Korgantas Tasmola Kurgan 1 — Karaganda Tasmola Type-Site
Korgantas Royal Kurgan · Tasmola Korgantas 1
Early Iron Age (Early Saka, Tasmola culture, 8th–5th c BCE)·Tasmola (early Saka, Central Kazakhstan)·🇰🇿 Karaganda Region, Karkaraly District / Tasmola steppe, Korgantas tract, Tasmola culture core, Kazakhstan
About
About Korgantas Tasmola Kurgan 1 — Karaganda Tasmola Type-Site
Eponymous large Tasmola culture (8th–5th c BCE) kurgan on the Tasmola steppe south of Karaganda: 45 m diameter, 4.2 m high stone-capped earth mound with dromos (16 m) and side catacomb chamber containing an elite female with bronze mirror and 200+ gold plaques. Margulan Institute (Beisenov 2014–2020) 14C: 760–520 BCE, defining the Tasmola early Saka phase between Arzhan and Besshatyr. Surrounded by 12 smaller satellite kurgans and mustache (stone-tailed) alignments 200 m west unique to Central Kazakhstan. Korgantas is the best-preserved Tasmola royal dromos example after Taldy-2.
Why it mattersDefines Tasmola culture royal burial architecture — dromos-catacomb transition between Karasuk and Pazyryk.
Open questions
Mysteries & theories
Mysteries
- 01Female warrior status
Theories
- 01Saka migration hub
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.760 – 520 BCE
- Period
- Early Iron Age (Early Saka, Tasmola culture, 8th–5th c BCE)
- Culture
- Tasmola (early Saka, Central Kazakhstan)
- Builders
- Central Kazakhstan early Saka nomadic elite
- Purpose
- Royal elite burial with horse sacrifice and clan satellite mounds
- Abandoned
- c.500 BCE
- Rediscovered
- 1958 Margulan; 2014 Beisenov re-excavation
- Excavation
- Excavated
760 BCE
Central burial with gold plaques
2018
Beisenov satellite mustache mapping
On the ground
Structures & features
50.4500° N · 72.8500° E · 510 m · 2 mapped features
Dromos Passage (16 m) and Chamber
chamber16-m stone dromos to 3 x 2.5 m catacomb with bronze mirror
50.4510° N · 72.8510° EMustache Stone Tails (200 m)
alignmentTwin stone-tail alignments west of main kurgan — Tasmola mustache
50.4490° N · 72.8480° E