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 October 31, 2024, employees of the Chakh Akhriev Research Institute of Humanities and the Dzhirakh-Assinsky Museum-Reserve, under the leadership of researcher Alikhan Akhriev, under a bilateral agreement on joint cooperation, made an expedition to the temple of Thaba-Yerda, with the aim of conducting research.

The subject of this research is the iconography and decoration of the temple and its interpretation.

“Any large project (which always includes the construction of a national facility) must have both an infrastructure and a theoretical basis. If, according to the first, everything is more or less clear (The Temple of Thab Yerda occupies an incredibly successful place - the choice of which is dictated not only by considerations of the beauty of the landscape, but also by strategic goals - the Great Silk Road, famous in ancient times, passed by it, it is located in the center of settlement of Ingush tribes and all roads lead to it), then there is no clarity with the theory. According to the theory of Ingush architecture, there is no work at all. Of course, written sources are of particular importance for understanding the theoretical foundations. In their absence (this is the case we have with Taba Erda and the tower architecture of the Ingush), iconography comes to the fore. The iconographic program of the studied Temple is very rich, but completely unexplored, notes researcher A. Akhriev.

The staff made photofixation, made a full inspection and analysis of the current state of the famous monument, made the necessary measurements.

The main purpose of the expedition, as noted earlier, was to study the decor of the Main Shrine of the Ingush people, with which it is "generously decorated ... in the form of cornices, curbs and other details made by a skilled master of soft limestone conglomerate."

“Not all of these decorations are wall cladding, which appeared after their construction (like the slabs of the ctiator composition on the western facade). Some of them are sculpted, carved, scratched on the protrusions of masonry stones, creating a constructive and architectural whole with a facade. Particular attention was drawn to the stone tiles depicting a person in the posture of addressing God (orant). Until recently, it has not been described in the literature, as well as the rest of the decor from the South Wall. For this reason, we confined ourselves to the decor from the southern facade of the Main Temple of the Ingush people.

On the southern facade of the Thaba Yerda Temple, more than a dozen elements deserve special attention. These elements, seemingly chaotic at first glance, are actually embedded in the masonry of the wall in a certain order, which suggests their relationship with each other and that reading each of these signs makes sense in a general context. The elements are horizontally arranged on two levels (belts I, II). At the bottom there are only three elements, the central of which is the entrance arch.

The upper belt of the iconographic program of the southern facade of the Temple of Taba Yerda is very informative. It includes three images on the same line, the farthest right of which - the orant is the most interesting. All three have in common the fact that they depict a person.

Here we see a schematic image, remotely resembling a rider (V.I. Markovin defined it as a petroglyph in the form of a rider). On the same line with him is a quite artistic image, quite accurately conveying the idea of the author. A successful attempt to interpret these images can give an answer to the question of whether these signs are separate images that have no connection with each other or are still signs of a single text that should have been read by an ancient pilgrim who came to bow to the Temple.

We hope that the joint search and survey activities at the site can clarify this issue and result in an original interpretation of all three images from the upper tier of the southern facade, in general, a very rich iconological program of the Thaba Erda Temple.

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