Дюрбе конца XIV – на­чала XV вв. в Солхате (новые материалы)

Abstract

Research objectives: To present data about a newly discovered architectural monument of the Golden Horde’s Solkhat/Krym. Research materials: As the result of excavations of the medieval settlement of Solkhat in 2018–2019, we have revealed an unknown archaeological object – a türbe (mausoleum) belonging to the Islamic community of the town. The research materials contain architectural measurements and plans, a description and analysis of the burial structures, along with data on coins and other finds, including female jewelry found in one of the burials. Results and novelty of the research: During archaeological surveys in 2018 in the southeastern part of the Golden Horde’s Solkhat, not far from the modern reservoir, a new archaeological object was discovered and identified as a medieval Muslim mausoleum (türbe). As a result of the 2018–2019 excavations, it was found that it is a ruined structure, preserved at the level of the lower rows of the foundation. The plan of the mausoleum is based on a rectangle oriented to the cardinal directions. The structure consists of two parts – the southern which is the entrance and the northern which contains the actual tombs (gurkhan). In the northern part of the türbe at the floor level, two burial underground chambers were discovered: burial 1, constructed of square Golden Horde bricks, and burial 2, constructed of rubble stones. The first female burial contained fragments of architectural details and a pair of golden earrings with a translucent sub-square inlay. The design features of the earrings indicate a style distinctive to Central Asia and China. The gender of the buried individual is confirmed by anthropological analysis. The second burial is a collective one, with bone remains of at least three individuals, two of them being males. According to the numismatic finds, the mausoleum dates to the late fourteenth or early fifteenth century. The presence of female jewelry among the funeral inventory of burial 1 formally contradicts the traditions of Islamic funeral rites. Apparently, gold earrings, mar­king the social status of the deceased (among other details of clothing that have not reached us), indicate the persistent preservation of traces of steppe traditions.