Mausoleums of Natkala. In the Chatkal Valley, on the outskirts of the district center Yangibazar, there are two gumbezes. Whose tombstones they are and when they were built is no longer remembered by anyone; however, the legend attributes them to the mythical prophet Idris Paygambaru. A Kyrgyz archaeologist who previously worked here, Kibir, included photographs of these mausoleums in his report, dating them to the 18th century, but could not provide any further information about these gumbezes.
What is known about them today? There are two. Both are made in the traditional Muslim style, with domes and oval columns made of burnt brick. One, the smaller one, is undoubtedly older. It is possible that it dates back to the 18th century. The second is significantly younger, possibly from the 19th century. The mausoleums were mentioned in 1903 by a correspondent of the newspaper "Turkestanskie Vedomosti," Alibi: "The most sacred place of Idris Paygambaru (the gumbez) is located higher, above Yangibazar, on a high ridge of the Chatkal range. Here is not the grave of the prophet, but a 'kadamzhai,' i.e., a place where the prophet Idris passed. On the hill, a mausoleum has been built, which contains a stone with an inscription in unknown writing. Next to the old mausoleum, a new one is being erected, funded by a respected sheikh."
Later, local residents began to attribute the new mausoleum to Idris himself, and the smaller, older one to his wife Batma-Zura. Some believe that both mausoleums are connected to the name of Idris. According to stories, the new mausoleum is a renovated old one, restored at the end of the last century by the wealthy Togolok-Bai from Chatkal. The mentioned stone is a tombstone epitaph written in Arabic script. This epitaph presumably dates back to the year 1191 of the Hijra, i.e., 1777. If this is indeed the case, then we have a monument from the 18th century, relating to the time of the Kokand colonization of Kyrgyzstan.
