Geographical Society—regarding the organization of a special expedition to the Khan-Tengri mountain system in the Tian Shan. Although the
The Unfulfilled Dreams of Governor Kaufman The Turkestan Governor-General K. P. von Kaufman did not forget the letters he received from Pyotr Petrovich Semenov, who, after several years following his journey to Issyk-Kul, had become a recognized scholar and effectively the head of the Russian Geographical Society. P. P. Semenov pointed out the underwater finds of the Kyrgyz at Issyk-Kul, noting their undeniable scientific value and urging the search for antiquities to be concentrated in a
Semenov-Tian-Shansky Searches for Chigu Just as Mecca eternally beckons Muslims, Chigu attracted almost all researchers of the Preissykul region. The scientific quest for the real or mythical Chigu has a clearly defined starting date. On a warm evening of June 14, 1857, a young Russian scientist-traveler, arriving from distant St. Petersburg to Issyk-Kul in search of the origins of the Tian Shan mountains, stood on the cape of Kara-Bulun, at the watershed of the rivers Tyup and Dzhergalan,
The Little-Known "Columbus of Asia" The name Zhang Qian is almost unknown to the general public. There is little written about him. Yet he deserves to be placed alongside the greatest explorers, such as Columbus, Magellan, and Vasco da Gama. He was the first to connect the trade arteries of China with those of the West. As a result, a new intercontinental route emerged — the Silk Road. This route, which operated for one and a half thousand years, played a huge role in bringing the
And ahead lies a journey to fairy-tale lands... The question of the second embassy to the West, now concerning the Usuns, has been resolved. At its head is Zhang Qian. Sima Qian writes: “The Son of Heaven appointed him as the Xiongnu magistrate, with 300 soldiers each having two horses and up to 10,000 heads of cattle and sheep... and subordinated to him many assistants with banners — to send them as envoys to various territories along the route.” Liu Shu also participated in the expedition —
The Nomads Retreat The third year of exile was coming to an end. Zhang Qian began to receive letters, written in the clumsy hand of a teenager. His son wrote that he was diligently studying literacy and was already good at holding a brush and a wooden stylus — a pen... In the remote province, rumors reached him about new and new victories of Chinese arms. In 121 BC, the Huns were defeated by Huo Qubing. In 119 BC, they suffered a crushing defeat at the hands of Li Guangli. The number of
Hypothesis—1985 At the bottom of the Tyup Bay of Issyk-Kul during the field season of 1985, we discovered a large settlement. The findings indicated that it existed sometime in the first millennium BC. However, all of this needed to be proven through new excavations and scientific research. We based our work on one appealing hypothesis: the discovery of the city of Chigu—the capital of the nomads in the 2nd century BC. This needed to be confirmed or disproved through field (or rather,
The Downfall of Zhang Qian After a long and mature discussion in the imperial council, it was concluded that the embassy should be postponed until a corridor to the west was established. The primary task became the war with the Huns. Allies were never found, and they had to rely on their own strength.
The Return of Zhang Qian Home On a bright September afternoon, four travelers were riding donkeys on the road to Chang'an: two men, a woman, and a boy about nine or ten years old. Each had a bag of oats on one side of the saddle and a basket for provisions on the other. A long leather bundle protruded from the back of one of the men: a spear—maybe a spear, a bow—maybe a bow... The walls of Chang'an soon came into view. The road was becoming busier with carts and pedestrians.
The Fergana Miracle Dawan of that time (Fergana, including the south of Kyrgyzstan) represented a strong state formation, a union of "oasis-cities" led by a local dynasty. The Chinese were accustomed to the idea that real (not felt) buildings, canals, and developed agriculture existed only in their homeland, while neighboring lands languished in barbaric ignorance. Dawan pleasantly surprised them. No, it didn’t just surprise them — it shocked them! They discovered well-tended fields
The Opening of the Great Silk Road “The world is small” — sounds like a truism today. But three thousand years ago, these words would have seemed blasphemous. The Greeks, Egyptians, Phoenicians, Medes, and Sogdians have been connected by cultural and economic interests since ancient times. They traded. And how they traded! Large trading centers, trade routes, trading fleets, and caravans emerged; crafts developed, money appeared, along with banks, moneylenders, and currency exchangers...
How long will the regression of the "pearl of Ala-Tuu" last? The famous aphorism "Plato is my friend, but truth is a greater friend" was uttered by Aristotle after reading Plato's dialogues "Timaeus" and "Critias," in which one of the greatest catastrophes in human history—the demise of Atlantis in the ocean depths—is narrated as a credible fact. Aristotle did not believe that such a thing could happen. Debates about whether Atlantis—a cultured and
