Koktepe

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Koktepe (also Kok Tepe) is a large excavation site in present-day Uzbekistan , about 30 km northwest of Samarkand . They are the ruins of a city that dates from the second millennium BC to around 300 BC. BC flourished. The ancient name of the city is unknown.

The hill of ruins is about 400 × 400 m in size. In the southeast there are the remains of a citadel (also known as the acropolis). During excavations, different layers could be distinguished, which represent individual stages in the urban development. It has often been observed that a city with built architecture was followed by layers with structures made of simple wooden poles. This may indicate that nomads lived here at times.

The so-called Koktepe I layer dates from the transition from the Bronze Age to the Iron Age (after 1500 BC). Painted, handmade ceramics are particularly typical. At that time, the entire citadel seems to have been inhabited. After this phase, the place was probably uninhabited. Around 700 BC The city was repopulated. Two monumental courtyards were excavated, which were fortified with a wall and towers. Around 550 BC Both complexes were abandoned, perhaps as a result of a nomadic invasion. Shortly afterwards, two large platforms were erected (Koktepe IIIa), which probably had religious functions and are related to the arrival of the Achaemenids . It is not certain how long the Achaemenid rule lasted in this area. Residential buildings and ceramics in the Achaemenid tradition date from the Koktepe IIIb period. The dating of the stratum is problematic, as the rectangular bricks of the residential buildings suggest that the settlement dates back to the early Seleucid period, but perhaps shortly before Darius III. Founded. Koktepe IV probably dates shortly thereafter, although the city was probably left again soon, perhaps in connection with the campaign of Alexander the Great . Some burials (Koktepe V) date from the time after the Graeco-Bactrian Empire , which may be attributed to the Yuezhi , which began around 145 BC. BC invaded this area. A richly decorated women's grave under a hill (Koktepe VI) dates back to shortly after the birth of Christ. A Chinese mirror, an incense burner, a bronze vessel and 345 pieces of golden garments were found. The burial is strikingly similar to that of Tilla Tepe .

literature

  • Claude Rapin: Nomads and the Shaping of Central Asia: from the Early Iron Age to the Kushan period . In: Joe Cribb, Georgina Herrmann: After Alexander, Central Asia before Islam . Oxford 2007, pp. 29-72, ISBN 978-019-726384-6 .

Web links

Coordinates: 39 ° 53 '36 "  N , 66 ° 55' 5"  E