Eltyubyu and the city of the dead in the valley of the Chegem River. El-Tyuby - “City of the Dead City of the Dead in the CBD

El-Tyuby is located in Upper Chegem and is a vast area with burials. It is believed that people were buried here before the 10th century.
A local resident (also our guide), who was present during the excavations, explained that there are a lot of burials here, but they are not Islamic. The distant ancestors of the Balkars now living in that area had their own faith (then there was a short period of Christianity, and then Islam came to these lands) and the skeletons in the graves lie chaotically, without a clear orientation to any direction of the world.

There are 3 types of graves there:
1) Single - stones were laid over the grave and by the size of the “platform” one can imagine the height of a person, for example, there are clearly children’s burials;
2) “Family”, when several family members were buried nearby and stone fences were built around;
3) Crypts.

Opposite in the valley there was once a settlement of some kind ancient people. It is often written that Alans lived there, but jewelry and utensils were found there that were not found anywhere else.
They say that in the spring, gophers dig holes and, along with the soil, stone beads and various decorations come to the surface (I don’t know whether this is true or not, but I fully admit this).

Well, now let's move on to the description of the burials.
“Family” burials have stone fences and are often completely covered with juniper, which was planted after the burial.
There is also a story connected with it from our guide: during the Mongol invasion, the Balkars made balls out of dry juniper, set them on fire and lowered them down the mountain towards the enemy. This method of defense has been encountered frequently in world history, not a local invention :). As a result, the Mongols left.

Well, the most interesting thing that attracts tourists here are the crypts (graves of rich families). True, there are only about a dozen of them and many are destroyed.

The crypt was constructed as follows:
One of the family members was dying, a hole up to 4 meters deep was being dug. The deceased was placed in it and covered with lime on top. The next deceased was placed on top of the previous one. In this way they reached the surface and the subsequent deceased were buried from above, already in the above-ground crypt.
In the crypts located in El-Tyuby they found from 2 to 10 skeletons (I don’t remember the exact numbers).
Now the crypts are of course empty.

During construction, the stones were held together with a mixture of lime and eggs. This solution is durable, which is what allowed the crypts to be preserved to this day.

The crypts were crowned with ceramic finials, although almost all of them were stolen. Unfortunately, it is not known what the tips symbolized.

Among the surviving crypts, there are many destroyed - partially or to the ground. According to the guide, this happened in ancient times, possibly as a result of earthquakes.

And in conclusion, one more photo and video of the City of the Dead.

Source: http://www.esskmv.ru/el-tyubyu-gorod-mertvyh.html __________________________________ The Balkar people formed over centuries in the valleys and gorges of the highland part of Kabardino-Balkaria. The Chegem River Valley is one such place. Of the Chegem villages, the greatest historical and architectural interest is represented by Eltyuby, where monuments of folk architecture for various purposes, belonging to different stages of architectural development, have been preserved. One of the monuments of this interesting village is the “City of the Dead”, located a little to the south on the slopes, unique in the variety of burial structures dating back to different times.
Chegem Gorge. At the entrance to the necropolis.

City of dead

Virtual panoramas of the Chegem Gorge
1. The panorama is interactive, you need to wait for it to load and control the image rotation using the mouse or keyboard buttons

2. The panorama is interactive, you need to wait for it to load and control the image rotation using the mouse or keyboard buttons

The entire necropolis is dominated by several well-preserved monumental tombs - “keshene”. They belong to different periods and are divided into 2 types according to plan and appearance: rectangular in plan and octagonal.

Rectangular:

Octagonal ones are more recent.

These small stone tombs with one window and a thin cornice, five to six meters high, are irregular convex octagonal pyramidal volumes with smoothly curved ribs and faces, ending at the top with a cone made of solid stone.

The old Chegem builders did not know a real vault, arch, or dome, and in all cases they used only a false vault, that is, a system where each stone hangs slightly over the lower one, gradually reducing the distance between opposite walls.

In addition, the walls of irregularly shaped stones were made thicker at the bottom than at the top. All this creates the unique silhouette that distinguishes keshenes.

Multifaceted mausoleums with cone-shaped or pyramidal endings are found in architecture and Central Asia, and Azerbaijan, and in the North Caucasus (in particular in the Chechen regions, almost similar, but, unlike the Chegem ones, unplastered), and in the Kabardian regions. All these monuments belong to the monuments of “Muslim” architecture. This gives reason to see monuments of the Muslim period in the Eltyubyu keshene and date them no earlier than the end of the 17th - beginning of the 18th century.

Constructed with the help of a false vault, the side walls of which become thinner upward, gradually closing, ending in a sharp ridge, the rectangular keshenes look exceptionally monumental and are perceived to be much larger than their absolute dimensions.

The relatively small structure of Baymurza-keshene, with a height of 8 m 60 cm and a volume of about 160 cubic meters, subjugates the surrounding landscape with its monumentality, so that it seems as if it was created not by man, but by nature itself.

It should be noted that the aesthetic impact of all funeral structures is determined not by a clutter of details, but by the composition of the volume, the contrast of the opening spot with the light plastered field of the wall, and the skillful placement of the structure among the landscape. Only one keshene has decorative decoration in the form of several imprints on the fresh solution of either the neck or the bottom of the jug.

One of the most accessible, but at the same time very picturesque pass North Caucasus, on the way to which you can enjoy beautiful views mountains

1. As I already told you, the night before I heard a faint whistle near the rear left wheel, similar to the squeak of a mosquito, and it could only be heard from one place: as soon as you moved a little to the side, the sound disappeared. The first thing I thought was that the gas cylinder hose had become loose due to shaking, but the problem turned out to be completely different.

And here we are again in Tyrnyauz. For some reason, two tire shops at the entrance did not work on a weekday; in both places, neighbors told me that “the owner will probably arrive later,” but it is unclear when that will be.

Nearby there was a car wash, where two very polite young men (during my youth in the Caucasus they communicated, how to express the idea, a little differently, but here it’s just - “ thank you/please", "Have a nice holiday", "come to us again" - in general, after the conversation I had the most pleasant impressions of meeting the guys) they explained in some detail how to get to the garages on a side street at the end of the city, where the tire service will definitely work.

There we were received without a queue (" well, you’re not local people, you probably don’t have enough time, you need to go further") and repaired the wheel, for which we were also very grateful. Of course, this incident slightly disrupted our morning plans, but, on the other hand, we are not in a particular hurry, right? You should be able to enjoy adventures on the road.

2. And now our bus returns to the village of Bylym, from where a short dirt road leads towards the Chegem Gorge through the Aktoprak pass.

3. At first there were thoughts that we wouldn’t go there, although in the fall we went to the Caucasus on studded tires and, as it turned out, not in vain. However, the snow-covered area did not last long.

If you climb the mountains from Bylym, there is only one “unpleasant” place - crossing a small stream. On it, our bus caught a diagonal hanging, and the electronic blocking simulation system began... correctly, electronically simulating blocking, and it didn’t do it particularly well, since I didn’t choose the most successful trajectory, so as not to touch the bottom and bumper.

However, we have a mechanical lock in the rear axle differential, and by turning it on from the button on the dashboard, we drove through that place quite easily, albeit with two wheels spinning in the air. For some reason I didn’t think of taking a photo of the hanging bus, but I found a video of this stream on YouTube.

4. Further along the ideal dirt road we begin to rise sharply, and the higher we go, the more interesting the views around!

5. We didn’t visit these places in the summer; due to constant rains, mudflows occurred and the roads were washed away.

6. We were late for " golden autumn", the trees have long since shed their leaves.

7. But, nevertheless, the weather was excellent, warm, and the mountains were painted in different shades of orange.

8. This is exactly the Caucasus I dreamed of showing to my wife and son. And it seems I succeeded!

9. The height of the pass is only 1950 meters. But when you drive along that road, it seems that you are higher than many mountains around.

10. And, I repeat, the most wonderful thing is that the road is accessible to almost any car, so you can see all this beauty with your own eyes! If you still don’t want to cross the stream, then you can climb the pass from the Chegem waterfalls.

11. A lonely donkey and mountains, which my wife and I saw some resemblance to Dolomites. But in general - silence, minimalism and no one around - everything we love!

12. The descent in some places was even more interesting than the ascent.

13. We remembered the Chegem Gorge with old Soviet signs about the need to disembark people from the cabin.

14. And the slopes of the mountains, painted in sunset colors. I have only seen something like this in Kyrgyzstan, in the Tien Shan.

15. And so we arrived in the village of Eltyubyu, or as it was indicated on the entrance sign - El-Tyuby ("Village of two valleys"). It seems like there is no soft sign in the Balkar language. In 1944, the residents were deported, and the village was transferred to the Georgian SSR. Now the border with Georgia is still 20 kilometers away. The photo shows the ancestral tower of the Malkorukovs, built by craftsmen from Svaneti. In the film "War" by Alexei Balabanov it was exactly this.

16. But we are more interested in medieval burials - the City of the Dead, which is located a little further down the road. There is no access by car, but this is definitely for the better. So, leaving the car on the side of the road, we went for a walk.

17. This is a complex of ancient Balkar tombs of the X-XIV centuries.

18. Four rectangular mausoleums with a gable roof are considered more ancient.

19. While the remaining four - octagonal with a domed roof - are more recent buildings. You can freely approach all mausoleums on foot and look through a tiny window. Inside there are plastered walls and... nothing else. Empty. Although it is not clear how it was possible to enter the tombs without destroying them, because the windows are small even for a child.

20. Looking around, you realize that the location of this place was chosen for a reason. There are mountains all around, majestic and harsh at the same time. To be honest, we thought it was a little uncomfortable there, so, having walked around all the mausoleums and looked into each one, we decided not to bother them anymore with our presence and went to the car. If you look straight ahead, you will see the Dumala pass. Locals said that a few days ago snow fell there and the prepared “loaf” could not get through it. Although we were not going there. They advised us to drive further along the gorge, where after 10-12 kilometers of the road there will be the Abai-Su waterfall.

But by that time we were already a little tired of the waterfalls, so we decided to go to reverse side and looking for a place to stay there for the night seemed the most optimal.

Chegem Gorge- unique natural object, famous for waterfalls, gorge and historical monuments, in particular ancient villages. In addition, an important section of the Great Silk Road once passed here, connecting Kabardino-Balkaria with other regions of the world. Near the Chegem River there is the village of Upper Chegem, which is divided into two parts by the Dzhilgi-Su gorge. Previously, on the site of the village there was a settlement of the ancestors of the Balkars, which was called El-Tubyu. Literally from the Turkic language it is translated as a village at the bottom of the valley, which indicated its geographical location. A necropolis was opened near the settlement - this city of the dead constantly attracts the attention of guests of the republic and local residents.

The first settlers in El-Tyuby

Archaeologists have found human sites here that are about 15 thousand years old. Traces of life activity were found in the grotto Kala-Tyuby, which became a haven for the first inhabitants of this area. Later - in the 6th - 10th centuries - a wooden city with water supply was built here. Centuries later, wooden buildings were replaced with stone ones. El-Tubyu did not have a special city layout, which was determined by the proximity of the mountains and the need to defend against attacks from neighbors. For this purpose, towers were erected in which the nobility lived. Such buildings were a characteristic feature of many Caucasian villages, but only a few of them have survived to this day.

Necropolis city

The features of the area did not allow burying dead people in the ground, so not far from El-Tubyu Crypts and tombs were built, which gradually turned into a separate city. They were built during the 10th -17th centuries next to an older cemetery. Only eight mausoleums have survived to this day: six of them are very well preserved, the other two are in a dilapidated state. The crypts have a unique shape - rectangular and octagonal cones. They are made of stone. The ancient masonry technique was used - the stones were hewn and fastened together with lime. Outside and inside they are whitewashed and plastered.
According to their type, graves can be divided into mounds (earth and stone), boxes (stone), burial grounds with square windows in the east, and two types of crypts. The first includes the cemetery crypts, which have a high roof and a window on the eastern side. The second type of crypts is represented by octagons, which have a stepped high roof. Keshene were built much earlier than the octagonal crypts.
Graves and crypts They are about six meters high, have a thin cornice, and a false vault. The walls are irregular, convex, with curved edges. There are stone cones on the roofs. Burials in graves and crypts were carried out according to Muslim customs. In the city of the dead, archaeologists found the remains of vessels, metal objects from the 11th and 12th centuries, silver jewelry, and pottery.

Why mountains?

The necropolis is shrouded in secrets and legends. Local population believes that titans who lived thousands of years ago were buried here. The place for their burial was not chosen by chance. It is believed that the mountains are on the border of immortality and health, so the ancient settlers lived for a very long time and practically did not get sick. Such legends are supported by real facts: some descendants of the Alans celebrated their 200th (!) birthday. But residents of the modern village of Upper Chegem try not to go to the necropolis, fearing the spirits of their dead ancestors. According to another legend, human remains were dug up next to the crypts and had a ten-meter skeletal structure, but this has not been confirmed by archaeological research.

How to get to El-Tubyu burial grounds

The Caucasus Mountains have many hiking trails, but the mountainous terrain does not allow walking to the burial grounds. Consequently, it is worth traveling from Nalchik to the Chegem Gorge only by car. Further, the road passes through the mountains - here it is better to walk. Although there is a bus from Nalchik to the mountain village of Bulungu. Settlement Upper Chegem or El-Tubyu is very close - at a distance of five kilometers. It is recommended to visit the necropolis in the warm season, since landslides and glacier convergence often occur in the mountains. IN winter time the temperature is not too low (reaches -12 degrees), but there is serious icing of the paths and roads - this not only makes the trip to the graves much more difficult, but also creates dangers for the visitors themselves!

City of dead

Virtual panoramas of the Chegem Gorge
1.

2.The panorama is interactive, you need to wait for loading and control the image rotation using the mouse or keyboard buttons

The entire necropolis is dominated by several well-preserved monumental tombs - “keshene”. They belong to different periods and are divided into 2 types according to plan and appearance: rectangular in plan and octagonal.

Rectangular:

Octagonal ones are more recent.

These small stone tombs with one window and a thin cornice, five to six meters high, are irregular convex octagonal pyramidal volumes with smoothly curved ribs and faces, ending at the top with a cone made of solid stone.

The old Chegem builders did not know a real vault, arch, or dome, and in all cases they used only a false vault, that is, a system where each stone hangs slightly over the lower one, gradually reducing the distance between opposite walls.

In addition, the walls of irregularly shaped stones were made thicker at the bottom than at the top. All this creates the unique silhouette that distinguishes keshenes.

Multifaceted mausoleums with cone-shaped or pyramidal endings are found in the architecture of Central Asia, Azerbaijan, the North Caucasus (in particular in the Chechen regions, almost similar, but, unlike the Chegem ones, unplastered), and in the Kabardian regions. All these monuments belong to the monuments of “Muslim” architecture. This gives reason to see monuments of the Muslim period in the Eltyubyu keshene and date them no earlier than the end of the 17th - beginning of the 18th century.

Constructed with the help of a false vault, the side walls of which become thinner upward, gradually closing, ending in a sharp ridge, the rectangular keshenes look exceptionally monumental and are perceived to be much larger than their absolute dimensions.

The relatively small structure of Baymurza-keshene, with a height of 8 m 60 cm and a volume of about 160 cubic meters, subjugates the surrounding landscape with its monumentality, so that it seems as if it was created not by man, but by nature itself.

It should be noted that the aesthetic impact of all funeral structures is determined not by a clutter of details, but by the composition of the volume, the contrast of the opening spot with the light plastered field of the wall, and the skillful placement of the structure among the landscape. Only one keshene has decorative decoration in the form of several imprints on the fresh solution of either the neck or the bottom of the jug.

The entire territory of such necropolises is covered with wildly flowering mountain grass interspersed with bright barberry bushes.

Birds of prey circle in the hunt for gophers and other living creatures

In the ringing silence of the rock-strewn slopes, horses peacefully nibble the grass.

It was impossible to pass by without stopping, because this is also a very interesting place

Firstly, this is the birthplace of the national poet of Kabardino-Balkaria Kaisyn Shuvaevich Kuliev.

Kuliev once lived there,
there was his cradle,
his saklya remained there
on the bank of the Zhylgy-Su River.

This monument is the center of the village, people gather around it local residents celebrate holidays and special events.

Secondly, Upper Chegem is a museum under open air. It is of great interest to archaeologists. Stands in the center watch tower XVII century, reminiscent of the towers of Svaneti.

This is the watchtower of the Malkorukov family.

But Dmitry hid something from us in this village:
Right there, near the bridge, there is a “stone of shame”, to which, according to legend, criminals were tied in the Middle Ages. Along the Dzhilgi-Su River, which flows into the Chegem on the left, you can see the remains of Greek temples carved into the rocks. In one of former temples, located in a cave, leads to a poorly preserved path in the form of a staircase carved into the rock. This trail is called “Greek Stairs”. Here, in the Kyzla-Kyuygenkaya mountain range (from Balkar “Rock of Burnt Girls”), there is the Kala-Tyuby grotto - an ancient human site (13 - 15 thousand years old).
The path into the gorge is dangerous and steep,
Stones fall into a mountain stream,
On high cliff along the wall
Along the path you will come to the writings.
Not far from the grotto - ancient settlement"Lygyt", which dates back to the 8th-10th centuries. AD, with underground wooden water supply.
And maybe he didn’t know this himself... So, there is a reason to visit here again with more detailed tour! But we admired the local shop...

After standing at the head of Kaisyn Kuliev, examining the tower and the surrounding rocks, we went further and, after a short time, an ancient necropolis, also known as the “City of the Dead,” surrounded by a low wall made of unfastened stones became visible.

In the “City of the Dead” eight above-ground mausoleums (keshene) have been preserved, four of which are rectangular with a gable roof,

and the other four are octagonal with a domed,

as well as ancient unpaved family graves surrounded by small stone walls without any identification marks.

The necropolis dates back to the 11th – 14th centuries. ad. The severity and grandeur of the surrounding landscape is striking. You experience sacred awe.

There are keshenes above the village,
between the crypts on the ground
spread out a thick carpet
juniper bushes.

The crypts were apparently looted, some were destroyed, it is not clear, by people or by raging elements.

Looking inside one of the surviving keshenes

through an uncovered small window,

and having examined the floor and the space under the dome, you will be convinced that they are empty. The walls from the inside, as you can see, are plastered.



If you think about it, there is a lot of mystery. Whether there was actually anything there, how it was placed there and how it was later removed remains unclear. The windows are very small...

Galina Vladimirovna picked up a couple of stones from the ground, intending to take them as a souvenir,

but, according to mature reasoning, she decided that they should just stay where they were, it wouldn’t do to take anything from this place...

Dmitry not only lifted us under the clouds and brought us to this place, but also became our guide.

I can’t find any detailed (or even brief) scientific information about the “City of the Dead” on the Internet, at least I haven’t found it... The experts are silent, so in fact it’s not clear what these keshenes are, so I use paraphrases other people's opinions and ideas, possibly erroneous...

And we didn’t see this either:
Opposite the village, on the right bank of the Chegem, you can see the walls of a medieval caravanserai, one of the hotels that stood on the ancient trade route that once passed through the Caucasus mountains.
The caravans are long gone
From China to oblivion.
Framed by clouds
Legends of ancient times are sleeping.

Walking around the crypts, we again got caught in the rain. How cold he was! But as soon as we set off on the return journey, we found ourselves at the steam-planodrome, the clouds parted and the sun appeared. Really, unique place! Overall, if you don’t find fault with individual details, the trip was a success. Possible repetitions in the future.