Tash Rabat
| Tash Rabat | ||
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 Tash Rabat in summer, with yurt camp in the background |
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| Data | ||
| place | Tash Rabat | |
| height | 3105 m | |
| Coordinates | 40 ° 48 '40 " N , 75 ° 17' 11" E | |
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Tash Rabat ( Kyrgyz Таш Рабат ) is a well-preserved former caravanserai from the 15th century in the Atbaschy district in the Naryn region in the Republic of Kyrgyzstan in Central Asia . The name means "stone inn".
location
Tash Rabat is located in the southern part of the Atbaschy mountain range (part of the Tian Shan ), the "Heavenly Mountains", at about 3105 m altitude about 15 km south and east of the A365 road, which follows the course of a branch of the Silk Road from the The regional capital Naryn, which is around 80 km away, leads to the 3752 m high Torugart Pass on the Kyrgyz- Chinese border, in a side valley through which the Tasch Rabat mountain river , a tributary of the Karakojun , flows. It can be reached via an unpaved slope following the valley. With a bit of luck, yaks may be seen grazing in the pastures in the valley .
About 20 km south, on the other side of a high mountain range, lies the mountain lake Chatyrköl .
The construction
The one-story, fortress-like building, made of quarry stone, is partially built into the mountain slope, which is flat here, and there is said to have been one or more escape tunnels on the slope side. Inside, the building is divided into several rooms and chambers, some of which are connected to one another, which are grouped around a central corridor and an adjoining former prayer room vaulted by a dome . In the middle of the side of the rectangular complex facing the valley is the only entrance through an ogival portal in a massive, protruding gate building that towers above the rest of the complex (with the exception of the dome). At both corners of the valley side there are round towers that only slightly protrude from the main building. The flat roof is surrounded by a chest-high wall.
history
It is said that the caravanserai was built on the site or on the basis of a former Nestorian monastery, built in the 9th or 10th century AD , when Christian traders also spread their religion along the Silk Road to the Uyghurs in present-day Xinjiang , but was then practically completely destroyed in Central Asia under Timur Lenk (Tamerlan) and the Timurids in the 14th century. According to another version, it is said to have originally been a Buddhist monastery.
Because of its proximity to a branch of the Silk Road, the place was used as a caravanserai after the fall of the monastery. It was a stopping point and shelter against snowstorms and bandits for caravans and travelers between Kashgar in Xinjiang on the one hand and Lake Issyk Kul in Kyrgyzstan and the Fergana Valley on the other.
Today Tash Rabat, completely renovated in 1984, is a tourist attraction . You can stay overnight in one of the neighboring yurt camps in the immediate vicinity .
Special
Tash Rabat is depicted on the back of the 20 som banknotes from the 2009 series of the Republic of Kyrgyzstan.
literature
- С. Я. Перегудова (SA Peregudowa): Таш-Рабат (по материалам архитектурно-археологического исследования) . Frunze (Bishkek), 1989
- В. Я. Галицкий (BA Galitzkii), В. М. Плоских (BM Ploskih): К изучению Таш-Рабата. По следам памятников истории и культуры Киргизстана . Frunze (Bishkek), 1982
