Mongolian Architecture [antikvár]

MONGOLIAN ARCHITECTURE Architecture is one of the principal forms of fine arts. It surrounds man at every step and plays an important role in studying the questions of not only the history of man's dwelling evolution, his attitude to nature, his devices to climatic and geographical conditions, but also gives a full idea of customs, belief, spiritual development and aesthetic thinking of any people and any nationality. The roots of Mongolian architecture go back to very ancient times. Ancient constructions, early complexes of men's burials which date even from the Stone, Bronze and Early-Iron Ages are met quite often in Mongolia. Stone sculptures, rock paintings, burial sepulchres are very valuable materials for studying the primordial art. For instance, graves with quadrangular barriers, dated from the IV-III centuries B.C., are widely spread over the territory of the central part of Mongolia, and some of them are Shatar-chulu (Chess-stone) of Erdenetsogt somon, Bayanhongor aimag, and sepulchral complex which is in Temen-chulu (Camel stone) locality of Bat-Ulzi somon, Oborhangai aimag. They represent by themselves a whole stone town composing a variety of old constructions. In the first millenium of our era a series of states emerged on the territory of the Central Asia replacing each other. They were the Hsiennu State, the Turkic kaganate, the Uighur kingdom, the Kidan Empire. The ruins of settlements, fortresses, palaces and ancient strongholds of the periods can still be found in present day Until now about 200 such monuments have already been found on the territory of the MPR. The information based on a chronicle history shows that the palaces, religious buildings, fortresses built for a Shanyui governor and ancestral nobility, as well as handicraft centres were situated in the capital of the Hsiennu state (III c. B.C.-I c. A.D.). Along the bank of Kerulen river there are several ancient Hsiennu strongholds, some of which are Terelj's dorvolzhin, Gua dov (Beautiful hill), Ondor dov (High hill). Excavations in this area made it clear that each of them was enclosed with thick-layer sand rampart, and clay walls of buildings were greased with lime paste, roofing tiles made from red burnt bricks were wrung out in the form of disk and ornamented with images of butterflies and wavy designs. The ruin city of Ordu-Balik or Baliklik (nowadays Orhon Harabalgas), which was the capital of the Uighur kingdom for about 100 years (VIII-IX A.D.) and later on burnt down by Yenisei Kirgizs is situated in 25 km to the north-west from Erdenezuu, a lamaist monastery on the left bank of Orhon river. The complex of the khan's palace (King's palace) was protected with fortifications, which in their turn were surrounded with water canals and had a defensive role. The remains of suburgans (stupas) are the signs of buildings which stood on both sides of the canals. The coloured frescoes of a Buddhist temple, laying under the palace of Ugedei, which were found during the exploration of Kara-Korum, an ancient Mongolian capital, by ajoint Mongolian-Soviet historical and cultural expedition in 1948-1949, can also be considered as one of the monuments of the Uighur's architecture. From the architecture of the Kidan Empire (X-XII c. A.D.) Hatanhot (Queen's town) situated at the foot of Chin-tolgoi, Harabuh-balgasun which is 20 km to the west of it, and Talin-ulan balgasun in Dashinchilen somon, i.e. the ancient-strongholds of Bulgan aimag, deserve our attention. In Bulgan somon of the Eastern aimag Bars-hot I, called Dunchen, a Kidan city, is situated. The ruins of its fortresses has the size of 1600 by 1800 metres and 4 metres in width. Gun Chin Eo, a Chinese traveller who passed through Mongolia in 1731, pointed out in his itinerary notes that there were several temples, 5-7 tiered suburgans in the city, and the walls of them were painted with the images of deities. The emergence, the rise and the decline of these cities reflect the common regularity of the development and peculiarities of the Nomadic Architecture. . A Historical Survey of Mongolian Architecture From the ancient times Mongolian tribes, leading nomadic way of life in the conditions of typically continental climate, were engaged in hunting and grazed their herds on rich pastures. GER, the principal and classical dwelling of Mongolians, which was widely spread among Ttirkic and Mongol language tribes as "yurta" and hooded cart fitted this nomadic way of life. Nomadic tribes lived in "hurees", or in a circle. Whenever a tribe moved to another place it settled in a circle without fail In the centre of the circle a hooded cart of an elder was fixed. A camp set up by nomads in this way had military and defensive purpose to repulse suprise attacks of enemy. The htiree's structure kept its function for a long period of time, i.e. till the XX century. Later it became the basis of a traditional style of town-building of the Mongols. Several yurtas made up a hot-ail, or nomadic camp. According to the data of Rashid-ad-Din, a Persian historian, about 1000 ger-families formed one "Hiiree". Written sources on the history of the Mongolian Empire mentioned that the Mongols used "gerliig" or "ger-tereg", i.e. ger-carts, which were usually of large sizes and placed on cart-carriages. Images of "gerliigs" are often seen on rock-paintings of the Bronze Age. There are over 50 of them, and proceeding from them it can be assumed that "gerliigs" existed from very early times. Wilhelm Roubrouc, a French traveller, who visited Mongolia in 1253, testifies in a book called "Travels to Eastern countries", that "they put their houses on wheels, and woven switches serve as the walls of the house. The walls are joined at the top thus forming neck of the house. They are covered with white felt and the felt is often saturated with lime or bone powder to make it glitter brighter. Sometimes around the neck a black felt decorated with beautiful drawings on different themes is put.