Pages: 209-221

In 1885, two Christian medieval cemeteries were opened in the north of present-day Kyrgyzstan, in the Chuy Valley. They were identified from the finds of gravestones with Syrian epitaphs. Soon the epitaphs were translated and published by D. Khvolson and S. Slutsky. Archaeological excavations were carried out on the necropolis of Buranа town, in 1885—1886, but the data from these studies were not published. They are stored in the Archive of the RAS Institute of History of Material Culture, among documents of the Imperial Archaeological Committee.
Data on the excavations in late 19th century on the medieval cemetery near the settlement of Burana are cited and analyzed in this article. Most of the burials were made in pits. The second largest group is the burial in the pits with niches. All the deceased lay stretched on their backs heading west. The burials contained no grave goods, but sometimes they contain personal adornments or wearable crosses.
At the end of the article, the burials from Burana Christian cemetery are compared with the burials from the necropolises of Ak-Beshim, Krasnaya Rechka and Belovodskaya fortresses, also located in the Chuy Valley. By comparing them, we come to conclusion about a break in development of Christianity in the Chuy Valley, and emergence of a new cultural tradition, associated with gravestones with epitaphs, at the beginning of 13th century.

Keywords: Western Tien-Shan, Chui valley, Mongolian time, Burana town, Christian necropolis, types of grave constructions

Information about author:

Valerii Kolchenko. Institute of History, Archaeology and Ethnology of the National Academy of Sciences of Kyrgyz Republic. Chuy Bd., 265a, Bishkek, 720071, Kyrgyzstan.
E-mail: [email protected]