Jeyrakh-Assin Reserve
Jeyrakh-Assin Reserve

The Jeyrakh-Assin historical, architectural and natural museum-reserve is located within the boundaries of the Jeyrakh district of the Republic of Ingushetia on the northern slopes of the foothills of the Central part of the Greater Caucasus Range. The reserve was established on June 2, 1988. The area of the reserve is slightly more than 627 square kilometers. The activity of the reserve is aimed at ensuring the preservation, restoration and study of territorial complexes of cultural and natural heritage, material and spiritual values in their traditional historical (cultural and natural) environment. On the territory of the museum-reserve there are 122 ancient architectural complexes, including more than 2,670 objects of cultural significance, including defensive and residential towers, burial crypts, Christian and pagan sanctuaries and temples. The oldest buildings of the megalithic type belong to the middle of the second millennium BC. Every year, significant scientific discoveries are made on the territory of the reserve, new objects are identified, archaeological expeditions are constantly working, scientists from all over the world come. Since 1996, the reserve has been a candidate for inclusion in the UNESCO World Heritage List. Significant value in the reserve is given to work on creating conditions for the development of organized tourism, its educational and service component.

On April 21, 2026, a ceremony was held at the Tugan Malsagov Ingush State Museum of Local History to honor the handover by representatives of the Institute of Caucasus Archaeology of the fourth part of the artifacts discovered in 2018 during the reconstruction of the Kavkaz federal highway in the Gamurzievsky Administrative Okrug.

The archaeological excavations were stored at the Institute of Caucasus Archaeology for nearly six years, during which time a tremendous amount of work was carried out on their study, description, and cartography.

The event was attended by Chairman of the Government of the Republic of Ingushetia V.V. Slastenin, People's Assembly Deputy A.Kh. Tsoroev, Minister of Culture and Tourism of the Republic Z.I. Lyanova, representatives of the Institute of Caucasus Archaeology, and the heads of the Committee for the State Protection of Cultural Heritage Sites T.U. Kodzoev. and the Dzheyrakh-Assinsky Museum-Reserve, A.A. Sampiev; Associate Professor of the History Department at Ingush State University, Professor E.D. Muzhekhoeva; Director of the Franco-Ingush Research Center in Paris, Professor Isa Bokov at Sorbonne University; researcher, archaeologist, and Deputy Director of the E. Krupnov Archaeological Center, Umalat Gadiev; researchers of Ingushetia's material culture, ethnographers, public figures from the Dzurdzuki Ingush Cultural Heritage Site, university professors, artists, local historians, students, and others interested in the history of the Ingush people.

In 2018, the "Kavkaz" federal highway was being widened in the Gamurzievo area. Soon, routine construction work led to a full-scale archaeological expedition. During this time, entire cities (or rather, what remains of them – fortified settlements) have been discovered underground, along with Scythian burial mounds containing ancient artifacts: clay vessels, bronze and gold jewelry, and even the mysterious remains of people with deformed skulls.

The Gamurzievskoye settlement is a historical settlement in the Nazran District of Ingushetia. The ruins of the ancient settlement occupy a vast area – approximately 10,000 square meters.

In total, over 4,000 ancient artifacts were discovered during the excavations, dating, according to experts, to the Koban culture and the Alanian era.

All speakers agreed that the discovered artifacts are of great scientific interest to the history and culture of the republic and that their study allows for a new understanding of the trade and cultural ties of the ancient tribes that inhabited the territory of Ingushetia, as well as a clarification of the timeframe of their existence.

Biyaslan Atabiev, Director of the Caucasus Archaeology Institute, notes that the significance of these finds extends far beyond the Caucasus: "The ceramic vessels and jewelry pieces among the transferred artifacts provide insight into trade routes, trade and economic ties, and the level of socioeconomic development of society..."

Yesterday, staff from the Caucasus Archaeology Institute delivered a collection of ornamented gold, silver, and bronze jewelry, which will be stored in a special bank vault under temperature control.

The transfer of the artifacts to the Ingush people was made possible thanks to the joint efforts of T. U. Kodzoev, Head of the Committee for the State Protection of Cultural Heritage Sites; A. A. Sampiyev, Head of the Dzheyrakh-Assinsky Museum-Reserve; and M. Z. Sagov, Head of the Local History Museum. and the director of the Institute of Caucasus Archaeology, Biyaslan Atabiyev, who, back in late 2023, reached a mutual agreement to return the finds to their historical homeland.

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