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 flourishing island state of antiquity—existed or not continue to this day. Supporters of its reality seek evidence, while opponents skeptically refute them.
The literature on Atlantis comprises over 25,000 volumes. This includes not only scientific works but also artistic, science fiction, and poetic pieces. It is known that supporters of Plato included A. Conan Doyle, V. Ya. Bryusov, A. K. Balmont, A. N. Tolstoy, A. V. Belyaev, P. Benoit, X. Verdaguer, and other famous writers and poets. Many geologists also support the hypothesis of Atlantis's reality. Among domestic scholars, this opinion is shared by Academician V. A. Obruchev. They are convinced that a terrible catastrophe struck one fateful night.
Atlantis, the Atlanteans, and their greatest civilization perished due to an earthquake, a flood, or a fallen celestial body. According to Plato, this happened about 13,000 years ago.
Unfortunately, humanity has experienced and continues to endure a vast number of catastrophes throughout its history. The global flood, dramatically described in the Bible and whose reality has been brilliantly proven by English scientist L. Woolley, the destruction of Pompeii, and the recent Chernobyl explosion are phenomena of the same order. These are catastrophes, i.e., sudden disasters that lead to severe ecological and demographic consequences. Some of them are caused by natural forces, while others are anthropogenic, resulting from human actions that thoughtlessly and carelessly conquer nature.
Nowadays, there is a sharp reduction in the surface area of Lake Issyk-Kul. The lake is receding from its shores. It is going, going... This is also a catastrophe that affects the ecological situation in the region and raises justified concerns. We still do not know the true reasons for the regression of the "pearl of Ala-Tuu." Some assert that the lake's plight is due to humans having diverted almost all the rivers that feed it for the irrigation of gardens and fields. They propose to help Issyk-Kul by redirecting the waters of the Sary-Jaz and Kegen rivers into it, which is just more of the same "transformation of nature" that has already doomed the Aral Sea. There are scientists who claim that the lake's level is related to tectonic processes and depends not on human "malice" but on frequent earthquakes in the region. Others are convinced that nothing terrible is happening at all: the regression of the lake is temporary and subject to strict natural cyclicity, which humans should not interfere with to avoid causing irreparable damage. Following the regression, transgression will occur naturally, and the lake will not only restore its former size but may also overflow, flooding several settlements.
It's getting worse. Another catastrophe! But where is the truth? In our opinion, archaeological research of the bottom of Lake Issyk-Kul, under whose waves settlements, cities, burial mounds, and treasures are hidden, will help us get closer to it... This means that in ancient times, there was land there, people lived, built houses, cultivated fields, worked in workshops, traded, loved and hated, gave birth to children, and died. People of fantastic intellect believe the tales that Issyk-Kul is connected by underground channels to Balkhash, Son-Kul, and the Aral Sea based on the principle of communicating vessels... However, when and how far did the lake recede from its modern shores in ancient times? The remnants of settlements on the lake's bottom will partially answer this question, which should be mapped and dated as accurately as possible based on the remnants of material culture. This requires the most thorough study of the more than four-hundred-kilometer coastal zone of the lake, using the latest methods and techniques whenever possible.
In this book, we will tell the reader about the search for and discovery of the capital of the Usun khans, the ancient trading center on the Great Silk Road—Chiguchene (City of the Red Valley), which, at the turn of the old and new eras, faced a fate very similar to that of Plato's Atlantis. The catastrophic transgression of the lake destroyed the ancient city, ruined its walls, palaces, and houses, expelled the people, and obliterated their labors. Today, only by rising in a helicopter can one discern in the waters of the Tyup Bay the quadrilateral of the formidable walls of the former city.
To be continued...