This stunning Uyghur complex dates from exactly 777 and it was never used -- now, researchers know wh

[Judi Lynn]

by Mihai Andrei June 15, 2020

If you travelled to the Tuva mountains in Southern Russia, some 1,300 m (4,300 ft) above sea level, you might find a rather inconspicuous lake called Tere-Khol, hidden among the rolling hills. The lake itself would not be very interesting were it not for an island in its midst.

In truth, the island itself is also nothing special. It’s what’s on it that’s truly spectacular: the Uyghur Por-Bajin complex.



Aerial view of Por-Bajin from the west. The complex is situated on an island in a lake. Scientists have pinned its construction on the year 777 CE, using a special carbon-14 dating technique. Image credits: Andrei Panin

The Por-Bajin complex was built by the Uyghurs, a Turkic minority ethnic group scattered across several areas in today’s Russia, Mongolia, and China. Por-Bajin was built more than 1,000 years ago but was abandoned for centuries until it was rediscovered in the 18th century.

The complex measures 215 x 162 meters (705 x 531 feet), with outer walls measuring 12 meters high (39 feet). Building this big of a complex — and on an island in a lake, of all places — is not an easy feat. It was known that the complex was built by nomadic Uyghurs at some point in the 8th century, but much to the archaeologists’ surprise, the complex appears to have never been used.

More:
https://www.zmescience.com/science/uyghur-archaeology-complex-16062020/

Many illustrations, photos of this complex at google images:
https://tinyurl.com/y8kg2yxh