摘要: TumanqalaTumanqala, or Duman Kala, is situated 12km north east of Biruniy on an elevation on the Aq Qum Sands. It can be reached from the road that leaves the A380 half way between To'rtku'l and Biruniy and runs north towards Bostan.The western enclosure

Tuman qala

Tuman qala, or Duman Kala, is situated 12km north east of Biruniy on an elevation on the Aq Qum Sands. It can be reached from the road that leaves the A380 half way between To'rtku'l and Biruniy and runs north towards Bostan.

The western enclosure and eastern citadel of Tuman qala.

Plan of Duman Kala (Tuman qala) from Sergey Tolstov's "Ancient Khorezm", Moscow, 1948.

Tuman qala was first investigated by Sergey Tolstov in 1940. It has an unusual shape and is composed of three adjacent sections - a square-shaped western enclosure with corner towers, measuring about 150 by 170 metres; a smaller square-shaped citadel on the eastern side roughly 100 metres in size; and an irregular four-sided northern enclosure, the remains of which can no longer be seen. The western citadel is the best-preserved section, especially along its northern side, but only small sections of the eastern enclosure remain. A new road has been built through the middle of the northern enclosure.