Vovnushki (from Ingush. Vovnashke - the place of defensive towers) - a medieval complex of defense and watchdog Ingush towers . It is a unique monument of Ingush architecture , part of the Dzheyrakh-Assinsky State Historical, Architectural and Natural Museum-Reserve . Located in the highland Dzheyrakhsky district of modern Ingushetia . The Vovnushki towers are also traditionally referred to the clan towers of the Ingush teip Ozdoi.
| Fortress | |
| Vovnushki | |
|---|---|
| Ingush. Warp | |
 | |
| A country | |
| Location | Ingushetia Dzheyrakhsky district |
| Status |  OKN No. 0610008001 |
Description
Vovnushki is one of the most striking and exotic tower complexes among the defensive structures of ancient Ingushetia . The Vovnushki Monument consists of three main towers, two of which stand on top of one cliff and one on the opposite cliff. The towers of the complex from afar attract attention, although they are located in the picturesque gorge of the Guloi-hei river amid impressive cliffs and ridges of the Caucasus . The towers are made of stone and look like a natural extension of the rocks on the tops of which they are built. They are four-story buildings with a truncated pyramidal shape with flat roofs and narrow loophole windows. The barrier walls that block access to the towers are organically inscribed in the natural relief of impregnable cliffs.
Gallery
West tower
East towers
1910 photo
Interesting Facts
Very little is known about the time of the construction of the towers of the Vovnushki complex, but we can confidently assume that each of the towers was built within one year, like the other ancestral towers of the Vainakhs. Complying with the construction of the tower within 365 days was considered mandatory. If during the year it was not possible to finish the construction of the tower, then it was not completed, but dismantled into stones or left abandoned. The fact itself lay a spot of weakness on the tower building teip .
Many legends are associated with the Warnows, but one of them resembles a true story: once during a siege of towers, a Vainakh woman saved many babies. When one of the towers was set on fire, she dragged the cradles with the kids, miraculously managing to run several times along the rope left from the suspension bridge destroyed by the enemies between the two Towers of Vovnushki .
In 2008, the tower complex of Vovnushki became the finalist of the contest project Seven Wonders of Russia , organized by the Izvestia newspaper, the Rossiya television channel and Mayak radio station.
In 2009, the image of the Vovnushki tower complex appeared on the Russian Post stamp “Republic of Ingushetia” in the “Regions” series.
In 2010, the Bank of Russia, in the series “Monuments of Architecture” of commemorative coins of Russia, issued a silver coin with a circulation of 10,000 copies depicting one of the watchtowers of the Vovnushki complex with a nominal value of 3 rubles and a weight of 31.1 grams.
Literature
- Vinogradov V. B., Markovin V. I. Archaeological Monuments of the Chechen-Ingush Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic - Grozny, 1966.
- Goldstein A.F. Medieval architecture of Chechen-Ingushetia and North Ossetia. - M.: Nauka, 1975.
- Krupnov E.I. Medieval Ingushetia .-- Moscow: Nauka, 1971.