The Site of Barskoon (Kyrgyzstan)

Barskoon

https://ru.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D0%91%D0%B0%D1%80%D1%81%D0%BA%D0%BE%D0%BE%D0%BD_(%D1%83%D1%89%D0%B5%D0%BB%D1%8C%D0%B5)

Barskon, Barskoon or Barskaun, ancient Barsgan, Barskhan or Barsqan (Russian: Барскон; Kyrgyz: Барскоон; Persian: بارسغان) is a small settlement on the southern shore of Lake Issyk Kul in the Issyk Kul Province of Kyrgyzstan. It is on the A363 highway between Bokonbaevskoe to the west and Kyzyl-Suu to the east.

The name

According to his testament Pand nāma, Saboktagin was from the tribe (or place) of Barskhan and according to C. E. Bosworth's summary from preface of the book, the tribe was "so named because in ancient times, one of the rulers of Persia had settled in Turkestan and become a ruler there. He was called Pārsi-khwān that is, one who is literate in Persian, and this became contracted to Barskhan."

History

Ancient caravan ways dispersed from here, ancient Barsqan, to the East and South, to China and India, the ruins of a caravanserai are quite evidences of those times. The 11th century scholar Mahmud al-Kashgari (also known as Barskhani) was a native of this area. He is best known as the author of the first Turkic languages comparative dictionary which he wrote whilst living in Baghdad in 1072-4. His map of the then known world has Barskon at the centre of the world. His tomb is South of Kashgar - on the road to Pakistan. The modern town began as a military post.

Site of Barskoon 2 is located in the heart of gorge, on the right terrace above the floodplain. It has square form with sides 60 x 60m, oriented to cardinal points. Semicircular towers were traced in the corners and in the centre of southern, western and northern walls; entrance was in the centre of the eastern wall. The site functioned as a fortress protecting entrance and exit from gorge and accordingly, the part of the route going through Barskoon and Bedel passes to the area of Aksuu. Excavations are carried out in the middle of 20^th century; the settlement is dated from the early Middle Ages till XII centuries AD.