Excavations are underway in the northwest of China: archaeologists are studying the construction of the Bronze Age. Its exact purpose has yet to be established, but scholars are confident that they are dealing with a pagan sanctuary.
For a long time, the building remained lost in the desert plains of the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. It was discovered in 1993, but only recently was it freed from a layer of turf and earth.
The archaeological site consists of three stone rings of different sizes; the diameter of the largest of them is about 100 meters. The structure is very reminiscent of the altars of ancient sun worshipers: similar structures are found to the east of here, but the structure is unique for this region. Obviously, the builders had to deliver the stones from afar.
According to scientists, the complex was created in the 1st millennium BC. At that time, the territories of present-day Kazakhstan and Mongolia were inhabited by nomads. The newly found altar testifies to the fact that cultural ties between nomadic tribes and the Celestial Empire existed before the advent of the Great Silk Road, paved in the 2nd century BC.
The history of the solar cult in China goes back more than one millennium. Hills and man-made mounds here often served as places for rituals, ceremonies and sacrifices. The outlines of the pagan sanctuaries followed the shape of the daylight. The influence of the pagan tradition can be traced in Asian architecture to this day: from the circular tiers of the Beijing Harvest Temple to the shanyrak hoop - the main element of yurts.
Shanyrak - "Hatch" in the dome of the yurt, which is of sacred significance for the peoples of Central Asia. Photo: Irene2005 / Flickr.com
