A brick tomb of a 'Tatar prince' on the steppe
Editorial contextCamping by a spring-fed stream called Tambutak, Eversmann examined the tomb that gave the stream its name. It was a hollow brick cube about 15 feet square and 10 feet high, with thick walls, built with fired bricks outside and only sun-dried clay bricks inside, and a square hole left in each side. A precise, measured description of a modest real building credited locally to the Tatars.
bears the name Tambutak, from the burial place of a Tatar prince lying close by, which consists of a square built of bricks, about 15 feet long and broad and 10 feet high; inside it is hollow … the outer bricks are fired, the inner ones only dried from clay; on each side of this square a square hole has been left.
Working translation
Original wording
führt den Namen Tambutak, von dem dicht daran gelegenen Begräbniss eines Tataren-Fürsten, das in einem, von Ziegelsteinen gemauerten, ungefähr 15 Fuss langen und breiten, und 10 Fuss hohen Viereck besteht; inwendig ist es hohl … die äussern Ziegelsteine sind gebrannt, die innern nur von Lehm getrocknet; an jeder Seite dieses Vierecks ist ein viereckiges Loch gelassen.
About An unnamed 'Tatar prince' (as named by the caravan's Kazakh guides)
Keep in mind
The attribution to a 'Tatar prince' is the local name, not something Eversmann could check.
Treasure hunters buried in the ruins, 1746
Editorial contextThirty versts from the Utva river stood remains of masonry that the Kazakhs called Turalbash, or Charaba, 'brown horse's head'. When Cossacks tried to dig for treasure in them in 1746, four were buried alive, and 'since then they have been left in peace'. It is a small, real-life story of treasure hunting in steppe ruins.
Near the Irtetskoe outpost (p. 176), 30 versts from the Utva, are remains of masonry which the Kirghiz call Turalbash, also Charaba, that is 'brown horse's head'. When in the year 1746 Cossacks wanted to search for treasure in them, 4 were buried; since then they have been left in peace.
Working translation
Original wording
Gegen Irtezkoe Vorpost (S. 176), 30 Werst vom Utwa sind Trümmer von Mauerwerk, die die Kirgisen Turalbasch, auch Charaba d. i. brauner Pferdekopf nennen. Als im Jahr 1746 Kasaken Schätze in denselben suchen wolten, wurden 4 verschüttet; seit dem haben sie Friede.
About Kirghiz-Kaisaks (who named the ruins) and Cossack treasure seekers
A note on this quote
OCR normalized (checked against the page image; the OCR text is badly garbled).
A burial mound heaped up from coat-tails full of earth
Editorial contextOn a high rise Eversmann found a man-made sand mound about 150 paces round, hollowed in the middle, with smaller stone heaps around it. His Kazakh caravan leader said a Tatar prince lay beneath it and that each of his people had carried a coat-tail full of earth to build it, with the prince's sons buried around him. Eversmann adds his own observation that Tatars, like the Kazakhs of his day, buried their dead on the highest ground.
When I asked our caravan leader, he said that a Tatar prince lay buried under the great mound; every one of his people had carried a coat-tail full of earth there, and from this the mound had arisen; round about, he went on, lay his sons. … It was in general a common custom among the Tatars, as it still is now among the Kirghiz, to bury their dead on the highest places.
Working translation
Original wording
Als ich unseren Karavanführer befragte, sagte er, dass unter dem grossen Hügel ein tatarischer Fürst begraben läge, ein jeder seines Volks habe einen Rockzipfel voll Erde dorthin getragen, und daraus sei dieser Hügel entstanden; rund umher sagte er weiter, lägen seine Söhne. … es war überhaupt bei den Tataren, so wie auch noch itzt bei den Kirgisen ein allgemeiner Gebrauch ihre Todten auf den höchsten Gegenden zu begraben
About A 'Tatar prince' of local legend; Kazakhs (Kirghiz)
Keep in mind
The coat-tail story is a guide's legend; only the mound's size and shape are Eversmann's observation.
A horse thief spared, his horse executed and eaten
Editorial contextAt the camps of Sultan Arungasi, Eversmann watched the punishment of a horse thief whose life the sultan spared, hoping the mercy would buy luck for his journey. The thief, blackened with charcoal and half naked, was chased twice round the tents, once with a rope in his mouth tied to a horse's tail; then his horse's throat was cut in his place and the crowd carved it up alive for supper. Eversmann then lists the sultan's four laws: death for stealing livestock, a blood price of 500 to 2000 sheep for murder, both ears cut off for stealing a hobble, and whipping for small offences.
When this had been done, his horse's throat was cut instead of his, and each of the crowd of watching Kirghiz cut himself a piece of meat from it while it was still twitching, to make himself a tasty meal in the evening, and not a scrap of the horse was left.
Working translation
Original wording
Nachdem dieses geschehen war, wurde seinem Pferde statt seiner der Hals abgeschnitten, und jeder aus der Menge der zusehenden Kirgisen schnitt sich, da es noch zappelte, ein Stück Fleisch davon ab, um sich Abends ein leckeres Mahl daraus zu bereiten, und kein Restchen blieb vom Pferde zurück.
About Kazakhs (Kirghiz) of Sultan Arungasi's auls
Keep in mind
Eversmann calls the ceremony silly; the laws he lists are 'as far as I know' his informants' summary.
