Golden Horde era mausoleum found in North Kazakhstan

An archaeological expedition to the Ualikhanov District of the North Kazakhstan Region, organised by the Margulan Centre of Pavlodar State Pedagogical University, has discovered the ruins of a mausoleum belonging to an elite member of the ruling Genghisid Jochi Khan dynasty dating back to the middle of the second half of the 14th century.

Credit: Ilya Pitalev/RIA Novosti

According to the head of the archaeological expedition Timur Smagulov, "the tomb was 20 metres high and contained the skeleton of a man from the time of the Golden Horde."

"Discovered fragments of the dome with ornaments made of blue glaze show that there were professional architects, builders and artisans in the area 500-600 years ago", Smagulov said.

Credit: Fontanka

"Certainly, the presence of the mausoleum indicates the existence of a previously unknown cultural, political and sacred centre of the nomadic hordes who inhabited the steppes of North Kazakhstan", he added.

"There are strange and interesting signs etched on several of the decorative blocks. It is possible that some of them are the stamps of the craftsmen who made them, while others may have held a religious significance. We still have to figure out what these secret signs and symbols are. It is possible that they are related to the spread of Islam among the nomads in the fourteenth century,” the archaeologist explained.

Credit: Fontanka

The archaeological exploration of the region also revealed numerous traces of ancient dams and irrigation ditches, as well as the fragments of ceramic wheels that served as water-lifting devices.

"This is clearly evidence of developed agricultural economy and points to the existence of unknown medieval settlements and hill forts in the territory of North Kazakhstan," Smagulov emphasized.

Excavations will continue next year, when Kazakhstan will celebrate the 750th anniversary of the Golden Horde.

Source: Fontanka [trsl. TANN, November 13, 2019]