ARCHITECTURAL DECORATION ON KHUMS FROM THE MEDIEVAL KAVAT-KALA

Abstract

Abstract. The article is devoted to the study of ceramic production in the Middle Ages. However, at this stage, attention is focused on the architectural decoration of individual finds from Estate № 2 at Kavat-kala. Khums, as materials for household purposes, have various decorative elements, but the materials available in our case cannot be classified as widespread in terms of ornament and decoration. Some similarities in decoration are found among ceramic (the kashin) products of the Golden Horde period, and are only characteristic of glazed ceramics of the 13th-14th centuries. However, the available information from archaeological excavations at Kavat- kala allows us to judge the most developed forms of pottery production in the 9th-12th centuries. The article also examines the common features of cultural ties in agriculture of the ancient and medieval periods, identifies the cultures of the peoples inhabiting this settlement, and craft production on the basis of unique collected materials from research carried out on the caravan routes of the south of the Right Bank of Khorezm, including the southern and western foothills. Among them, it was established that in one of the medieval estates of Kavat-Kala, near the ancient Russian canal Gavkhor, vessels with richly decorated images of animals of hand-made ceramics have been preserved, dating from the era of the Khorezmshahs (11th-12th centuries) to the era of the Golden Horde (13th - 16th centuries). Today, no less interesting is the arched ornament located along the rims of the hums, which is almost traditional for the Kashin ceramics of the Golden Horde period, on the outside of the vessels.