Boralday North Crest Mound 22 (Boralday Northern Apex Kurgan)
Boralday Mound 22 North · Northern Apex Boralday Mound
Late Saka (280 BCE) — Boralday late group·Saka Tigrakhauda late (pre-Wusun transition)·🇰🇿 Almaty Region, Ili District, Boralday Park North Crest (north apex of 81-mound field, 1.2 km north of centre), Kazakhstan
About
About Boralday North Crest Mound 22 (Boralday Northern Apex Kurgan)
868). Mound 82 m diam, 13 m high — second largest after mound 6 (14 m). 4 m timber-framed with pakhsa packing, robbed but retaining felt appliqué with gold foil panther 14 cm and bronze Chinese belt hook (Han 1st c BCE import) indicating early Silk Road contact. Dated 280±40 BCE central group via C14. Mound 22 commands view 15 km to Tien Shan foothills — northern sightline. Park reserve since 2006; mound 22 fenced 2021 after ring-road. 1 m each.
Why it mattersNorthern apex with Han belt hook — early Silk Road Silk Roads tentative 654 node linking Ili piedmont to Han.
Open questions
Mysteries & theories
Mysteries
- 01Panther foil style — Pazyryk Altai vs Boralday local tigrine
Theories
- 01M22 as late northern expansion as Han trade opened
Theories are interpretations, not findings. The seal above tells you how much scholarly weight the place carries.
History
How it came to be
- Built
- c.320 – 250 BCE (280 BCE ±40)
- Period
- Late Saka (280 BCE) — Boralday late group
- Culture
- Saka Tigrakhauda late (pre-Wusun transition)
- Builders
- Boralday north apex late Saka elite
- Purpose
- Northern territorial apex marker of 81-mound field — Han import indicates Silk Road foothill exchange terminus
- Abandoned
- c.200 BCE
- Rediscovered
- 2017 rescue Boralday M22 82 m (ring-road)
- Excavation
- Partially excavated
280 BCE
M22 built 82 m 13 m 12 lifts
2006
Park reserve Boroldai Saki
2017
Rescue excavation Han belt hook 1st c BCE
2021
Ring-road realigned to spare M22
On the ground
Structures & features
43.3500° N · 76.8800° E · 820 m · 2 mapped features
Central Timber Pit (3.2×2.4 m)
tombTimber-framed pakhsa pit with panther foil 14 cm and Han belt hook
43.3510° N · 76.8810° E12 Construction Lifts Profile
earthwork12 chernozem lifts 1.1 m each visible in 2022 section
43.3500° N · 76.8820° E
Gallery