This thesis has been elaborated on the basis of research of the first Czechoslovak-Mongolian expedition, the pioneer and solitary foreign project of Czech archaeology, unsurpassed up to now. The current work attempted to enclose the research in honour of PhDr. Lumír Jisl and his unfinished but extremely valuable project, whose results are to be presented here, The following text is based mostly on materials collected from archives and depositories both in Czech Republic and Mongolia and available results of present Turkological studies. Regarding current state of researches the aim of this work is rather to formulate fundamental questions based on the research results, suggest some possible partial solutions and open space for further investigations than to proclaim some fixed statements.
I. Part – Thesis text
1. Introduction
1.1. History of the First Czechoslovak- Mongolian expedition 1958 1.2. Tasks and issues of research 1.3. Sources and methods of research 1.3.1. Archive and museum materials 1.3.2. Study on the research 1.3.3. Fieldwork
2. Specification of the locality
2.1. Khöshöö Tsaidam – a brief introduction to the topic 2.2. The Orkhon valley 2.2.1. Natural conditions of the Orkhon Valley 2.2.2. Notes on Geology 2.2.3. Notes on Pedology 2.2.4. Grazing conditions 2.3. Historical background of the Orkhon Valley 2.3.1. The city of Kharabalgasun 2.3.2. The city of Karakorum 2.3.3. Orkhon Valley as the seat of Early Medieval nomadic empires 2.4. The Orkhon valley in the light of current research 2.5. History of Turkic studies in Orkhon valley 2.5.1. Khöshöö-Tsaidam 2.5.2. The research of Kül-Tegin monument 2.5.2.1. The entrance part 2.5.2.2. Stone turtle and stela 2.5.2.3. Processional path 2.5.2.4. The central shrine 2.5.2.5. The sacrificial stone 2.5.3. The research of Bilgä-Khan monument 2.6. Questions of Turkological studies 8
3. Kül-Tegin monument A mirror of historical and social events inside the Second Eastern Turkic khaganate
3.1. Brief introduction into the history of Turkic Khaganates 3.2. Runic inscriptions – propaganda tools 3.3. “Genesis” and ethnogenesis of Turkic tribes 3.3.1. General questions of the ethnogenesis of Central Asia steppe nomads “Altaic cultural matrix? “ 3.3.2. Questions of “Ethnicity” of the Inner Asia nomads 3.3.2.1. Ethnicity versus political unity 3.3.2.2. Ethnicity versus cultural unity 3.3.2.3. The Mongols as the model of formation of a nomadic empire 3.3.3. Divergence of Turkic cultures in the Central and Eastern Asia 3.3.3.1. Ethnogenesis 3.3.3.2. Note on linguistic background 3.3.3.3. Divergence background 3.3.3.4. Archaeological aspects of the supposed migrations in the Altai region 3.3.3.5. Turkic Khaganate as a model of nomadic expansion 3.3.4. The Göktürks and Ashina phenomenon – Story and History 3.3.4.1. Origins of Ashina 3.3.4.2. Legends as the mirror of history I 3.3.4.3. The Myth, symbols and signs – “Wolves, deers and goats” 3.4. Politics 3.4.1. Foreign politics 3.4.1.1. Khöshöö Tsaidam conception – mirror of relations with the Tang Dynasty 3.4.2. Internal politics 3.4.2.1. Tonyukuk´s affair 3.5. Some questions on Turkic funeral rite 3.5.1. The “Altaic cultural matrix”again 3.5.2. The Turkic funeral customs in Chinese written sources 3.5.3. Turkic commemorative monuments – the memorials 3.5.4. Portrayal of the dead 3.5.5. Was Kül-Tegin buried or not? 3.5.6. Funeral affiliation – Ashina? 3.5.7. Legends in the mirror of history II 9 3.6. Pottery and roof tiles 3.6.1. Stamped pottery. The “Orkhon vases”. 3.6.2. Pottery / roof tile subgroup 3.6.3. Pottery context and dating 3.6.4. Pottery and building materials as possible indicia of the settlement 3.6.5. Role of the pottery in nomadic environment
4. Conclusions
4.1. Ethno-cultural context in the nomadic environment 4.2.Archaeological context in the nomadic environment 4.2.1. Settlement context in the steppe 4.2.2. Funeral context in the steppe 4.2.3. Notes on pottery 5. Summary 6. List of figures and literature
II. Part – Attachments
7. Catalogues of finds
7.1. List of finds 7.2. Pottery 7.3. Roofing materials 7.4. Building materials 7.5. Sculptures
8. Excavation materials of Kül-Tegin monument 1958
8.1. GPS measurement 8.2. Preliminary report of Dr. L. Jisl – translation 8.3.List of figures
9. DVD attachments
– Archive documentation 1958_ ARU CAS Prague 9.1. Photodocumentation 9. 2. Plans 9.3. List of photodocumenation
