Tamgaly () is a
petroglyph
A petroglyph is an image created by removing part of a rock surface by incising, picking, carving, or abrading, as a form of rock art. Outside North America, scholars often use terms such as "carving", "engraving", or other descriptions ...
site in the
Zhetysu of
Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a landlocked country primarily in Central Asia, with a European Kazakhstan, small portion in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia to the Kazakhstan–Russia border, north and west, China to th ...
.
Tamgaly became a UNESCO
World Heritage Site
World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an treaty, international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural ...
in 2004.
Tamgaly is located 170 km (by road) northwest of
Almaty
Almaty, formerly Alma-Ata, is the List of most populous cities in Kazakhstan, largest city in Kazakhstan, with a population exceeding two million residents within its metropolitan area. Located in the foothills of the Trans-Ili Alatau mountains ...
.
The earliest of the petroglyphs of Tamgaly date from the
Bronze Age
The Bronze Age () was a historical period characterised principally by the use of bronze tools and the development of complex urban societies, as well as the adoption of writing in some areas. The Bronze Age is the middle principal period of ...
(about 3,000 years ago), when the area was populated by the precursors to the
Saka
The Saka, Old Chinese, old , Pinyin, mod. , ), Shaka (Sanskrit (Brāhmī): , , ; Sanskrit (Devanāgarī): , ), or Sacae (Ancient Greek: ; Latin: were a group of nomadic Iranian peoples, Eastern Iranian peoples who lived in the Eurasian ...
/
Scythian
The Scythians ( or ) or Scyths (, but note Scytho- () in composition) and sometimes also referred to as the Pontic Scythians, were an ancient Eastern Iranian equestrian nomadic people who had migrated during the 9th to 8th centuries BC fr ...
people, and the most recent from the 18th or 19th century.
Description
There are approximately 5,000 petroglyphs at Tamgaly distributed among 48 sites. Five of the most important sites, designated I, II, III, IV, and V, contain approximately 3,000 of the glyphs. These five sites are concentrated in the small Tamgaly canyon. Another 22 sites of secondary importance contain from 50 to 100 representations each. The remaining sites contain from 1 to 50 figures each and are widely distributed in area.
The Tamgaly petroglyphs represent work of four different epochs.
Middle Bronze Age
The Bronze Age () was a historical period characterised principally by the use of bronze tools and the development of complex urban societies, as well as the adoption of writing in some areas. The Bronze Age is the middle principal period of ...
glyphs have the greatest aesthetic and cultural value. Image sizes average around 25 to 30 cm with exceptional images reaching 0.7 to 1.0 meters in size. They were developed primarily by picking with an engraving depth of 3 to 5 mm. They tend to have a naturalistic allure with the range of images including anthropomorphic, zoomorphic, and syncretic subjects. Examples include solar deities (sun-heads), disguised personages, men with clubs, archers with wolf masks, worshippers, armed warriors, animal and human sacrifices, erotic scenes, birthing women, chariots, bulls, asses, horses, camels, boars, wolves, deer, etc. Some of the animalistic images represent species that are extinct today.
Late Bronze Age
The Bronze Age () was a historical period characterised principally by the use of bronze tools and the development of complex urban societies, as well as the adoption of writing in some areas. The Bronze Age is the middle principal period of ...
and transitional period glyphs have less variety and are less technically rendered. They are picked to a depth of one to two millimeters. Average size is less than 15 cm. Complex subjects are rare. Horses, bulls, and wild animals remain but with more scenes of pastoral life added.
Early Iron Age
The Iron Age () is the final epoch of the three historical Metal Ages, after the Chalcolithic and Bronze Age. It has also been considered as the final age of the three-age division starting with prehistory (before recorded history) and progr ...
glyphs are the most quantitatively numerous at Tamgaly. These examples are not as homogenous in style, quality, or subject as those from the earlier periods. They were created by a wider variety of peoples and tribes. The hunt of wild animals and chase of deer and goats by predators are still common.
Middle Ages
In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire and ...
and modern time petroglyphs are fewer in number with only about 300 images. Scenes include dueling warriors. Hunting scenes tend to have more emphasis on the hunter rather than the prey. More emphasis is placed on banners, weapons, and horse equipment. Figures are more superficially engraved and many are made as additions to earlier glyphs. Locations of the engravings are less prominent.
The name ''Tamgaly'' in
Kazakh and other Turkic languages means "painted or marked place".
See also
*
List of World Heritage Sites in Kazakhstan
Gallery
Image:Tamgaly Petroglyph Horse.jpg, Ancient stone carvings (petroglyphs) found in a small ravine at Tamgaly
Image:Tamgaly Ravine Panorama.JPG, Looking across the small ravine that contains the petroglyphs
Image:Tamgaly Dancers.JPG, Petroglyphs of ancient tribal dance and animals
Image:Tamgaly Sacred Site.JPG, The largest group of petroglyphs in a sacred site
File:Petroglyphs in Tamgaly, Kazakhstan 03.jpg, Petroglyphs in Tamgaly, Unesco World Heritage Site, Kazakhstan
File:Petroglyphs in Tamgaly, Kazakhstan 02.jpg, Petroglyphs in Tamgaly, Unesco World Heritage Site, Kazakhstan
File:Petroglyphs within the Archaeological Landscape of Tamgaly-115301.jpg, Petroglyphs in Tamgaly
File:Petroglyphs within the Archaeological Landscape of Tamgaly-115299.jpg, view of landscape Tamgaly
References
External links
"Petroglyphs within the Archaeological Landscape of Tamgaly" UNESCO ccess to this URL no longer possible"Semirechye Petroglifleri" in Turkish, from WebArchive;
Rock art in Asia
World Heritage Sites in Kazakhstan
Buildings and structures in Almaty Region
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