Sherkala ( kk, Шерқала, Şerqala, شەرقالا) is a mountain in
Mangystau Province, western
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 ...
, close to the town of
Shetpe (Шетпе, ''Şetpe'', شەتپە). It has been described as looking like a
piala,
yurt
A yurt (from the Turkic languages) or ger ( Mongolian) is a portable, round tent covered and insulated with skins or felt and traditionally used as a dwelling by several distinct nomadic groups in the steppes and mountains of Central Asia ...
or
Sphinx
A sphinx ( , grc, σφίγξ , Boeotian: , plural sphinxes or sphinges) is a mythical creature with the head of a human, the body of a lion, and the wings of a falcon.
In Greek tradition, the sphinx has the head of a woman, the haunches of ...
with steep south and east sides and a more eroded northern side.
The mountain is sited between the central and western
Karatau Mountains.
Remains of a
medieval
In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...
caravanserei and fort belonging to
Jochi
Jochi Khan ( Mongolian: mn, Зүчи, ; kk, Жошы, Joşy جوشى; ; crh, Cuçi, Джучи, جوچى; also spelled Juchi; Djochi, and Jöchi c. 1182– February 1227) was a Mongol army commander who was the eldest son of Temüjin (aka G ...
,
Genghis Khan's elder son are on top and at the foot of the mountain.
A tunnel can be used to access the summit.
The ruins of the medieval settlement of
Kyzylkala and of
Mankashlak (Mankyshlak), a
Turkmen town
on the
Silk Road, are also nearby
as is
Torysh (The Valley of Balls).
The mountain was, according to legend, besieged by the
Sheikh of
Khoresm Astsyz after he had conquered Mankashlak. After four months the attackers dug a tunnel sideways through the mountain into the
well
A well is an excavation or structure created in the ground by digging, driving, or drilling to access liquid resources, usually water. The oldest and most common kind of well is a water well, to access groundwater in underground aquifers. The ...
shaft of the town above, cutting off their rope and forcing their surrender.
The name ''Sherkala'' is from
Persian
Persian may refer to:
* People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language
** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples
** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...
شیرقلعه, meaning 'Lion's Castle'.
References
{{reflist
Mountains of Kazakhstan