Sibaigou is a single-layer mountain settlement located 2 km southwest of the village of Ustinovka in the Kavalerovsky district of the Primorsky Territory of the Russian Federation . Located at the tip of the ridge at the mouth of the Zerkalnaya and Ustinovka rivers. Archaeological site of the Jurchen culture of the medieval state of East Xia (1215-1234). The name of the settlement was given by geographical feature - the Sibaigou River (Ustinovka since 1972).
Description
Archaeological surveys carried out in 1973-1975 and 1996-2005 revealed about 60 fortified objects in the river basins of the North-East and East Primorye: fortifications, fortresses, natural fortifications, ramparts. Many of them are associated with the emergence of the Tungus-Manchu states here: Bohai (698–926), Jin (1115–1234) and East Xia (1215–1234). But the first defensive structures were built in the era of the early metal - I millennium BC. e. Twelve different fortifications were discovered in the Zerkalnaya river basin, among which the Sibaigou settlement is the most visible fortification. In 2000, it was prospected by an archaeologist V. A. Tatarnikov.
In 2002-2005, archaeological excavations were conducted on the territory of the settlement under the direction of the archaeologist, Doctor of Historical Sciences O. V. Dyakova . The internal and external planigraphy of the settlement is characteristic of the Jurchen mountain settlements of the state of East Xia. Defensive structures were located on the tops of the spurs , residential and farm buildings - in the aquifer, on the artificially terraced slopes of the hills . A spring flowed out of the decay, supplying the fortress with water. Terraces were cut down in a hill, then a foundation was made from burnt loam and the platforms were poured with multilayer viscous and loose soil. The territory is surrounded by a protective rampart, the total length of which was 1686 m. Along the western rampart, near the ridge, there was an inner city, inside of which were palace-type buildings oriented by corners to the cardinal points. There could be a public place - Yaman . In the northern part of the city, not far from the rampart, there was a 19 by 20 meter redoubt intended for military headquarters and surrounded by its own bulk rampart. Fortifications are also represented by ten towers, stone-throwing platforms with warehouses of stone cores, guard rooms. Architectural and construction signs of the construction of the fortress, as well as ceramics represented by vase-shaped vessels, iron products, and coins made it possible to attribute Sibaigou to the Jurchen culture of the period of the Eastern Xia state. The nature of the construction of fortifications and residential buildings suggests that the construction was led by Chinese craftsmen. The city was built in a short time, as evidenced by the absence of perestroika and lasted no more than 20-25 years [1] [2] [3] .
Notes
- ↑ Dyakova O. V. Ancient and medieval fortifications in the Zerkalnaya river basin (Tadushi) . - Institute of History, Archeology and Ethnography of the Peoples of the Far East FEB RAS, 2005. - P. 93-95 .
- ↑ Dyakova O. V. Military architecture of the Central Sikhote-Alin in antiquity and the Middle Ages . - M .: Oriental literature of the Russian Academy of Sciences, 2009. - P. 43-51. - 245 s. - ISBN 978-5-02-036399-1 .
- ↑ Dyakova O. V. Mountain settlements of East Xia in Primorye // Volga Archeology : journal. - Kaz. : “Fən”, 2018. - No. 2 (24) . - S. 65-79 . - ISSN 2500-2856 .