English for history students. Karlygash Aisultanova
«Sakh pyramids» could not have been erected over the burial site of a humble member of society. They were meant only for a tight circle of people. A small number of large burial mounds and thousands of small mounds are, undoubtedly, the evidence of society cleavage into two groups the privileged minority and the nonprivileged majority. It is worth mentioning that the foundation for this social inequality was laid in the late Bronze Age, at the end of the second half of the second millennium B.C.
A notable gradation of the mound parameters and the amount of labour, required for their construction, is the proof of social hierarchy in the Sakh society. The complex of findings in the Issyk burial mound gave additional and important materials that throw light on the social structure of the Sakhs of Semirechye. Undoubtedly, the opulence and splendour of the Issyk warrior's golden attire was meant not to only have a visual effect, but had a socia leaning too.
The key function of clothes was to aggrandize the royalty and raise it to the level of a sunlike deity. As per religious beliefs of many tribes, a horse was a symbol of the Sun, the sun deity. The headdress of the Issyk warrior features an image of a horse with goat horns, which, apparently, symbolized the merging of images of the sun deity and tribal totem. The findings in the mounds of the Pazyryk culture in Altai have similar meaning.
There is no doubt that the Issyk horses had a double semantic meaning, being a symbol of the sun deity and a royal sign. On the whole, the prince of Issyk with his bright headpiece and magnificent attire represented the real Ahura Mazda or Mitra – his personality personified the earthly and heavenly lord, the tsar and high priest.The ideological content of the animal style art was a kind of religious substantiation of the Sakh nationhood. The art itself had one goal – to be the state religion.
The importance of the Issyk findings grows, as one more finding was made – a silver bowl with an inscription. The written records of any society indicate that there is a high level of socio-economic organization and genesis of the state. However, the Scythians did not leave behind any written language. There are no traces of written records among thousands and thousands of archeological findings in the Scythian burial mounds.
An assumption was made that the Scythian society had not developed any written language, since their level of development let them do without it. And now, the Sakhs, so unjustly treated by the history, and who for a long time had been at the periphery of the Scythian culture, give us hope that this opinion is not so unshakeable.
Essential Vocabulary
Tasks:
1. Read the text «Golden Man». Write and memorize unknown words and word combinations.
2. Translate the text into Russian.
Answer the following questions:
1. When did the Kazakh archeologists begin excavation of a huge burial mound?
2. Under whose supervision were these excavations carried out?
3. Who was found in the burial Issyk?
4. What was the head of Golden Man clad in?
5. How did archaeologists realize that this young man had belonged to the nobility?
6. Is it true that many tribes believed the horse was a symbol of the sun?
7. What can you say about a silver bowl with an inscription?
ARCHAEOLOGICAL COLLECTION
Archaeological Collection of the RK concentrates in its collection materials on ancient and medieval history. Currently, the fund holds about 29 thousand artifacts.
Stone Age Paleolithic (about 2.7 million years – 10 thousand BC).
The archaeological collection includes artifacts of the ancient sites of human being of Caspian and Karatau ridge – a set of archaic stone tools – chopping, cut, cores, flakes, scrapers, showing the process of development and improvement of techniques for processing stone products: sandy, levallua, radial. The Copper Age (III early II millennium BC) cupper-stone century, the era of the discovery of the first metal and the manufacture of copper tools. This period is represented in the museum's unique collection of Botai settlement artifacts, northern Kazakhstan. Residents of the settlement were engaged in hunting for wild horses and first domesticated the horse. The collection contains the bones of animals, hunting tools: bolas (projectiles for hunting), stone dart tips, arrows, axes; gun from the shoulder bones of animals: crescent-shaped softer, scrapers with serrated edge for processing animal skins, punches, ceramic vessels.
Bronze Age (XIX-IX cc. BC).
During this period a person has mastered the technology for obtaining of bronze – an alloy of copper and tin or arsenic. Bright culture of this time called as Andronov (XVIII-XII centuries BC). Carriers of Andronov culture settled in villages along the shores of Steppe Rivers, engaged in cattle breeding, agriculture, metallurgy, bronze and ceramic production. Collection of the Bronze Age collected on archaeological expeditions and donations are about 2 thousand artifacts from the central, eastern, western, southern and south-eastern regions of Kazakhstan. Collection. Bone artifacts from Myrzhyk settlement made with great skill and fine ornament – a bone plates, buttons, tubes and figured psalias are of particular interest. From casual finds – treasure of bronze items from Taldy-Kurgan region, Keiton village and others.
The culture of the early nomads
Saka era (VIII c. BC – III c. AD) is characterized by the opening and the beginning of the widespread use of iron. At that time, the territory of Kazakhstan was inhabited by tribes of Saks and Sauromats. The basis of the social economy was nomadic and semi-nomadic pastoralism. Saka were united into tribal unions, which were headed by leaders who combine secular and religious functions. It was the time of origin of the state and the appearance of writing. An iconic symbol of the ideology of Saka became the Scythian-Siberian «animal» style, realistic on execution and mythological content. Material and spiritual culture decorated in this tradition. Archaeological Collection of early nomads has approximately 10 thousand artifacts. Early Iron Age is represented by materials from different regions of the Republic of Kazakhstan, giving extensive information on Saks, Wusuns, Kangui, Huns and Sarmatians based on the territory of Kazakhstan from the VIII century BC that occupy a special place in the history of political and cultural life of Kazakhstan. There are Zhalauly treasure (VIII-VII centuries BC), found by chance in the Zhalauly village, Kegen (now Raiymbek) district, Almaty region, which contained gold items. The largest of the ornaments – pectoral – in the crescent form. Among the accidental finds of Zhetysu most valuable is a collection of copper cauldrons and bronze censers.
Culture of Kangui of the South Kazakhstan is presented by artifacts from excavations of burial grounds and settlements in the Aris valley IV c. BC-IV c. AD. The collection includes the original ceramic with a characteristic set of forms and decorations, small plastic ornaments, arms, horse attribution, zoomorphic and anthropomorphic figures, household items and cult, unique artifacts – paleographic material and much more. The letter is made on the surface of ceramic bricks, tables and identified as alphabetic-syllabic, on the Aramaic basis and recalls early Sogdian.
Middle Ages
Middle Ages (VI – first half of the XV century). The archeology fund accumulated rich, various archaeological materials of the Middle Ages, making it possible to illustrate not only the main stages in the development of ethnic and socio-political history and culture of Kazakhstan as an important integral region of the Eurasian continent, but also to talk about the origin, formation and development of various forms of state in the region from Wusun state (Wusun-go), the first Turkic khaganates – before the Kazakh khanate (VI-XV centuries). Culture of ancient Turkic tribes of Kazakhstan VI-VIII centuries by the monuments of the cult of monumental sculpture, weapons, and items of jewelry, saddle and monuments of runic writing are represented.
Urban Culture IX-XII centuries materials of South Kazakhstan, Semirechensk archaeological expeditions, including artifacts from ancient settlements Aktobe, Taraz, Otrar oasis, Talgar are presented. There are glazed bowls with epigraphic, floral and geometric motifs, dastarkhan (table), hums, humchi, and water pipes – kuburs. Great importance for the development