The Barrows (or

Tumuli A tumulus (plural tumuli) is a mound of earth and stones raised over a grave or graves. Tumuli are also known as barrows, burial mounds or ''kurgans'', and may be found throughout much of the world. A cairn, which is a mound of stones built ...

) of Tasmola are dispersed throughout central

Kazakhstan Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country located mainly in Central Asia and partly in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia to the north and west, China to the east, Kyrgyzstan to the southeast, Uzbeki ...

in the

Karaganda Karaganda or Qaraghandy ( kk, Қарағанды/Qarağandy, ; russian: Караганда, ) is the capital of Karaganda Region in the Republic of Kazakhstan. It is the fourth most populous city in Kazakhstan, behind Almaty (Alma-Ata), Astan ...

Akmola Astana, previously known as Akmolinsk, Tselinograd, Akmola, and most recently Nur-Sultan, is the capital city of Kazakhstan. The city lies on the banks of the Ishim River in the north-central part of Kazakhstan, within the Akmola Region, thou ...

, and

Pavlodar Pavlodar ( ; ) is a city in northeastern Kazakhstan and the capital of Pavlodar Region. It is located 450 km northeast of the national capital Astana and 405 km southeast of the Russian city of Omsk along the Irtysh River. , the cit ...

regions.

Site description

Originating in the

Saka The Saka ( Old Persian: ; Kharoṣṭhī: ; Ancient Egyptian: , ; , old , mod. , ), Shaka (Sanskrit ( Brāhmī): , , ; Sanskrit (Devanāgarī): , ), or Sacae (Ancient Greek: ; Latin: ) were a group of nomadic Iranian peoples who hist ...

period (7th to 3rd Centuries BC), the various barrows of the Tasmola culture can be found throughout the valleys of central

. The sites are characterized by stone complexes with up to four stone barrows,

menhirs A menhir (from Brittonic languages: ''maen'' or ''men'', "stone" and ''hir'' or ''hîr'', "long"), standing stone, orthostat, or lith is a large human-made upright stone, typically dating from the European middle Bronze Age. They can be foun ...

(single or in groups), and two curved ranges that can each stretch 50 to 200 m long (unique to Tasmola structures).Barrows with stone ranges of the Tasmola culture - UNESCO World Heritage Centre
/ref> The ranges appear to line up in accordance to equinoctial, solstitial or midsummer sunrise points. Archaeological finds in the barrows themselves can include pottery, horse skeletons, and fire pit remains. Over 300 of such barrows have been identified in Kazakhstan, of which only a small number have been archaeologically excavated.

World Heritage Status

This site was added to the

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...

World Heritage A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for ...

Tentative List on September 24, 1998 in the Mixed (Cultural + Natural) category. (''see''

List of World Heritage Sites in Kazakhstan The UNESCO, United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) designates World Heritage Sites of outstanding universal value to cultural heritage, cultural or natural heritage which have been nominated by countries which ...

)

Notes

References

Barrows with stone ranges of the Tasmola culture - UNESCO World Heritage Centre
Retrieved 2009-03-02. {{DEFAULTSORT:Barrows Of Tasmola World Heritage Sites in Kazakhstan World Heritage Tentative List Karaganda Region Akmola Region Iranian archaeological sites Pavlodar Region Saka