The ruins of Sauran, Kazakhstan, 23 September 2023 I Once the largest city in Kazakhstan!

Sauran in southern Kazakhstan may be in ruins today, but this was once the largest city in Kazakhstan and a major stop on the Silk Road.
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Located in what is now South Kazakhstan, Sauran may have been originally settled as early as the seventh century. By the 10th century it was a flourishing metropolis, described by the medieval geographer Al-Maqdisi as a “large city surrounded by seven walls.” Archeologists were puzzled when they failed to find the seven walls in these ruins, until they found another nearby site and realized that the city moved sometime in the 12th or 13th century.
No one knows why the city was moved. Some believe that the original city was abandoned because of the presence of bubonic plague, likely brought from traders traveling the Silk Road. Others believe it was abandoned due to water shortage or after it was conquered by Genghis Khan. However, it served as the capital for the Mongol White Horde through the time of Timur Lenk (1336-1405), but it seems that as the empire declined, so did the fortunes of Sauran.
By the 14th century, Sauran was undergoing a resurgence, and the poet Wāṣefi described it in the 16th century as “cheerful and bright, with soft invigorating air” and containing “all sorts of beautiful trees.” Sauran remained a key city in Central Asia until the 18th century, when the nearby city of Turkistan began to dominate the region.
The secret to Sauran’s centuries of prosperity in the desert is its extensive arrangement of underground irrigation canals. Known as a kyariz system, it used horizontal tunnels to take advantage of the natural flow from mountain aquifers and the confluence of three small rivers: Tastaksay, Aksay and Maydantal.
The city was recognizable for its two towering minarets with unique construction. Made from brick with internal spiral staircases, they were made to sway, or at least appear to sway. Early written accounts suggest they were designed to amaze visitors and enhance the reputation of the city as a center of the Islamic world. Sadly, the towers collapsed in the late 19th century.
The ruins of Sauran should not be confused with the Village of Sauran, founf closeby. The ruins can be easily reached from the city of Türkistan by driving northwest along the Türkistan-Kyzylorda highway for about 48 km.
During my visit in September 2023, no entrance fees or such were paid, and I had basically the entire site for myself!
Music: Jean Dar - Astronaut
Album: Rays of Light
www.jeandar.com

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