Akchakhan-Kala

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]

Akchakhan-Kala

A mural from Akchakhan-Kala
Shown within West and Central Asia Show map of West and Central Asia Akchakhan-Kala (Uzbekistan) Show map of Uzbekistan
Alternative name	Akchakhan-Kala
Location	Karakalpakstan, Uzbekistan
Coordinates	41°49′41.17″N 60°43′8.67″E[1]
Type	Settlement
History
Periods	Parthian, Sasanian
Site notes
Condition	Ruined

Excavations

Akcha-khan Kala has been the object of numerous excavations, still ongoing. A ceremonial complex with a hypostyle hall was discovered.^[5]

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  Corner of upper enclosure of Kazakl'i-yatkan
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  Kazakl'i-yatkan
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  Column base at Kazakl'i-yatkan
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  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]

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  Akchakhan-Kala mural
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  Akchakhan-Kala mural
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  Akchakhan-Kala mural
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  Location of the Akchakhan-Kala fortress in the Chorasmian oasis, in relation to other main fortresses

References

1. Dodson, John R (2015). "The nature of fluctuating lakes in the southern Amu-dar'ya delta". Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology. 437: 63. Bibcode:2015PPP...437...63D. doi:10.1016/j.palaeo.2015.06.026.
2. 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. JSTOR 24049142.
3. Minardi, Michele. "Columned Halls in Ancient Chorasmia". {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
4. Adrianov, Boris V.; Mantellini, Simone (31 December 2013). 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.
5. Minardi, Michele (January 2020). "The Ancient Chorasmian Unbaked-clay Modelled Sculptures: Hellenistic Cultural 'Impacts' on an Eastern Iranian Polity". 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.
6. 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.

External links

• Excavations of Kazakl'i-yatkan (Akchakhan-Kala)