Place:Akchakhan-Kala
 A mural from Akchakhan-Kala | |
  Shown within West and Central Asia  Akchakhan-Kala (Uzbekistan) | |
| Alternative name | Akchakhan-Kala |
|---|---|
| Location | Karakalpakstan, Uzbekistan |
| Coordinates | [ ⚑ ] : 41°49′41.17″N 60°43′8.67″E / 41.8281028°N 60.719075°E[1] |
| Type | Settlement |
| History | |
| Periods | Parthian, Sasanian |
| Site notes | |
| Condition | Ruined |
Akchakhan-Kala, or Akcha-khan Kala, also named after the locality Kazakly-Yatkan/ Kazakl'i-Yatkan, in modern Karakalpakstan, Uzbekistan, was an ancient fortress in Chorasmia built in the 4th/ 3rd century BCE and occupied until it was despoiled in the 2nd century CE.[2][3] It is part of the "Fifty fortresses oasis" in modern-day Uzbekistan.[4] The abandonment of Akchakhan-Kala was apparently followed by the establishment of the new capital of Toprak-Kala, 14 km to the northeast.[5]
Excavations
Akcha-khan Kala has been the object of numerous excavations, still ongoing. A ceremonial complex with a hypostyle hall was discovered.[5]
Corner of upper enclosure of Kazakl'i-yatkan
Kazakl'i-yatkan
Column base at Kazakl'i-yatkan
Mud brick floor at Kazakl'i-yatkan
Paintings
Many decorations have been found, belonging to the period from the 1st century BCE to the 2nd century CE: a large quantity of frescoes, unbaked-clay modelled sculptures including fragments of a Ketos in Hellenistic style, and a Zoroastrian fire altar with paintings of colossal Avestan gods.[5] Parthian artistic influences have also been described.[6]
Akchakhan-Kala mural
Akchakhan-Kala mural
Akchakhan-Kala mural
Location of the Akchakhan-Kala fortress in the Chorasmian oasis, in relation to other main fortresses
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References
- ↑ Dodson, John R (2015). "The nature of fluctuating lakes in the southern Amu-dar'ya delta". Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 437: 63. doi:10.1016/j.palaeo.2015.06.026. Bibcode: 2015PPP...437...63D. https://www.researchgate.net/figure/Map-of-Amu-darya-delta-showing-location-of-Akchakhan-kala_fig3_282600448.
- ↑ KIDD, F.; CLEARY, M. NEGUS; YAGODIN, V. N.; BETTS, A.; BRITE, E. BAKER (2004). "Ancient Chorasmian Mural Art". Bulletin of the Asia Institute 18: 69–95. ISSN 0890-4464. https://www.jstor.org/stable/24049142.
- ↑ Minardi, Michele. Columned Halls in Ancient Chorasmia. https://www.researchgate.net/figure/Akchakhan-kala-the-main-hypostyle-hall-in-the-Central-Building-viewed-from-the-north_fig1_319153387.
- ↑ Adrianov, Boris V.; Mantellini, Simone (31 December 2013) (in en). Ancient Irrigation Systems of the Aral Sea Area: Ancient Irrigation Systems of the Aral Sea Area. Oxbow Books, Limited. p. 38. ISBN 978-1-78297-167-2. https://books.google.com/books?id=is0nDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA38.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Minardi, Michele (January 2020). "The Ancient Chorasmian Unbaked-clay Modelled Sculptures: Hellenistic Cultural 'Impacts' on an Eastern Iranian Polity" (in en). Religion, Society, Trade and Kingship. Art and Archaeology in South Asia Along the Silk Road 5500 BCE-5th Century CE (South Asian Archaeology and Art 2016, Volume 1): 195–205. https://www.academia.edu/42306214.
- ↑ Kidd, Fiona J. (2011). "Complex Connections : Figurative Art from Akchakhan-Kala and the Problematic Question of Relations between Khorezm and Parthia". Topoi. Orient-Occident 17 (1): 229–276. doi:10.3406/topoi.2011.2406. https://www.persee.fr/doc/topoi_1161-9473_2011_num_17_1_2406.
External links
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