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Post by deuce on Dec 13, 2017 1:33:10 GMT -5
The Funeral Customs of the Türks: According to the Chinese written sources.
A modern rendition of Erlik Khan the Turko-Mongolian god of the underworld.If one of them dies, his body is laid out in the tent. Each of the relatives of the deceased kills a sheep and a horse (cattle and horses) and places them in front of the tent as a sacrifice. Then they ride seven times around the tent on their horses, crying and mourning, and they cut their face with a knife. They are weeping untill their tears mix with blood running from their faces. They do this seven times and then (only) cease. They choose the day and then take their horses and garments and objects of daily use of the deceased and burn it with the body (..place the corpse on the horse and burn it). Then they gather up the ashes and bury it at the appropriate time: if somebody dies in spring or summer time, they wait until the grass and leaves on the trees turn yellow; if somebody dies in autumn or winter, they wait until the steppe covers with flowers blooming. They dig a grave and bury (the ashes). The day of the funeral his relatives again bring sacrificial gifts, ride their horses and cut their faces. The entire ceremony is the very same as on the day of death. After the funeral they pile up stones and set up a pole; the number of stones depends on the number of people the deceased had killed during his life (if the deceased had ever killed a man, they place a stone, i.e. for each man killed they erect a stone). The number of stones sometimes amount to hundreds or thousands. Then they place the heads of the sacrificed sheep and horses on the pole. That day men and women gather dressed in fine clothes and with lots of jewellery.(In the grave they make a space where they place a painted portrait of the deceased and battle scenes in which he had participated). Sui-shu (636 AD) Later they bury the ashes and set a wooden pole on the mound as a memorial mark. On the mound they construct a space inside which they paint a face of deceased and battle scenes, which he participated in. Whether he had ever killed an enemy, they put a stone in front of the mound. The number of such stones may reach hundred or thousand. Wei-shi (659 AD) They had placed a (memorial) pole on the mound. On the mound they also build a space inside which they painted a face of the dead and also the battle scenes of his life. Whether he had ever killed one man, they erected one stone. So far it is usual to erect hundreds or thousands of such stones.
That's a cool pic of Erlik! Not too far from the REH/Mythos rendition that Zarono did a few years ago. The style/use of color reminds me of a couple Kelly Freas paintings I've seen.  |
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Post by Deleted on Dec 13, 2017 1:48:18 GMT -5
The Funeral Customs of the Türks: According to the Chinese written sources.
A modern rendition of Erlik Khan the Turko-Mongolian god of the underworld.If one of them dies, his body is laid out in the tent. Each of the relatives of the deceased kills a sheep and a horse (cattle and horses) and places them in front of the tent as a sacrifice. Then they ride seven times around the tent on their horses, crying and mourning, and they cut their face with a knife. They are weeping untill their tears mix with blood running from their faces. They do this seven times and then (only) cease. They choose the day and then take their horses and garments and objects of daily use of the deceased and burn it with the body (..place the corpse on the horse and burn it). Then they gather up the ashes and bury it at the appropriate time: if somebody dies in spring or summer time, they wait until the grass and leaves on the trees turn yellow; if somebody dies in autumn or winter, they wait until the steppe covers with flowers blooming. They dig a grave and bury (the ashes). The day of the funeral his relatives again bring sacrificial gifts, ride their horses and cut their faces. The entire ceremony is the very same as on the day of death. After the funeral they pile up stones and set up a pole; the number of stones depends on the number of people the deceased had killed during his life (if the deceased had ever killed a man, they place a stone, i.e. for each man killed they erect a stone). The number of stones sometimes amount to hundreds or thousands. Then they place the heads of the sacrificed sheep and horses on the pole. That day men and women gather dressed in fine clothes and with lots of jewellery.(In the grave they make a space where they place a painted portrait of the deceased and battle scenes in which he had participated). Sui-shu (636 AD) Later they bury the ashes and set a wooden pole on the mound as a memorial mark. On the mound they construct a space inside which they paint a face of deceased and battle scenes, which he participated in. Whether he had ever killed an enemy, they put a stone in front of the mound. The number of such stones may reach hundred or thousand. Wei-shi (659 AD) They had placed a (memorial) pole on the mound. On the mound they also build a space inside which they painted a face of the dead and also the battle scenes of his life. Whether he had ever killed one man, they erected one stone. So far it is usual to erect hundreds or thousands of such stones.
That's a cool pic of Erlik! Not too far from the REH/Mythos rendition that Zarono did a few years ago. The style/use of color reminds me of a couple Kelly Freas paintings I've seen. Yeah, I can see the similarity with Kelly Freas, I'm not really familiar with his artwork, but it's incredibly recognizable. It'll be great to see Zarono's rendition of Erlik - I've not seen that one. A closer look at Volkan's creative process:  If you wanna see some more art by Volkan Yenen: volkanyenen2b.blogspot.co.uk/ volkanyenen.deviantart.com |
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Post by deuce on Dec 15, 2017 2:36:57 GMT -5
More Ganbat...  |
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Post by Deleted on Dec 18, 2017 14:13:42 GMT -5
Eurasian Empires in Antiquity and the Early Middle Ages: Contact and Exchange between the Graeco-Roman World, Inner Asia and China, edited by Hyun Jin Kim, Frederik Juliaan Vervaet & Selim Ferruh Adalı, Cambridge University Press, 2017. Description:The great empires of the vast Eurasian continent have captured the imagination of many. Awe-inspiring names such as ancient Rome, Han and Tang China, Persia, Assyria, the Huns, the Kushans and the Franks have been the subject of countless scholarly books and works of literature. However, very rarely, if at all, have these vast pre-industrial empires been studied holistically from a comparative, interdisciplinary and above all Eurasian perspective. This collection of studies examines the history, literature and archaeology of these empires and others thus far treated separately as a single inter-connected subject of inquiry. It highlights in particular the critical role of Inner Asian empires and peoples in facilitating contacts and exchange across the Eurasian continent in antiquity and the early Middle Ages.
Here's a look at the contents: Introduction.By Hyun Jin Kim, Frederik Juliaan Vervaet Part I - Political Organization and Interactions of Eurasian Empires.1 - The Political Organization of Steppe Empires and their Contribution to Eurasian Interconnectivity: the Case of the Huns and Their Impact on the Frankish West. By Hyun Jin Kim 2 - Tang China’s Horse Power: the Borderland Breeding Ranch System. By Jonathan Karam Skaff 3 - Cimmerians and the Scythians: the Impact of Nomadic Powers on the Assyrian Empire and the Ancient Near East. By Selim Ferruh Adalı Part II - Socio-Institutional Aspects of Eurasian Empires.
4 - Honour and Shame in the Roman Republic. By Frederik Juliaan Vervaet 5 - Honour and Shame in Han China. By Mark Lewis 6 - Slavery and Forced Labour in Early China and the Roman World. By Walter Scheidel Part III - Cultural Legacies of Eurasian Empires.7 - Homer and the Shi Jing as Imperial Texts. By Alexander Beecroft 8 - The Serpent from Persia: Manichaeism in Rome and China. By Samuel N.C. Lieu Part IV - Archaeology of Eurasian Empires.9 - Alans in the Southern Caucasus? By Antonio Sagona, Claudia Sagona, Aleksandra Michalewicz 10 - Greeks, Scythians, Parthians and Kushans in Central Asia and India. By Osmund Bopearachchi 11 - Enclosure Sites, Non-Nucleated Settlement Strategies and Political Capitals in Ancient Eurasia. By Michelle Negus Cleary Conclusion.By Hyun Jin Kim, Frederik Juliaan Vervaet, Selim Ferruh Adalı Link: www.cambridge.org/core/books/eurasian-empires-in-antiquity-and-the-early-middle-ages/317D954DFDED65086D53DE9830FC69D7#fndtn-information
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Post by Deleted on Dec 23, 2017 3:36:34 GMT -5
Mongolian "Jingle Bells"
Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.
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Post by deuce on Dec 31, 2017 14:11:15 GMT -5
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Post by Deleted on Jan 6, 2018 13:13:16 GMT -5
Thanks for the link, Deuce. The Noin-Ula burial complex is fascinating. |
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Post by Deleted on Jan 7, 2018 14:58:28 GMT -5
Mongolian 'Game of Thrones' Revealed in Ancient Engravings.A 1,300-year-old structure containing 14 engraved stone pillars was recently discovered in Mongolia, hinting at a centuries-old power struggle that may have ended in assassination. The pillars were found surrounding the remains of a now-empty sarcophagus, or stone coffin. The inscriptions, written in a Turkic language, say that the person buried at the site (whose name is not yet clear) became the second most powerful person in an empire that controlled much of what is now Mongolia and parts of northern China. This was centuries before Genghis Khan and his Mongol hordes swept across the steppe and conquered much of the world. The inscriptions say that the unnamed individual was given the title "Yagbu" (viceroy) during the reign of Bilge Qaghan (716-734), a ruler who was later poisoned, according to historical records. The inscriptions on the 14 stone pillars indicate that this unnamed Yagbu outlived Bilge Qaghan and also obtained the title "Tölis-Shad" (Royalty of the East) during the reign of Bilge's successor, Tengri Qaghan (734- 741). This title made the unnamed Yagbu the "commander in chief and highest administrative officer in eastern Mongolia," researchers with Osaka University in Japan and the Institute of History and Archaeology of the Mongolian Academy of Sciences said in a statement. [10 Epic Battles That Changed History] Ancient "Game of Thrones"It is not clear what role, if any, this unnamed Yagbu played in the poisoning of Bilge Qaghan. (A qaghan is an imperial title roughly equivalent to "emperor," while "qaghanate" is the term for an empire.) Modern-day scholars call the empire that Bilge Qaghan and Tengri Qaghan ruled the "Second Turkic Qaghanate." It was an empire plagued by political instability, with the empire's senior commanders often killing each other in attempts to obtain power. Historical records reveal that Bilge Qaghan took command of this empire after his family staged a coup against the family of the previous ruler. After Bilge Qaghan was poisoned, historical records say that Tengri Qaghan ruled for about seven years, until he too was assassinated. The Second Turkic Qaghanate collapsed in the period after Tengri Qaghan's death. Researchers are still analyzing the inscriptions on the 14 pillars and may find more clues about this ancient power struggle, they said. "This monument will reveal [the] power relationships of rulers in the east area of the Turkic Qaghanate and their territories as well as their political and military relationships with Mongolian tribes," researchers said in the statement. The structure may also provide information on the religious beliefs of the people who lived at this time, the researchers said. Source: www.livescience.com/61277-mongolian-stone-structures-unearthed.html
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Post by Deleted on Jan 9, 2018 4:09:11 GMT -5
Discovery of ruins of ancient Turkic monument surrounded by 14 pillars with inscriptionsAdditional info concerning the previous post with a less dramatic headline - thanks to the Osaka University website. A joint excavation team from Osaka University and the Institute of History and Archaeology of the Mongolian Academy of Sciences discovered the ruins of a unique monument surrounded by 14 large stone pillars with Turkic Runic inscriptions arranged in a square on the steppe called Dongoin shiree in eastern Mongolia during their three-year (2015 ~ 2017) joint excavation. (Figure 1)
Before the investigation of the ruins began in May 2015, intellectuals involved had thought that inscriptions and ruins of Turkic royalties were only on the steppes in the western part of Ulan Bator, the capital of Mongolia (Figure 2). However, this excavation team led by Professor Takashi OSAWA at Osaka University discovered 12 new inscriptions at the site, obtaining clues for clarifying power relationships in eastern Mongolia in the Middle Ages from the contents of the inscriptions and the stone configuration at the monument.
The major feature of the monument is its structural configuration in which the stone sarcophagus at the center of the mound, where a deceased person might be placed, is surrounded by 14 stone pillars with inscriptions (Figure 3). On ever stone inscription, tamga (signs) of the ancient Turkic tribes are carved more than 100. These excavated inscriptions are some of the largest Turkic inscriptions discovered in Mongolia. Using radiocarbon dating of pieces of calcined coal, sheepskin, and horse bone excavated from the sarcophagus, it was estimated that this unique monument was built in the 8th century, during the late Second Ancient Turkic Qaghanate.
Professor Takashi OSAWA deciphered these inscriptions and found that the person who is buried and commemorated in the inscriptions assumed the position of Yabgu (viceroy), the highest ranking just behind Qaghan*, during the reign of Bilge Qaghan (716-734 AD) of the Second Turkic Qaghanate. It was also found that the Yabgu became a Tölis-Shad (Royalty of the East), a commander in chief and highest administrative officer, in eastern Mongolia during the reign of Tengri Qaghan (734-741 AD).
* Qaghan (or Khagan) is a title of imperial rank in the Turkic and Mongolian languages equal to the status of emperor, and is someone who rules a Qaghanate or Khaganate (empire).
These findings show that the Dongoin shiree steppe, where the unique monument ruins remain, was the center of the eastern area of the ancient Turkic Qaghanate, whose location was not known from materials written in Chinese and Turkic texts.
This monument will reveal that power relationships of rulers in the east area of the Turkic Qaghanate and their territories as well as their political and military relationships with Mongolian tribes, such as the Khitan, Tatabi, and Tatar. In addition, the arrangement of these stone pillars on the plateau will also provide important information for discussing the religious ideas and world outlook of the ancient nomads.
 Figure 1. Drone aerial shot of the ancient Turkish ruins on Dongoin shiree. (North at the top.) Segments of the inscriptions and sarcophagus excavated from the hole at the center of the ruins can be seen. (September 2016) (credit: Osaka University and Institute of History and Archaeology, Mongolian Academy of Science)  Figure 2. Conventional map showing places of ancient Turkic inscriptions and ruins on the Mongolian Plateau (credit: Takashi OSAWA)  Figure 3. Illustration of a ritual conducted around the monument (drawn by former director of the National Museum of Mongolian History) (September 2016) (credit: Osaka University and Institute of History and Archaeology, Mongolian Academy of Science) Source: resou.osaka-u.ac.jp/en/research/2017/20171208_1
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Post by Deleted on Jan 14, 2018 16:11:53 GMT -5
A Swiss archaeologist has unearthed the earliest known Scythian royal tomb in Siberia’s “Valley of Kings” after finding the site using high-resolution satellite images.Recently, there seems to be an awful lot of digging going on in and around good ol' Mongolia and Siberia... Anyways, here's another one.  Gino Caspari, from the University of Bern, confirmed her suspicions during a dig last summer in the remote Siberian wilderness. The discovery of the Kurgan, a burial site of Scythian princes, was revealed by the university this week.
Analysis of wooden beams found at the site, known as Tunnug 1 or Arzhan 0, dated them to the 8th century BC, making the tomb nearly 100 years older than the earliest previously found.
“Archaeological methods have become considerably more sophisticated since the 1970s. Today we have completely different ways of examining material to find out more about the transition from the Late Bronze Age to the Iron Age,” said Caspari.
Such tombs typically contain gold jewellery, weapons, pots and horses complete with harnesses. The dig at Arzhan 0 is ongoing, but it is hoped that the permafrost in the region has preserved the contents of the tomb.
The Scythians were a nomadic people thought to have originated in Persia – modern day Iran. They spread throughout Eurasia between the 9th and 1st centuries BC.
Caspari’s project was part funded by the Swiss National Science Foundationexternal link. The dig is being conducted with Russian Academy of Sciences and the Hermitage Museum. Source: www.swissinfo.ch/eng/satellite-find_earliest-scythian-prince-tomb-uncovered-in-siberia/43821282
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Post by Deleted on Jan 18, 2018 2:28:34 GMT -5
Empires and Exchanges in Eurasian Late Antiquity: Rome, China, Iran, and the Steppe, ca. 250–750, Edited by Nicola Di Cosmo and Michael Maas, Cambridge University Press, 2018. Description:Empires and Exchanges in Eurasian Late Antiquity offers an integrated picture of Rome, China, Iran, and the Steppes during a formative period of world history. In the half millennium between 250 and 750 CE, settled empires underwent deep structural changes, while various nomadic peoples of the steppes (Huns, Avars, Turks, and others) experienced significant interactions and movements that changed their societies, cultures, and economies. This was a transformational era, a time when Roman, Persian, and Chinese monarchs were mutually aware of court practices, and when Christians and Buddhists criss-crossed the Eurasian lands together with merchants and armies. It was a time of greater circulation of ideas as well as material goods. This volume provides a conceptual frame for locating these developments in the same space and time. Without arguing for uniformity, it illuminates the interconnections and networks that tied countless local cultural expressions to far-reaching inter-regional ones.Proposes an integrated view of Eurasia during the period ca.250–750 CE that brings together Rome, China, Iran, and the central steppe lands, allowing readers to gain a fresh approach to a coherent transformational period in world history that has not been discussed within these chronological and geographical parameters beforeBrings together in an innovative way two areas that are the focus of considerable current interest, late antique studies and silk road studies, offering new methodologies for integrated studyIntroduces the concept of 'Eurasian Late Antiquity', which is not based on the centrality of the Roman Mediterranean world, helping readers understand the commonalities, differences, and exchanges over a broad geographic area, including Rome, China, Iran, and the steppe lands between them.Link: www.cambridge.org/gb/academic/subjects/classical-studies/ancient-history/empires-and-exchanges-eurasian-late-antiquity-rome-china-iran-and-steppe-ca-250750?format=HB#MS2kqCJMfVjXpdam.97
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Post by deuce on Jan 24, 2018 3:11:30 GMT -5
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Post by deuce on Jan 25, 2018 11:28:48 GMT -5
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Post by Deleted on Jan 25, 2018 12:37:50 GMT -5
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Post by Deleted on Jan 28, 2018 16:37:24 GMT -5
1,000 year-old summer palace of the Mongolian Khitans (Liao dynasty 907–1125) discovered in Inner Mongolia, China.
(words & pics below by KASTALIA MEDRANO)Archaeologists have discovered the ruins of an ancient palace that served as the summer retreat for the elite members of the Liao Dynasty. To escape the oppressive heat, each year from mid-April to mid-July the Liao emperors would move the royal family, along with palace officials, into the mountains of what is now China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, according to Chinese state news agency Xinhua.
Archaeologists discovered more than 100 structural components at the site in Duolun County, including glazed tiles, pottery and copper nails, according to Xinhuanet. They recorded the foundations of 12 buildings—more than 2,500 square feet in total. Ge Zhiyong, a researcher with the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region Institute of Archaeology, said that artifacts excavated at the site appear to date the palace to the mid-Liao Dynasty, according to Xinhua.
The palace's discovery should give archaeologists new insights into both the architecture and cultural customs of the Liao Dynasty, Ge told Xinhua. Large-scale excavations are expected to begin at the site. The Temple of Heavenly Peace in Beijing, the oldest and one of the only surviving remnants of Beijing's Liao Dynasty capital. (Frederic J. Brown/AFP/Getty Images) The Liao Dynasty rose from the Khitan, the nomadic people of what corresponds to modern-day Mongolia and parts of northern China, Russia and Korea. It was founded by a Kaghan (a Khitan emperor) known as Abaoji, according to International Business Times. The dynasty came to power in either 907 A.D. or, depending on historical interpretation of what constitutes the dynasty's early days, in 916 A.D., when Abaoji officially declared himself as ruler. The dynasty excelled in art, music and poetry, according to Ancient Origins. In 1125, the Liao Dynasty fell to the rising Jin Dynasty, which would reign for more than a century afterwards.
Though the dynasty began with no written language for their "proto-Mongol" spoken dialect, its members developed two kinds of written scripts which, despite containing similarities to Chinese characters, have yet to be fully deciphered, according to the non-profit Asia Society. The Liao Dynasty style of expansion served as an early template for the later Mongol conquerors. (source: wikipedia) They expanded aggressively, but to retain the "purity" of the Imperial family, ruling emperors couldn't marry from any foreign populations the Khitan conquered, according to Asia Society. However, the women who were part of the Imperial family may have had more political influence than their Chinese counterparts at the time. At least three Liao empresses have been historically documented as wielding "tremendous power" and dictating court policies, according to Asia Society.
The dynasty was the first foreign one to merge its original nomadic structure of conquest and cultural assimilation with prevailing Chinese style of government at the time, according to Asia Society, a strategy later emulated by the Mongol hordes—who came to power after they conquered the Jin dynasty.www.newsweek.com/ancient-china-1000-year-old-royal-palace-summer-home-mongol-empire-liao-777972
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