Giant ground drawing “Zyuratkul Elk” finally dated. He turned out to be the same age as the megaliths on the island of Vera (Turgoyak). That is, “Elk” for five and a half thousand years. Archaeologists summarize two field seasons during which Excavations and studies were carried out on the geoglyph found on one of the sites on the ridge Zyuratkul (Satka district). South Ural ancient megalithic monument has already received the world glory. Our interlocutor was an archaeologist, a candidate of historical Sciences, Senior Researcher, Ural Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, excavation manager at Zyuratkule Stanislav GRIGORIEV. 
Photo from open sources According to one version, translation from Bashkir language of the toponym Zyuratkul will mean “Great horse lake “or” Big Horse Lake. “A thousand years ago the ancestors of the Bashkirs could see this geoglyph from the ridge much better than he is visible now, and interpreted as an image of a horse. – First of all, Stanislav Arkadevich, how did determine the age of the geoglyph? – Two objects were received from the facility radiocarbon dates. Specialists of the Institute of Plant Ecology and animals of the Ural Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences from Yekaterinburg took soil samples from under the stones. In laboratory conditions, organic matter is selected from humus – spores, pollen, elements of macro-flora – and research is being conducted. IN as a result, with a probability of over 95.4%, a date was obtained – 38 – 35th century BC, and with a probability of 68% – 37 – 36th century. I take greater tolerance, because it is possible that in ancient times, when one layer of soil is removed, the earlier one is exposed. In addition, there are glitches … We wanted to use the thermoluminescent dating method. After burning stones in a bonfire, isotopes accumulated in microcracks come out, and the accumulation of new ones begins. Thus, you can set when the stone hit the fire. Two edges of the geoglyph line were found ancient bonfire. They were read in clusters of red-pink calcined pieces of quartzite that cracked from exposure fire. They wanted to conduct an examination in Germany, but it turned out that how quartzite is not suitable for the thermoluminescent method. Need quartz, but it is not on the geoglyph. – That is, while we stopped at date 38 – 35th centuries BC e.? – It is necessary to carry out further studies, but it is clear that the geoglyph is more than five and a half thousand years. And this is the beginning of the Eneolithic, copper-stone age. This is special period in the history of the Urals, when large stratified communities like those on the island of Vera and left megalithic structures. And the geoglyph, and what we found on the island of Vera, monuments of the same time … I made calculations for Faith Islands, taking into account the labor costs in the construction of buildings, taking into account that food was then obtained only by hunting, fishing, and gathering. Turgoyak’s resource for feeding so many workers clearly not enough. The people who built the megaliths on the island lived in territory within a radius of 100 – 200 kilometers. Same thing happened and in Zyuratkul. – How was the geoglyph laid out? – The width of the lines that made the drawing is four to five meters. TO this was added about two and a half meters on each side. Then the turf was removed from the entire strip and thrown onto the contour of the geoglyph stones, big and small. Some clay got there. By the way say, the soil layer on the geoglyph is 20-30 centimeters, and for it beyond 50, because of this, the figure is visible from space. Stones that laid out geoglyph of different breeds. Mostly quartzites, but tuff is also found. In 2012, 44 stone tools were discovered, in 2013 – 80. Among the finds are many stone hoes, there is a pickaxe knife, hammer … The only find made of flint was a large chip with amorphous nucleus without treatment. Among the tools for digging there are both large forms weighing up to three kilograms, and small, up to five centimeters in size. So, the work was not carried out only men, but also women and even children. Built by the whole world from small to large, and this was done not so much to speed up construction, how much for ritual purposes, to strengthen public relations. Experience in the study of drawings on the Nazca Plateau shows: the lines changed, corrected. Original lines without geophysicists are now undetectable. Initially, of course, was “master project”, they knew what they were building, but for them before all this was a cult. At the end, apparently, was committed ritual ceremony: we found two bonfires at the edges of the contour, maybe there were others … The study of stone tools conducted Vyacheslav Kotov, Senior Researcher, Institute of History, Language and literature of the Ufa Scientific Center of the Russian Academy of Sciences. Great benefit in assembly the finds were made by the guys of the archaeological club of the Chelyabinsk Palace Pioneers and schoolchildren named Krupskaya. Sergey leads the circle Markov. Last year, Channel One reporters filmed a documentary about Zyuratkul; soon the film will be shown. – Last year, the media raised a fuss over the opening of the bank of Zyuratkul of a certain Eneolithic “mega-village” in which the builders of the geoglyph supposedly lived, and there were 10 thousand of them. You did you do research at the facility? – The hype about it really was. First Oleg Mustafin, an employee of the Eco-Park Zyuratkul, not far from Whale Pier, found strange straight lines masonry. Around everything is littered with ancient stone tools. And opposite rectangular is also visible through the gulf in satellite images structure. And local historian Alexander Shestakov suggested that this is one the building and most of it is under the bay … And so it appeared information about 10 thousand people. But the second structure is not masonry, and ditches to remove water. Powerful in that place peat bog, and in the XX century it was drained, then no of no interest to us … And the structure discovered Mustafin is actually a megalithic object. Not a home because not a single piece of ceramics was found there. And what is it I don’t know. No one was digging anything like that. But no doubt that this structure is the same age as the geoglyph. – There is a theory that the name of the lake is also associated with this megalithic object … – According to one version, a direct translation from the Bashkir language of the toponym Zyuratkul will mean “Big Horse Lake” or “Lake Big horse “.” Zur “-” big “,” at “-” horse “,” cool “- “lake”. This interpretation is given by a well-known specialist in the field of Ural dialect vocabulary and toponyms A.K. Matveev. And this quite appropriate in light of the importance for the Bashkirs of the places of grazing horses. But in toponyms, in addition to harmony, there should be an etymological reference. In this case, it was not there: there are no pastures on Zyuratkul. But you can suggest that a thousand years ago the ancestors of the Bashkirs could see with the ridge this geoglyph is much better than it is visible now, and treat it like a picture of a horse. – What are the steps for conservation of the monument need to be taken now? – necessary tourism development, and this requires understanding from Satkinskaya administration and management of the National Park in which is located geoglyph. And it is, but you need to come to agreement … Besides the tourism infrastructure itself, which somehow develops in Zyuratkul, spectacles are needed in this resort, which people will go to. Branding is needed … For example, you can, of course, attract people to Lake Chebarkul with a meteorite, but, firstly, for this we need some museum complexes, something, what you can look at. Secondly, such things should have development. Archaeological excavations ceased on Turgoyak, and the flow of tourists fell twice. The same thing happened at Zyuratkul, when the wharf was dismantled. – What exactly needs to be done at geoglyph to save it? – It is necessary to create a museum object. The cessation of excavations in their current form – they are destructive for the monument. The geoglyph stood for five thousand years, it will stand still and another 100 – until better times. It is necessary to excavate more territory to show the size of the object. Then everything except contour of the geoglyph, you need to sod. It’s also important to build on the drainage system, because during the rains the water washes away there is the entire top layer … At the moment, the geoglyph is visible only late spring and early fall. Gotta figure out how to make it open to review for a long time. How to do this, I do not know. Maybe install a special tower or equip platforms on the tops of the ridge. Someone suggests trails so that Tourists walked and strengthened the contours of the geoglyph. Propose to strengthen priming. But so far there are no projects. And without creating a museum and a project museumification of the object, we will annually worsen the top view of the object. You need to understand what to do with the seized soil and excavated area. – What about financing your excavation site? – In 2012, financing went. We by December even received money, half of them went to pay for work experts, for examination. With housing, then the National helped us. park, in tents on the mountain we would have to tight … In 2013, on excavation we did not get a penny, we worked for our score. In February last year, the Ministry of Culture of the Russian Federation allocated federal target program “Culture of Russia” one million 310 thousand rubles. But due to incorrect paperwork in local authorities did not receive the money. In the next field season, maybe if there are funds, take samples for radiocarbon analysis, we will conduct other studies, but excavations as such are not will be. In the spring we are also going to go with specialists and Oleg Mustafin on the object that he opened. Low water level will last a few days. Must be in time. – Feels you have some kind of fatigue. Disappointment … – After work on Faith I became a realist. One person can make a fuss create an illusion that will be replicated in the media, but really will not do anything. I do not want to do this. I repeat with dead center on Zyuratkul case will move when it is reached local arrangement. And now you do not need to punch excavation funding, and geoglyph museification … In order to to insure that someone will spend money on excavations of this object, when I submit the report to the field committee, at the same time I will write a paper: categorically refuse to provide open sheet to this site to anyone, including me. Until, until there is a museumification project. I don’t want to repeat the story with the island of Vera! Vladislav VERIGO
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