Ancient Pap

Ancient Pap (also known as Balandtepa) was an ancient city on the right bank of the Syr Darya River in what is now the Namangan Region of Uzbekistan. It was a stop on the Silk Road, the famous trade route connecting China and Europe, and existed between the 1st and 8th centuries. The archaeological site was added to the UNESCO World Heritage Tentative List on 18 January 2008 in the cultural category.

Archaeology

The ruins of the city cover an area of over 9 hectares (22 acres). The site includes a citadel, the main city and a rabad (suburb). Clothing and silk fragments of tabby weave were found during excavations from 1978 to 1994. The silk fragments were dated to the 5th century at the latest, and it was determined that most, though not all, had been imported from China.

The Munchaktepe (or Munchoqtepa) necropolis was discovered by accident in the 1980s, about 30 metres (98 ft) from the city ruins on a plateau. It consists of an underground complex of crypts, as well as pit-graves and L-type graves, with reed wicker coffins. The women had usually been buried with silk cloth and jewelry, the men with weapons.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Ancient Pap". UNESCO World Heritage Convention. Retrieved 27 October 2026.
  2. ↑ "Silk Roads Sites in Uzbekistan". Retrieved 27 October 2026.
  3. 1 2 3 Xiao Li, ed. (2020). Studies on the History and Culture Along the Continental Silk Road. Springer. p. 77. ISBN 978-981-15-7602-7. Retrieved 27 October 2026.
  4. 1 2 3 Harris, Jennifer, ed. (2020). A Companion to Textile Culture. Wiley-Blackwell. p. 115. ISBN 9781118768600. Retrieved 27 October 2026.
  5. ↑ "Munchoqtepa and Balandtepa". alluzbekistan.com. Retrieved 27 October 2026.

40°50′N 71°02′E / 40.833°N 71.033°E / 40.833; 71.033