Ancient fortresses of East Kazakhstan region – Jeep tour to Ablaikit –
Ablaikit (Ablainkit) is a Buddhist temple and fortification fortress of the Dzungarian Khanate, the fortress was founded by Ablay Taishi in 1654. The complex is located in the mountains and has a pentagon shape in plan. The perimeter was walled up to 2 m. The walls have preserved two religious buildings, in which manuscripts in the Mongolian language, statues of Buddha and Bodhisattva were found in the XVIII century. Manuscripts in the Tibetan language were also found here.
How to get there
Ablaikit Monastery is located in the East Kazakhstan region, Ulan district. The distance from Ust-Kamenogorsk to the Ablaikit Fortress is 60 km.
GPS coordinates: 49°27'24"N 82°34'15"E
Information, history
The first information about the temple was left by the Russian ambassador F. I. Baykov, who was sent in 1654 to negotiate with the Chinese ruler. The Russian Academy of Sciences keeps a description of the temple, collected during the expedition of V. A. Shishkov in 1735. Manuscripts were found here, which served as the beginning of the opening of the Asian Museum in St. Petersburg. Peter I, who considered the Kazakh steppes "the gateway to the whole of Asia," showed an increased interest in the temple. In this regard, the expeditions of I. D. Buchholz and I. M. Likharev were sent to the Irtysh steppes in 1715-1716, in 1720.
In the 20s of the XVIII century, sculptures, small metal products, Tibetan and Mongolian manuscripts were discovered around Ablaikit and brought to St. Petersburg. By order of Peter I, part of the manuscripts was sent to Paris to the brothers Michel and Etienne Fourmont, specialists in Oriental languages. Due to the low level of development of Oriental studies in Europe, the work on the translation of manuscripts failed. Subsequently, it was discovered that these records were written in the Mongol-Tibetan language, mainly in a religious sense. Some versions of manuscripts and books are kept in the library of the Paris Library and the Institute for the Study of Oriental Countries in St. Petreburg. The recordings were fully studied and published by the correspondent-scientist N. Nevsky. and on von Stralenberg's map "Russia and the Great Tartary", published in 1730, there is an exact place and description of the temple. On the map, the fortress on the left bank of the Irtysh is designated as Ablaket, and the surrounding area is designated as "Abylai Steppe" (Stepe Ablai).
Ablaikit Buddhist temple, fortress, settlement
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