Previously unseen exhibits in country have been discovered in burials of the Kyzylkoga district of Atyrau region

The "Karabau-2" burial mound, located 10 kilometers north of the village of Karabau in the Kyzylkoga district, has a diameter of 70 meters and a height of three meters. As a result of archaeological work carried out in 2023-2024, nine burials were examined on the mound. As a result, it was established that seven of them had not been plundered. When studying the tombs, it turned out that they were built in the 5th century BC. Various jewelry, objects, weapons and ceramic vessels, as well as human remains, were found in them. According to archaeologists, among the graves there are also collective ones, in which several people are buried. Based on the jewelry, used products and weapons found in the tents, experts gave them the name "royal tents", the Regional Communications Service reports. The results of two years of archaeological work by the Atyrau Regional Museum of History and Local Lore were presented at the exhibition "Gold of the Sarmatians". The exhibition was attended by Deputy Akim of the region Daryn Shamuratov, heads of the regional Department of Culture, Department of Language Development and Historians.

"Until now, scientists considered our region to be the edge of the Sarmatian empire. Judging by the results of our excavations, we can say that the Caspian Lowland, Zhaiyk, the territory near the Zhem River are the center of a huge empire. The total number of artifacts found is about a thousand. Only 100 of them are gold ornaments and jewelry. They are created based on the animalistic style. Images of predators that inhabited the region in that era (leopard, wild boar, tiger, saiga) can be seen on the found items. As part of this research work, two wooden bowls, which had not been found before, were preserved in good condition. They are currently undergoing restoration," Marat Kassenov, head of the archaeological group, said.

A total of three tents were excavated. Each of them contained about 10-15 graves. Archaeologists claim that the Sarmatians, due to their religious affiliation, were buried together with household items and weapons, as well as with the products they used.

The Karakudyk-1 and Karakudyk-2 mounds are located 9.7 kilometers northwest of the village of Karabau. During the study of the mound, silver pictograms (pictures of a saiga, a wolf), jewelry, household items, weapons made of iron and bronze were also discovered.

Two touchstones with a gold handle, never before found in the country, were found in the Karabau-2 mound. Previously, the Sarmatians determined the authenticity and quality of gold with the help of this stone. Currently, such stones are used by those who buy gold. Also, gold stickers on a person's clothes were found in the burial sites. Their weight starts from two grams. The heaviest gold decoration is a bracelet depicting a mountain leopard on both sides. It weighs about 370 grams, said Galamat Bazarbayev, head of the archaeological research department of the Atyrau Regional Museum of History and Local Lore.

20 workers and five museum employees took part in the excavations. Anthropologists from Astana and Almaty were invited. As a result of exploration work in 2005, burial mounds were discovered near the village of Karabau. According to archaeologists, there are currently about 500 Sarmatian tents in the Atyrau region.