RESULTS OF ARCHAEOLOGICAL RESEARCH AT THE ZHUKEY BURIAL GROUND

Abstract

This article presents selected results of archaeological research conducted during the 2025 field season at the Zhukey burial ground, located near the village of Kyzyluyym in the Birzhan Sal District of Akmola Region. A total of 9 structures have been identified within the burial ground. Chronologically, they span two historical periods: the Bronze Age and the late Kazakh period. In 2025, excavations were carried out at 6 structures. Of these, two structures, designated No4 and No9, belong to the Bronze Age, while structures No1–3 and 7 date to the ethnographic period. The archaeological finds recovered during the research were analysed in domestic and foreign laboratories. Radiocarbon (Vilnius Radiocarbon, Vilnius, Lithuania), anthropological (National Museum of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Astana, Kazakhstan) and metallographic (Institute of Metallurgy and Ore Beneficiation, Almaty, Kazakhstan) methods were applied. The results of archaeological investigations and laboratory analyses indicate that structures No 4 and 9 were ritual structures. The research has yielded new data on the layout of the Zhukey burial ground, the functional characteristics of its structures, and their chronological attribution. The results of the comprehensive study indicate that structures No4 and 9 date to the Bronze Age. The materials obtained make it possible to refine our understanding of the historical and cultural development, as well as the funerary and ritual traditions, of the Burabay region in antiquity. The findings constitute an important source for the comprehensive study of the archaeological sites of Northern Kazakhstan.