Excavation of the Western Suburban Complex of Bol’shoy K’irk-K’iz in 2022

Abstract

During the 2022 excavation season at the Western Suburban Complex (WSC), work on Room III (Blue Hall) has been continued. Two fragments of pottery discovered there date back to the ancient Chorasmian period. At the -210 and -212 cm levels from the benchmark, a flooring consisting of mud brick pavement was discovered (41–42 × 41–42 cm). The most numerous finds in the 2022 season were fragments of painting, made with glue paint on loess plaster, covered with white loose soil – gypsum in the form of dihydrate. The polarizing microscopy of the composition of paint samples showed that the blue pigment consists of natural ultramarine, the red-brown one is red ocher, and the green paint is made of atacamite (copper hydroxychloride). When Room III had ceased functioning normally, it lost its roof and has been gradually filled with various layers of ground. Judging by the complete absence of animal bones, hearths and/or bonfires, as well as the meager amount of ceramics, secondary habitation of the ruined premises is clearly improbable. The discovered brick pavements are not related to the period of the WSC’s functioning and appeared after the process of destruction of the walls had gone far enough. The last stage of the destruction corresponds to the layer lying on top of the brickwork in the northeast corner of Room III, containing numerous fragments of painted plaster. The lifetime and destruction of the WSC fully corresponds to the ancient Chorasmian period.