Archaeologists have discovered the remains of a Muslim necropolis in Kyrgyzstan. The ruins of several buildings, including possibly a mosque, as well as some tombs now lie at the bottom of Lake Yssyk-Köl, where the city of Toru-Aygyr once stood – an important trading center on the medieval Silk Road. The burial site probably dates from the 13th or 14th century, when Islam in the then Karakhanid Empire changed from a pure religion of the nobility and elite to a religion of citizens.
The Yssyk-Köl is the largest lake in Kyrgyzstan and the second largest mountain lake in the world. Today the salt lake is a rather quiet vacation spot. In the Middle Ages, the Silk Road ran along its banks, connecting Asia with Europe for centuries. But important points on this international trade route to and from China were destroyed in an earthquake in the 15th century, flooded and disappeared into the lake, including the Toru Aygyr complex. This was a city or large trading center that was probably abandoned by its residents before the earthquake. Nomads later settled in the area and the former Toru-Aygyr fell into oblivion.
In autumn 2025, archaeologists went on an expedition in the northeastern part of the lake with underwater drones and divers to research the remains of this former city in more detail. They analyzed four sections that were at depths between one and four meters, as the Russian Geographical Society reports.
Trade center really existed
During these dives, the researchers found, among other things, large ceramic vessels and parts of several buildings made of fired bricks. Among the destroyed structures was a building with a stone millstone intended for grinding grain. Another building featured architectural decorations on the exterior. The team explains that it could have been a building with an important social function, such as a mosque, a bathhouse or a madrasa. These finds confirm that the Toru-Aygyr trading center really existed in the Middle Ages. Among the ruins were constructions made of stones and wooden beams as well as clay walls, the function of which is still unclear. The wood and ceramics in particular should now help to determine more precisely when the city was built and how long it was inhabited.
The archaeologists also found an unexpected peculiarity: traces of a burial site. The area is around 300 by 200 meters in size and is heavily eroded by the salty water. The researchers found human remains of a man and a woman there. Both skeletons faced north, with their faces facing the Qibla, the direction Muslims pray toward the holy Kaaba in Mecca. This indicates an Islamic burial ritual and suggests that it was a Muslim necropolis. However, it is still unclear who the dead were, and their age and social rank are also still unknown. In order to find out, the bones will now be examined more closely and compared with written documents from the time.
Who are the dead in the Muslim necropolis?
It is known that the Karakhanid state was founded in the Central Asian region on Lake Issyk-Köl in the 10th century. “It was a Turkish dynasty whose elites often turned to Islam during their rule,” explains Maksim Menshikov from the Russian Academy of Sciences, who was involved in the project. “The nomadic population, on the other hand, practiced different religions: pagan Tengrism, Buddhism and Nestorian Christianity. Or they practiced forms of religion in which paganism and Islam were mixed.” Islam itself did not spread among the citizens of Central Asia until the 13th century. Previously, it was predominantly the religion of the nobility and wealthier traders, as Menshikov explains. The team suspects that the necropolis dates back to the 13th or 14th century. The bone analyzes should now check this.
In addition to the Muslim burial site, the team found three other graves with human remains. These were located in a simple burial site south of the former Toru Aygyr complex and are probably older, which would fit the complex religious history of the area. The find also indicates that the trading center on the Silk Road developed over a longer period of time. In order to reconstruct the individual phases of the settlement’s history more precisely, the archaeologists now want to take samples from various relics and structures on the lake bed and analyze them in the laboratory.
Source: Maria Buldakova, Russian Geographical Society