Culture
Archaeologists have discovered an inscription, which may explain the content of the wall painting, found during excavations of the temple of the ancient city- Kazakly-yatkan, reports news agency UzbekistanToday.
This archeological monument in Beruniy district of Karakalpakstan kept untouched for a long time. Silence of centuries was broken in 2004 with the beginning of work of the Karakalpakstan-Australian archeology expedition. During the first season of works of archeologists of the Karakalpakstan affiliate of the Academy of Sciences of Uzbekistan and the Sydney University there was announced about discovering of unique wall paintings and ancient inscriptions. Restorers joined the specialists engaged in the field works to preserve unique pieces of the ancient art and writing.
Opened fragments of the painting were transferred to the restoration lab in Nukus. They were pasted on a special panel and turned into the museum exhibits. Two unique portraits restored are now on display at the exposition at the Karakalpakstan Research Institute of Liberal Arts.
The art pieces have already exhibited at the Karakalpakstan Savitsky State Museum of Arts, and in the nearest future put on display for the wider population.
Restorers continue working in the site. One fragment has recently been cleared out – a mysterious figure – image of a man with crown on his head in the form of rays and arrows, cloak on shoulders, and cloth decorated with patterns in the forms of birds with human heads. The man on the picture also has a patterned sword on the belt.
The work of archeologists is in full swing as well. They went successful in opening another 12 meters of the wall with inscriptions. The painting also depicts people with crowns. One of the crowns supposedly has the ornament in the form of three big flowers. There are also three portraits of people with crowns of European style. Yet the most interesting is that for the first time within these excavations there was discovered lots of inscriptions in Aramaic alphabet of old Khorezmian language.
The temple of Kazakly-yatkan settlement dates back to the 3rd-2nd centuries BC. Some of portraits discovered during the excavations, according to experts, depict Khorezmian rulers of earlier unknown dynasties, and it is presumed that the settlement was one of the first capitals of the ancient Khorezmian state, and the temple – rulers’ sanctuary.