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FROM THE HISTORY OF THE STUDY OF USTRUSHANA'S ARCHAEOLOGY
Sharofov Sirojiddin Jaloliddin ugli
PhD candidate at Jizzakh State Pedagogical University
Annotation:
The article presents the author's views on the study of the archeology of
Ustrushana, which is considered one of the historical regions of our country.
Key words:
Turkestan, Jizzakh, P.I. Lerkh, N.S. Likoshin, A.A. Semenov, Ya. Gulomov,
Ustrushana, Bunjikat, Shakhristan, expedition.
Аннотация:
Мазкур мақолада муаллифнинг ўлкамиздаги тарихий вилоятларидан бири
саналувчи Уструшона археологиясининг ўрганилиши хусусидаги фикр-мулоҳазалари
келтирилган.
Калит сўзлар:
Туркистон, Жиззах, П.И.Лерх, Н.С.Ликошин, А.А.Семёнов, Я.Ғуломов,
Уструшона, Бунжикат, Шаҳристон, экспедиция.
Independence has given the Uzbek people the opportunity to learn about their true history and
to study it independently. We have gained the ability to restore historical truth, explore our
national cultural heritage, and evaluate it objectively. Broad opportunities have been opened for
archaeological and ethnographic research in our country. As a result, we witness that the
peoples who lived between the Amu Darya and Syr Darya rivers have made an invaluable
contribution to the material and spiritual culture of humanity since ancient times. One of the
historical regions within the territory of our homeland is the Ustrushana region.
In written sources, the territory of Ustrushana and its name have been mentioned under various
designations. In historical records, the region was initially referred to as the “Sogdian lands
beyond the Saks,” and later it became an independent administrative territory known as
“Ustrushana.” Ustrushana bordered the Dasht-i Qipchaq (Kipchak Steppe) to the north,
Sogdiana to the west, Tashkent and Fergana to the east, and the Turkestan Mountains to the
south. Its capital, the city of Bunjikat, served as the residence of the ruler [1:91].
Indeed, the study of Ustrushana's history began in the 1860s, following the conquest of
Turkestan by Tsarist Russia. This work was initiated by Russian intellectuals — Orientalists,
archaeologists, and historians — who were considered enlightened scholars of their time. It is
worth noting that in the early stages of exploring the region's material cultural monuments,
Russian military topographers and officers mainly focused on collecting antique artifacts.
The formal study of cultural monuments in the territory of Ustrushana began in 1867. The well-
known Orientalist P.I. Lerch organized a scientific expedition to Turkestan as part of a special
mission of the Imperial Russian Academy [2:25]. Under the leadership of this Orientalist, the
scientific group managed to copy and interpret two historical inscriptions written in Arabic
script found on the Ilon-Otti rocks near Jizzakh. As a result, the academic world became
acquainted with accounts of two major events: the victorious military campaign of Mirzo
Ulughbek, a descendant of Timur, against the lands of the Jeti (Moghulistan) in 1425, and the
triumphs of Bukhara Khan Abdullah Khan I over Tashkent, Fergana, and the Kazakh sultans, as
described in historical chronicles [3:71–72].
In the 1870s, Colonel A. Kushakevich, head of the Khujand uyezd, visited Shahristan — one of
the region's historical and cultural centers. During his visit, he collected local legends and
information related to the past of Shahristan, particularly about a structure built of preserved
baked bricks. As early as 1890, the renowned Orientalist and archaeologist N.S. Likoshin was
among the first to provide a detailed description of the Chilkhujra fortress. By 1893, the first
archaeological excavations were carried out in Shahristan. During these excavations, the head
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of the Ura-Tepa district unit, Staff Captain Stepanov, played a particularly active role.
Information about these activities was presented at a meeting of the Turkestan Circle of
Amateur Archaeologists held on October 16, 1896.
The renowned expert on the history of Turkic peoples, V.V. Bartold, succeeded in recording
legends and oral narratives related to the history of Shahristan and Chilkhujra directly from the
local population. As one of the first scholars, the famous Orientalist attempted to prove that
Bunjikat, the capital of Ustrushana, was located on the site of the ruins in Shahristan [4:331].
Later, thanks to the efforts of P.S. Skvarsky, the head of the Ura-Tepa district unit, numerous
ancient material-cultural artifacts related to the past of Shahristan were collected, along with
samples of ruins of several ancient settlements [5:41–45]. One of the most prominent experts on
the antiquity of Ustrushana was, without doubt, I.A. Castagné. As one of the first researchers,
he studied the medieval ruins of Shahristan (Qal’ai-Qahqaha), compiled their description, and
managed to document valuable information about the city’s defensive walls and water supply
system.
Efforts to identify and document historical monuments related to the ancient history of
Ustrushana were revived in the 1920s–1930s. The Russian scholar A.A. Semyonov wrote his
archaeological commentary on the Shahristan monuments and succeeded in creating a
comprehensive overview of the architectural heritage of Ura-Tepa. It was this archaeologist
who, following V.V. Bartold, also emphasized that Bunjikat, the capital of Ustrushana, was
located at the site of present-day Shahristan.
The first major archaeological excavations in the territory of Ustrushana were conducted in
1943–1944 under the leadership of V.F. Gaydukevich, in connection with the construction of
the Farhod Hydroelectric Power Station. As part of the Farhod expedition, two ancient
cemeteries belonging to nomadic pastoralists were excavated, resulting in the study of a total of
28 burial mounds. The findings provided valuable information to science regarding the ancient
population’s religious beliefs and burial customs.
In 1951, the Zarafshan expedition of the Institute of History and Archaeology of the Academy
of Sciences of Uzbekistan, led by Yahyo Ghulomov, conducted archaeological research in
Tuzkon and its surrounding area, located 50 kilometers north of Jizzakh. As a result, flint tools
from the Neolithic period were discovered and studied at the sites of Tuzkon, Khonchorbog,
and Qolgansir, along with fragments of ceramic vessels from the Bronze Age decorated with
fir-tree and net-like patterns [6:55].
Subsequent research conducted by archaeologists such as A.Yu. Yakubovsky, O.I. Smirnova,
A.M. Mandel’shtam, and N. Negmatov brought the study of Ustrushana’s history to a new level.
In particular, under the leadership of the well-known Tajik archaeologist N. Negmatov, large-
scale archaeological excavations were launched. Under his direction, excavations continued in
Bunjikat, the capital of Ustrushana, resulting in the full exploration of sites such as the Qal'ai-
Qahqaha I palace, Tirmizaktepa, Urtakurgan, and the village settlements of Chilkhujra [7:30].
By 1965–1972, the Ark of Bunjikat (Qal'ai-Qahqaha I) was fully excavated, revealing rare
architectural examples from the palace of the Ustrushana Afshins. During these years, the
Chorkhokhatepa mound, a Muslim cemetery, and a mosque on the eastern side of Shahristan
were also uncovered. Research related to irrigation and irrigated agriculture was conducted in
the basins of the flowing water channels such as Oqsuv, Shahristansoy, and Isfanasoy.
According to archaeologist A. Bilolov, the total length of the royal canal irrigation networks in
Ustrushana reached three thousand kilometers.
In 1964, the Samarkand detachment led by M. Aminjonova conducted archaeological
surveys in the Zomin district of the Jizzakh oasis [8]. The detachment, aiming to identify the
site of the main town of medieval Zomin, achieved significant results. Based on archaeological
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findings, the scholar proposed that “Urdtepa cannot be the abandoned city of Zomin from the
9th–10th centuries; instead, the new city (Sarasanda) should be sought among the four
settlement sites located at the source of the Zominsuv stream, emerging from the mountains.”
In 1978, with the aim of establishing permanent work in the territories of Jizzakh and
Syrdarya regions, the Northern Ustrushana (later Jizzakh) detachment was formed at the
Archaeology Institute of the Academy of Sciences of the Uzbek SSR. Under the leadership of
archaeologist E.B. Kodirov, as an initial result of the detachment’s activities, about 20 rooms of
the Qin'g'irtepa fortress in the village of Obiz, Gallarol district, were uncovered, and a hoard of
35 coins was discovered there. Among this treasure, coins minted in the 8th century by the
rulers of the Turkic Khaganate were also identified [9].
Almantepa I settlement is located in the eastern part of Qashqabulok village, Gallarol
district, Jizzakh region, on the right bank of the Sangzor River. This site was recorded and
registered in 1982 by the Jizzakh archaeological detachment, which also conducted excavation
research in the same year. From the geographical standpoint, Almantepa I stands out among
nearby archaeological sites due to a number of favorable and advantageous features.
In 1982–1983, the Jizzakh detachment of the Archaeology Institute of the Academy of
Sciences of the Uzbek SSR excavated and studied an architectural complex consisting of six
rooms constructed using the “comb-like corridors” method from the upper construction layers
of Almantepa. This architectural complex has been dated to the 7th–8th centuries and is
scientifically referred to as Almantepa I. By 1984, excavations continued with the aim of
studying the lower construction layers of Almantepa and fully uncovering the architectural
structures.
When discussing the study of archaeological sites in the historic region of Ustrushana, it is
important to note that since 1985, the Jizzakh detachment led by M. Pardaev, one of the leading
archaeologists of our republic, has been successfully conducting excavations and research at
urban and predominantly rural sites such as Qaliyatepa, Komilbobotepa, Pardakultepa, and
Rasulboykultepa, located in the lower reaches of the Sangzor River within the Jizzakh oasis.
In 1994, the book “Ancient Zaamin,” published by the “Fan” publishing house of our
republic, contains in Chapter V a brief overview of the research by Yu.F. Buryakov and A.A.
Gricina, including a historical and ethnographic description of the Jizzakh oasis during the late
Middle Ages. Chapter IV of this book, authored by ethnologist T.U. Salimov, discusses the
history of the ethnic formation of the region’s population in the late Middle Ages. The author
attempts to consistently illuminate the ethno-historical roots of the oasis population using the
example of the Zomin district [10]
.
When discussing the history of Ustrushana archaeology, it is worth noting that to study
the features of the construction and development of the first fortress-settlements associated with
the irrigation farming areas along the Sangzor River, as well as the continuity of architectural
traditions and planning methods, excavations have been carried out at sites near Qaliyatepa,
such as Pardakultepa and Komilbobotepa (M. Pardaev), Yoqubbobotepa (J. Gafurov), Jomatepa
(Z. Kholboev), Qorgontepa (Gallarol), and around Qin'g'irtepa and Almantepa I and II (A.
Berdimurodov, M. Pardaev). Through these residential complexes, we can gain an
understanding of the emergence of planning methods in the architecture of the fortresses-
settlements of Northwestern Ustrushana and their subsequent development over time.
A significant number of burial mounds have been preserved in the northern and
northwestern parts of Ustrushana. These sites are mainly located in the mountainous and
foothill areas of the Jizzakh and Syrdarya regions, as well as on the borders of the Mirzachul
desert. Although some of these monuments have been partially studied by M.H. Pardaev, S.R.
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Rahimov, A.A. Gricina, F.E. Toshboyev, and U.A. Alimov, information about them remains
mostly confined to scientific reports and archival collections [11].
In summary, the Ustrushana region holds a unique place in the history of our homeland.
Known far and wide for its political, military-strategic, and geographical advantages, as well as
its rich underground and surface resources, this region has long been a center of urban
development, construction, and rapidly advancing irrigation networks. As a result, various
forms of agriculture, animal husbandry, and craftsmanship developed in distinctive ways in this
ancient region. A comprehensive list of archaeological research conducted in Ustrushana and
the scientific results obtained would provide a clear picture of the scale and significance of
these studies.
LIST OF REFERENCES
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2. Пардаев М.Ҳ., Ғофуров Ж.И. Уструшонанинг илк ўрта аср қишлоқ маконлари (ёзма ва
археология манбалари асосида). – Тошкент, 2016. – Б. 25.
3. Валиев А., Пардаев М. Надписи Илан-уттинского ущелья. – Ташкент, 1994. –С. 71-72.
4. Бартольд В.В. Туркестан в эпоху монгольского нашествия. Соч. I. – Мoсква. 1963. –
С.223.; Бартольд В.В. Сарт. -Соч., т. II. ч.2. – Москва, 1964. –С.331.
5. Скварский П.С. Несколько слов о древностях Шахристана. Протоколы
Туркестанского Кружка любителей археологии. Год 1. – Ташкент, 1897. – С.41-45.
6.Анбоев И.А. Древности Голодной степи // ИМКУ. Вып.4. – Ташкент, 1963. – С. 55.
7. Билалов А.И. Из истории ирригации Уструшаны (МКУ. Вып.4) // Душанбе, 1980.
8. Аминжанова М. Археологическая разведка в Зааминском районе. ИМКУ.Вып.8. –
Ташкент, 1961.
9. Бердимурадов А.Э. Гемма инталия из Алмантепа //ОНУ, №4. – Ташкент, 1984.
10.Буряков Ю.Ф., Грицина А.А. Истахри истории Зааминского района // Древний Заамин.
– Ташкент: “Фан”, 1994.
11.Тошбоев Ф.Э. Уструшона чорвадорларининг антик даврдаги маданияти. – Тошкент:
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