Archaeological research of Paleometal Age sites in the Karatau Ridge in 2020–2022
Baitanayev B. Goryachev A. Ergeshbaev A. Egorova T. Baitanayeva A. Shayakhmetov A.
31 March 2025Margulan Institute of Archaeology
Kazakhstan Archeology
2025#27Issue 1185 - 213 pp.
Analysis of data on the development of the Karatau region during the Bronze Age has revealed the main directions of its economic and cultural development, where the ancient population of the foothill plains engaged in irrigation-based agriculture and crafts, while the inhabitants of the mountainous zone practiced livestock breeding and metallurgical production. Based on the systematization of new research materials from the Paleometal period sites in the foothill and mountainous zones of the Karatau Ridge, micro-regions have been identified. These include complexes of ancient settlements, burial grounds, and petroglyphs in the area of Lake Biylikol, the valleys of the Ters, Usiktas, and Tautary rivers, the Turkestan oasis, and among the complexes of Arpauzen and Koibagar. Maps of Bronze Age archaeological sites have been compiled. The burial grounds of the Late Andronovo period are represented by the local Tautary variant of burial traditions. Ceramic materials characteristic of the Karzhantau type of the Late and Final Bronze Age of the Karatau region have been identified at most of the newly discovered settlements. Specialized research in the central part of the Boraldai Gorge has revealed a complex of archaeological sites associated with a group of ancient and medieval settlements and caves. The burial and ritual structures of the Early Iron Age at the Boraldai-I and II burial grounds have been attributed to the Kultobe type of sites. Excavations of the most striking monument of the microdistrict – Tuttybulak-I Cave, have for the first time established its full period of use, ranging from the Upper Paleolithic to the 18th century. In its early stage, the site served as a hunter-gatherer camp, while from the later stages of the Early Iron Age through the Middle Ages and into the Modern Era, it functioned as a metallurgical workshop.
archaeology , Boraldai , Bronze Age , burial ground , complex , Karatau , petroglyphs , settlement , topography , Tuttybulak-I cave
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Margulan Institute of Archaeology, Almaty, Kazakhstan
Auezov South Kazakhstan University, Shymkent, Kazakhstan
Margulan Institute of Archaeology
Auezov South Kazakhstan University
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