Berel'deki Hun Dönemi Kurganları üzerine bir değerlendirme (An evaluation of the Xiongnu-era burial mounds in Berel- East Kazakhstan)

Berel Valley, located in the Katonkaragay District of the East Kazakhstan Province in the easternmost part of the Republic of Kazakhstan and on the western foothills of the Altai Mountains, has more than 100 kurgans on a triangular natural terrace. In Berel, which became known by the scientific community for the first time due to the excavations carried out by Wilhelm Radloff in 1865, recent excavations have been carried out since 1998 under the direction of Professor Zainolla Samashev. As a result of the recent excavations carried out in the Berel Kurgan cemetery in the last 25 years within the scope of the East Kazakhstan Archaeological Expedition, the kurgan dating has been carried out using up-to-date scientific methods and tools. Thus, some of the kurgans at Berel were dated to the Pazyryk phase of the Scythian-Saka, Xiongnu, Xianbei, and Turkic Khaganate periods. In addition, some differences between the kurgans dated to the Scythian Saka or Pazyryk period and the kurgans dated to the Xiongnu period, which are reflected in the architectural features, archaeological finds, and funeral customs, are revealed. Some of the publications in Türkiye, unlike the international literature, show the fact that the Scythian-Saka period, especially the Pazyryk kurgans, have continued to be shown as belonging to the Xiongnu period. For that reason, it is necessary to examine the subject in light of the recent findings and data obtained from the Berel kurgans. With the transition from the Scythian-Saka period to the Hun period, the change reflected in the kurgan architecture is observed in the form of the abandonment of the wooden burial chamber or the sarcophagus carved from wooden logs, with a decrease in the diameter and dimensions of the kurgans as well as a decrease in their depth. Human beings or horses were buried in small burial pits or in grave pits surrounded by stone blocks. One of the distinctive features of the Scythian-Saka and Pazyryk periods is that depictions in animal style are not observed in the Xiongnu period kurgans at Berel. In addition, in terms of archaeological finds, the number and quality of findings decreased significantly in the Xiongnu period kurgans compared to the rich and prestigious objects found in the kurgans of the Scythian-Saka period. On the other hand, the differences in the weapons found in the kurgans of the Scythian Saka and the Xiongnu periods are remarkable. The most striking example is the absence of Xiongnu-type composite bows in the Scythian Saka kurgans at Berel.