Kala koreysh is a unique monument of history and culture. From the depths of centuries Kala-Koreish: Forward into the past Kala-Koreish description

In the middle of the 7th century The Khazars formed their own state, the Khazar Kaganate. But this change of power continued until the Arabs arrived in Dagestan.

In this article, I want to talk about one historical monument - a large ziyarat and a museum. Unfortunately, few Dagestanis know about him, but he is known in most of the nearby eastern states, from where delegations come every year. We will tell the story of the village of Kala-Kureish (the fortress of the Qureish).

This unique historical monument is located in the mountainous Dakhadaevsky region of Dagestan, a few kilometers from the famous village of goldsmiths Kubachi. For several centuries it was the capital of a large feudal estate of the Kaitag utsmiystvo, an administrative, political and cultural center, the center of the spread of Islam in the North Caucasus.

Qala Qureish was founded by Arabs who came to the mountainous region at the end of the 8th century AD, from the Quraish tribe, where the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) came from, hence the name Qala Qureish - that is, the Quraish fortress. Then it was truly a city and a well-fortified fortress. But to find out the history of its occurrence, let's go back to the origins.

In 40 kh. Companions led by Salman ibn Rabi, in the amount of four thousand brave warriors, approached Derbent. The Caliph at that time was Mu'awiyat. When they approached the city, its ruler Khakan, seeing the power of the Muslims, surrendered the fortress without a fight. This was the second campaign of the Companions. For the first time they arrived in Dagestan in 22 AH, that is, in 644 according to the Christian calendar, during the reign of the second Caliph Umar ibn Khatab. Arabs noticed that united state not here, like not and single center. They decided to gain a foothold in Derbent and spread Islam throughout Dagestan.

But the local states did not want to give power into the hands of foreigners and could not come to terms with their rule. As a result, uprisings and small-scale battles took place every now and then. And in one of the periods there was a battle between the Muslims and the united troops of the Khazars, Turks and Dagestanis, in which the brave commander Salman ibn Rabi with four dozen brave warriors died the death of martyrs.

Only at the very end of the 7th - beginning of the 8th centuries did the Arab incursions into the Caucasus resume. During this period, the Transcaucasian ruler Caliph Maslyama arrived here. Having captured Derbent, Maslyama establishes Sharia rule here. After putting things in order and appointing a ruler in Derbent, he returns to Sham. But over time, unbelief begins to grow here again. And in the year 200, or in the IX century. according to Christian chronology, the Tabiins again had to take up arms. This time, Abumuslim son of Abdurrahman stood at the head of the army. Having captured Derbent, he strengthens it. Abumuslim subjugates almost all of Dagestan, spreading Sunni Islam here and appointing rulers to various parts of it. After that, Abumuslim equips a huge army and, personally standing at the head of it, sets off towards Haidak (then the Kaitag principality) and Zerikhgeran (modern Kubachi). Arriving in Haidak, he overthrows the ruling prince Gazanpar.

Later, Emir Chupan, a descendant of the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), becomes the first governor of the formed Kaitag utsmi, and Kala-Kureish becomes the first capital, the residence of the utsmis.

Kala-Kureish is a settlement fortified with a high fortress wall, located in a strategically very convenient place - on the crest of a hard-to-reach mountain, reaching 1000 meters above sea level. The settlement is surrounded on three sides by channels of mountain rivers, steep cliffs and rocks, which made it almost impregnable. The length of Kala-Kureish is 400 m, the width is up to 200 m. There were high walls along the entire perimeter of the fortress. Even now, the preserved walls reach 4-5 meters. Only on the western side, the fortress is connected to the surrounding mountain system by a narrow lintel 5 m wide, reinforced on the sides with retaining walls. This is the only direction through which it was possible to penetrate the territory of the fortress. For the safety of the settlement, it would be difficult to choose a more convenient place.

The complex of ancient structures of Kala-Kureisha also included a system of wheeled roads, stretching from the fortress in three directions. These were the so-called Utsmi roads. They were mainly intended for the movement of wheeled vehicles (arb). It was possible to get to Kala-Kureish from the side of Kubachi and Majalis and from the side of the current regional center - Urkaraha, through the small village of Dibgalik.

At various times, Utsmiism reached the limits of the modern Kayakent and Sergokalinsky regions and even reached Tarki (the village of Makhachkala, which is located about 150 km from Kala-Kureish, that is, to the Caspian Sea, from where the Qureish controlled trade routes coming from the Middle East, including Silk Road).

The most influential utsmiy were Ahmed Khan and his grandfather Rustam Khan, the compiler of one of the oldest sudniks (code of laws), compiled to regulate the relationship between different classes and residents of the villages. The Code of Laws was compiled in 30 of the 17th century. It says: "A state without a ruler, Dargo - without a trial, a flock - without a shepherd, an army - without a reasonable head - will never be."

In 1812, the last utsmi Kaitag Adil Khan and honorary foremen of all Dargin societies arrive in Derbent to swear allegiance to Russia. Later, in 1821, the title of utsmiya is no longer used.

The settlement of Kala Qureish has been abandoned for more than half a century and is gradually being destroyed. Rain, wind, heat and cold every year take away a piece of its history. The last inhabitants of the once prosperous Utsmiystvo were forcibly evicted in 1944 to Chechnya.

At the end of the 20th century, the keeper of the local mausoleum was an elderly man - Omar. Today, this valuable historical monument is looked after by a former resident of the village of Kala-Kureish Muhammad.

In 1944, when the Chechens were evicted from their lands, the Kalakureishites were forcibly resettled in Chechnya. The inhabitants of such villages as Urtsuki, Duakar, Shiri, Amuzgi, Sinkrizhi, Sharkli, Chakhzhi were resettled with them. There they were gathered in one village - Mayartup. In 1957, after the rehabilitation of the Chechens, they began to return to their homeland. But not everyone returned to Kala-Kureish - about 30 families, some remained in Chechnya, others moved to the flat part, where conditions were better.

The role of Kala-Kureish in the history of Dagestan is also evidenced by the large number of monuments of material and spiritual culture preserved here. For several decades, these buildings were almost completely destroyed. More than half of the mosque was destroyed, once decorated with piecework, amazing with the perfection of decorative motifs. First-class examples of monuments of stone-cutting art have been recorded here. Among them, a piece mihrab, tombstones of the mausoleum-tomb, a family cemetery of the Kaitag utsmi, and sarcophagus-shaped tombstones stood out. The mosque, standing in the center of the settlement, is one of the oldest in Dagestan. Currently, it has been restored, the masters tried to restore it in its original form.

The territory of the fortress was protected from a possible enemy invasion not only by steep mountains, but also by its carefully thought-out layout, as well as the defense system. Along the peaks, the remnants of the residential quarters of the fortress are dissected throughout by a winding central street, from which narrow side streets branch off. Such passages divide the territory into small blocks, including complexes of residential and utility premises.

Around the fortress, along the main peaks, there were once watch signal towers. Danger signals then were transmitted faster than by telegraph, and blocked any danger.

The period of the 18th century is inscribed in bloody letters in the history of not only the Dakhadaevsky region, but the whole of Dagestan. It was during this period, in 1741, that the Iranian commander Nadir Shah, who had conquered almost half the world, arrived here with a 24,000-strong army.

Moving through the territory of the Kaitag Utsmiystvo, they devastate individual villages. Some offered decent resistance, and some surrendered to prevent bloodshed. In the villages of Kalkni and Dibgashchi, legends about their desperate resistance are recorded: both auls were taken by attack, the old people and children who remained there were gathered by the Persians on currents and trampled by cavalry. Until now, the place of the terrible massacre has been preserved in the memory of people.

After a series of setbacks, in October 1742, Nadir Shah moved his main forces to Qala Qureish. Several weeks of siege of the fortress did not give any result. As soon as Nadyr and his army climbed to the top of the fortress, the brave Kalakureishites repulsed the attack and put the army to flight. The Iranians were surprised by the resilience of the inhabitants of Kala Qureish, their courage and courage. But the supplies of food and drink were running out, and hunger forced the elders of the village to incline to negotiations with Nadir Shah - on the condition that the Shah leave their homes and fields and forget about taxes. In return, he demanded to give 200 amanats. After long disputes, the foremen found 80 prisoners, vagrants, dressed them in mountain clothes and gave them to the Iranians, thus avoiding bloodshed.

The mass heroism of the peoples of Dagestan in the fight against enemies is striking - not only men, but also women who fought the invaders on an equal footing with their husbands, brothers and fathers. This terrible war contributed to the unity of all Dagestan peoples.

At present, almost all conditions have been created in Kala-Kureish for pilgrims arriving for ziyarat. Near the slope of the mountain, near the river, there are many springs with cold and healing water. One of them is still called Utsmiysky. People who come to ziyarat can stop here, relax, pray or just drink fresh water. At the foot of the mountain, to the east of Kala-Kureish, a caravanserai of the XIV-XV centuries has been preserved.

Today, Kala-Kureish is included in one of the tourist routes and ziyarats of Dagestan, and the authorities of the republic are trying to restore the complex of buildings ancient capital Kaitag Utsmiystvo.

Medieval mosques darkened from time to time, minarets rushing to the heights and dilapidated buildings are preserved for life; monuments, marked with the seal of great taste and great architecture, keeping in themselves the special traditions of the Muslim religion.

"And two or three houses, as if in the whole world
They are alone under the shadow of the clouds,

Sadly cling to the ruined mosque,
Whose age is over ten centuries..."

Today I would like to tell you about a unique historical monument - the Quraish fortress, which played a significant role in the history of the peoples of Dagestan. The remains of the fortress are located in the mountainous Dakhadaevsky region of Dagestan, a few kilometers from the famous village of goldsmiths Kubachi. Kala koreysh stands at an altitude of 1000 meters above sea level and is bounded on all sides by steep, mostly sheer cliffs.

For several centuries the fortress was the capital of a large feudal estate of the Kaitag utsmiystvo. Traditions are passed down from generation to generation that the first inhabitants of the fortress were Arabs (approximately the 9th century) from the Quraysh tribe, this was reflected in the name of the residence. Quraysh is a Meccan Arab tribe from which the Prophet Muhammad originated. This amazing historical monument is surrounded on three sides by wide riverbeds and steep cliffs.

The only approach to the village is a narrow isthmus on a ridge. Strategically more than a good location of the fortress. There used to be a beautiful mosque here (XI century), with amazing decoration, amazing with the perfection of decorative motifs. In terms of the mastery of interior decoration, the mosque was not inferior to the most famous places of worship. At the entrance to the mosque, a tomb stele with a clear inscription has been well preserved. Near the mosque, tombstones made in the so-called Utsmi style have also been preserved. Skillful stone carving is reminiscent of the patterns of Kubachi silverware. Along the border, the stones are decorated with sacred texts. Next to the mosque is the mausoleum of the last utsmiy Kaytag. This place is most revered by pilgrims. There are many revered places in Kala Koreish, it is not difficult to identify them by the tied ribbons left by people who have been here. There are many legends associated with these places. At the entrance to the fortress there is a small barrow made of stone and a tree with tied pieces of cloth, scarves and ribbons. There is a legend that once an enemy scout made his way into the village and told his fellow tribesmen how to get into the fortress. At the hour when the men were praying in the mosque, the enemies began to climb the narrow isthmus, but they met a girl on a horse with a dog. The girl held back the attack of the enemies until the prayer ended, but she herself died. The place where the brave girl is buried is considered sacred.
The largest buildings in the village were located around the mosque, and the poorest houses huddled along the outskirts and on the rocks above the abyss itself. On the northwestern hill behind the village, a number of burials were found, marked with stone sarcophagi. The Kala-Koreish sarcophagus is of great interest; there are no analogies of the sarcophagus anywhere. This unique monument dates back to the 8th - 10th centuries. On the main peaks, around the fortress there was once a system of signal watchtowers. The ruins of one of them can still be seen. At the foot of the mountain, to the east of Kala-Koreish, the remains of the Caravanserai of the XIV-XV centuries, a structure unconventional for Dagestan, have been preserved. On the banks of the Bugan River, the remains of ancient mills are visible. There are many springs with cold and healing water near the northern slope of the mountain, near the river. Unfortunately, this unique monument may repeat the fate of many disappeared monuments of history and culture.

Digitized memory

Once strong and famous, but now deserted and dilapidated, it stands alone in the list of architectural and historical monuments of Dagestan. It is located on the top of a steep mountain, whose slopes are cut by two deep gorges, along the bottom of which Bugan flow (“ big river”) and an unnamed river.

With its mausoleums and towers, mosques and sarcophagi, tombstones and stelae, Kala Koreish has grown into the early Middle Ages and actually remained in it, being in a special dimension, where dense time flows slowly and leisurely.

And although very close to it there is a road connecting the regional center of Urkarakh and the goldsmiths of Kubachi, modern times, with its frantic rhythm, cannot be reached here.

Kala-Koreish is connected to the outside world only by a jumper 40 meters long and 5 meters wide. The city was built like a fortress; a narrow path over the steep, almost sheer cliff of the "Magakatt" leads to the only gate that was locked at the slightest danger. And the high two-story houses, with a deaf side facing the gorges, and a system of defensive and signal towers made it almost impregnable.

In the stories about Kala-Koreish, epochs, rulers, reality and fiction were mixed. According to legend, people in these places settled in time immemorial, almost immediately after the Flood, when the surrounding rocks were still washed sea ​​waves. And until now, allegedly, among the rocks that surrounded the fortress city, there is one with a huge iron ring embedded in her body - to fasten the ships moored to the shore with ropes. And lived here, as they say, a courageous and freedom-loving people, who obeyed only the council of elders, who were elected anew every year. Many times the neighbors tried to conquer it, but the gorges were deep, the walls were high, the gates were reliable, and the sentries on the towers did not doze off. And only the Arabs managed to conquer it. After the battle, in which almost all the defenders of the city were killed, the survivors adopted the religion of the conquerors. And since that time, as the legend says, the city began to be called Kala-Koreish.

But these are all legends, but what can be said with more confidence is that Kala-Koreish (or UrkImuts, as the Kaitag people called it) was the capital of the Kaitag feudal possession and the residence of the Kaitag utsmi rulers. The earliest references to Kaitag are found in the works of Arab historians of the 9th-10th centuries. al-Yakubi, al-Beladhuri, al-Tabari, al-Kufi, and the anonymous author of Hudud al-alam (Limits of the World), written in Persian. But the events described there date back to the 6th-7th centuries, the time of the Arab campaigns against Dagestan. More precisely, to the period when the Arabs, under the leadership of Maslama, had already fortified themselves in Derbent and from there began to move deep into Southern Dagestan, asserting their religion and their rulers there.

In those days, there was no single center in Dagestan, and Kaitag, which is called Haidak in Arabic chronicles, acted as an independent state pursuing its own independent policy. The chronicle “Tarikh Dagestan” by Muhammad Rafi tells in detail how the Arabs conquered Kaitag by killing its ruler Gazanfar, whose place was taken by Emir Chufan, one of the descendants of Hamza, the uncle of the prophet. He founded in Kaitag "a large number of populous villages, and chose the city of Kala-Koreish" as his residence, or the Fortress of the Quraish, named after the winners - the Arabs from the tribe of the Qureish, to which the Prophet Muhammad himself belonged.

The pre-Islamic history of Kaitag merged with the new one, and Kala-Koreish became one of the largest Islamic centers of Dagestan, from where ghazis (fighters for the faith), Muslim jurists and theologians moved on, mastering new spaces. However, according to some reports, only the utsmiy and his family professed Islam. In the notes of the Arab scientist-encyclopedist Ibn Rust, dating back to the first half of the 10th century, there is a curious mention of the ruler of the city of Khandan (we are talking about the possession of Haidak). This “ruler,” writes Ibn Rusta, “adheres to three religions, prays with Muslims on Fridays, Jews on Saturdays, and Christians on Sundays.”

Rustam Khan was one of the most famous and influential Utsmi of Kaitag. It said "a state without a ruler, a Dargo without a trial, a flock without a shepherd, an army without a reasonable head will never be." He, like his grandson Ahmed Khan, was buried in the mausoleum of the Utsmi in Kala-Koreish.

Both the German scholar Adam Olearius and the famous Turkish traveler Evliya Celebi, who visited Dagestan in the 17th century, wrote about the Kaitag Utsmiystvo. And Johann Gustav Gerber, who took part in the Persian campaign of Peter I in 1772, left detailed description“the people of Karahaydaki”, “a special Haydak language”, utsmi and its authorities, as well as “a great, strong and strong village ... Kara-Gurash”.

But shortly before that, or rather in the middle of the 18th century, “strong and strong Kara-Gurash”, like most of Dagestan, was exhausted and bled white by battles with an army of many thousands led by the Iranian commander Nadir Shah.

However, Nadir Shah was soon defeated, and in 1812 the last utsmi Kaitag Adil Khan, accompanied by honorary elders of all Dargin societies, arrived in Derbent to swear allegiance to Russia.

A detailed study of the way of life and architectural and historical monuments of Kala-Koreish began later, in the second half of the 19th century, after the end of the Caucasian War. Previously closed, and therefore little-studied territories of Dagestan, attracted researchers, attracted by a motley variety of culture, nature and languages. In 1861, the famous Russian scientist academician Boris Andreevich Dorn visited several Dagestan villages, including Kala-Koreish. Dorn wrote: “We stopped for the night in the Kaytag mountain fortress of Kala-Kureish ... here was the place of stay of the Utsmiy, in the open cemetery I saw the tombs of Ahmed Khan, Mohammed Khan-ben Ahmed Sultan, Emir Khamza utsmiy ben Mohammed ben Ahmed -khan utsmiya and Razi-utsmiya ben Khan-Muhammed”.

In addition to the pantheon of the Kaitag Utsmi, the scientist described in detail the Juma mosque of Kala-Koreish, one of the most ancient in Dagestan. Dorn was the first to note the uniqueness of her mihrab, or prayer niche in the wall facing Mecca. Unlike the mosque itself, which is built from local torn and river stone, the mihrab is carved from a piece - a plastic mixture of gypsum and alabaster. This detail, uncharacteristic of the traditional religious architecture of Dagestan, testifies to the penetration of the culture of Iran and Central Asia. Unfortunately, during one of the restorations, the mihrab was damaged.

The most terrible blow to Kala-Koreish was inflicted in 1944, when its inhabitants were forcibly resettled in Chechnya, in the deserted villages of deported Chechens. And they were able to return to Dagestan only after more than 10 years - after the death of Stalin. However, they settled on the plain, as if they believed that they would not be able to live again in Kala Koreish as masters worthy of its glory and former greatness.

This is how this once powerful medieval city was emptied. Time and nature have worn away his mausoleums and towers; the richly carved door to the mosque was transferred to the Dagestan United Historical and Architectural Museum named after. Taho-Godi, and since 2006 Kala-Koreish itself has become a branch of this museum. Now one person lives here, he is also the keeper of the walls and the spirit of Kala-Koreish. Magomed Ramazanov is 79 years old, he lives in a family home, which he himself repaired. He gets up early, at five o'clock. She makes tea, has a leisurely breakfast and, opening the door, steps out the door.

The bypass starts from the main street. He walks, looking at the skeletons of the houses of his fellow villagers - Magomed was in many as a child, whispering names and nicknames - Mazi, Chanka, Bazhatsy, Vorkuna ... Returning home, he carefully writes down everything that he remembered, and on the hand-drawn plan of the village he notes, who lived where.

You also need to go to the cemetery next to the house, there are 39 tombstones with Arabic names - Magomed cannot remember them in any way, followed by a mausoleum where four utsmias and an imam are buried, the Juma mosque, which he is trying to "restor" on his own. In winter, he lives here in complete solitude, and in spring and summer there is no time to rest - tourists. From all over the world - multilingual, multi-tribal - they come to Kala-Koreish, and then Magomed becomes a guide, talking about the Utsmi, and about the raids of neighboring tribes, and about the grave in which those who once saved in ancient times are buried city. According to legend, during one of the Kubachi raids, their vanguard stumbled upon a girl with a dog who had left the city gates. Of course, neither the girl nor her dog could give a serious rebuff to the enemy, but they fought as best they could. Shouts and barking were heard in the city, and before the Kubachins was not taken by surprise, but a city ready for defense. Well, after the defeat of the enemy, the girl and her dog were buried in the same place where they were killed.

But, in addition to tourists, pilgrims also come to Cala Koreys. For many believers, this place remains sacred. Ziyarat, where they come to worship shrines. And if tourists can afford to drive up to the village in cars, then pilgrims must climb the mountain themselves.

And here the strangeness begins. They say that everything depends on the purity of the heart and intentions. It happens that young and full of strength people can twist their legs out of the blue or they are tormented by shortness of breath, and a completely decrepit old man, who was brought under the arms of his grandchildren, steps up the slope easily, like a young man. And they also say that it happened that a person who spent the night in Kala Koreysh and woke up at dawn could hear the sounds of battle, the clang of iron, the screams of the dying, and in the fog that envelops Kala Koreysh in the morning, figures with swords in their hands and grinning muzzles of horses are dimly seen. .

Magomed does not argue with this, just as he does not argue with the legend of the sea, which reached the walls of Kala-Koreish, and the ships that stood on the pier.

“How can you not believe? I remember when we were resettled, - says Magomed, - they removed the door of the mosque, put it on a cart and, before reaching the river, the bull died. Then a man from a neighboring village took away all the lintels, destroyed the walls, loaded them onto a donkey, and also fell and died before reaching the river. Donkey came home. Most likely, the village did not allow anything to be taken out of itself, it was as if charmed.

It may well be, by the way. This is a place, a protected area, where time has thickened like jam, and modernity, huddled at the lintel connecting Cala Koreis and the outside world, turns back.

Animated stones

Polina Filippova, Executive Director of the Ziyavudin Magomedov Peri Charitable Foundation, talks about the embarrassment on Trafalgar Square and what is common between the tomb of Pharaoh Seti the First, the frescoes of Dionysius and the tombstones of the ancient Dagestan village:

– As far as I know, this story started with an incredible chain of coincidences.

- Not certainly in that way. I would exclude the word “coincidence” from here, everything that happened is not accidental. In fact, life often gives a hint to those who are long and stubbornly looking for their path. Oddly enough, we first heard the legend that an ancient settlement of the Koreishites is located high in the mountains of Dagestan from Western colleagues and ...

- ... went there right away with the intention of filming and digitizing everything? By the way, what has already been done with the help of this digitization and is it really necessary?

- Well, for example, with the help of 3D digitization (and it allows you to make an exact copy of any cultural object), the tomb of Tutankhamun was recreated. Notice I'm putting emphasis on the word "accurate". A scandal erupted in London last year. A copy of the arch of Palmyra, blown up by terrorists, was installed on Trafalgar Square. But they reproduced it from not too accurate photographs. And it turned out something “based on”, with distorted proportions and ornament. Outraged experts called it a falsification.

And here the problem is more serious than the failed show. After all, the heritage of the East was looted at one time, many artifacts went into private collections, and there is no access to them. Or, for example, in one of the Egyptian pyramids in the Valley of the Pharaohs is the tomb of the Network of the First. For the last 40 years, it has been closed, because the flow of tourists violates the temperature, light, and acidic environment, on which the safety of this historical object depends. Consequently, anyone interested in the culture of the East, at best, has to be content with a copy whose conformity to the original cannot be vouched for.

- Polina, I'm sorry, but we are so used to being content with simulacra that I don't see much trouble here.

- I'm afraid that scientists, as well as students who study the cultures of past centuries, will not agree with you. They just want authenticity. There is one more circumstance. Often a person who comes to a museum sees only a fragment of an artifact. In many world museums there is a lonely column, and we do not understand at all what it is a part of. And we can not only recreate the monuments of material culture, but also combine the dismembered into a whole. And, seeing everything in full, admire the beauty and grandeur of the idea.

“Listen, I suddenly felt so pleased that next to the tombs of the pharaohs I stood as an equal to our Kala-Koreish.

– Well, when in December 2015 we went to Cala Coreis as a motley international company, it was very slippery, there was a fog and I didn’t have full confidence that I would take my foreign colleagues and get there myself. But, one way or another, we got to this abandoned village, and saw how vulnerable this unusual interesting place is. Yes, there are no vandals, but there is an impact of the environment - no less destructive. Unique tombstones with the names of Utsmiy carved on them, still undeciphered writings on them, artifacts of the Islamic and pre-Islamic periods - they are being destroyed. And in addition, there are also people who, out of the best of intentions, are trying to save something, having neither special knowledge nor an authentic sample before their eyes. The same mosque, which was restored, not really imagining what it looked like, is already almost lost as a historically significant object.

But something still remains. For example, the wooden doors of this mosque have survived and are now in one of the museums in Makhachkala. They are unique. Although Kala-Koreish is considered the center from where Islam spread through the villages of Nagorno-Dagestan, the settlement itself has a more ancient, pre-Islamic history. There is a legend that these doors, on which, contrary to Islamic prohibitions, animals are carved, used to be either in Zoroastrian, or in Christian temple from where they were transferred to the mosque.

“Wait, there might be some new amazing story here, and if you figure it out…”

– So far we can only talk about the legend. Perhaps this is not a pre-Islamic, but a Persian tradition, in which the image of living beings is not forbidden. To be honest, we do not even set ourselves the task of finding the exact answer. We are simply creating a base, making these objects available to scientists and those who are interested in history.

By the way, these doors made such a strong impression on our Spanish partners that they completely digitized them, and now a copy of them has already been carved from wood. But before she is lifted up into the mountains and placed in her rightful place, we want to different countries make several exhibitions that will tell about Dagestan, the history of Kala-Koreish and the people who inhabited it.

So after the first expedition, we decided that this is exactly what we need. A competition was announced, two young Dagestan photographers were selected.

- Yes, I remember Shamil Gadzhidadaev and Gena Viktorov, they posted photos from Madrid on social networks and somehow very vaguely explained what they were doing there.

- They studied. Two month. And as soon as we returned, we immediately went to the mountains, filmed and digitized every pebble, every tombstone in Kala Koreish. Now the work has already been completed, the mixing of materials has been completed, it remains to eliminate minor flaws. We are planning an exhibition based on what they have digitized; there will be a conference on Kala-Koreish at St. Petersburg European University. After all, not everyone, even having arrived in Dagestan, will get to him. But to tell, to show it to the world is extremely important.

And from the story of Kala-Koreish, first a project to digitize all the monuments of this village grew, and then we joined the large program "Cultural Heritage 2.0".

- That is, you did not stop at Kala-Koreish?

- The guys continue to work in Dagestan, but already on other objects. And when we started talking at the federal level with specialists in the field of cultural heritage preservation, we were given a huge number of objects that need to be digitized. Presidential Advisor for Culture Vladimir Ilyich Tolstoy asked us to work in Ferapontovo. There is a temple of the Nativity of the Virgin with amazing frescoes by Dionysius. And then there are Novgorod excavations and much, much more that needs to be documented.

- Polina, but just start here, and it turns out that this one needs to be preserved, and this one, and there, around the corner, there are still amazing artifacts, and they pull on your sleeve, they demand that these objects be dealt with in the first place.

– Yes, we can digitize several objects a year, no more. Therefore, we plan to organize an All-Russian competition, to select those objects that are of particular cultural value, but require immediate intervention to preserve them. And so that everything that we saved and documented, digitized becomes the public domain, we are now creating a website that will be integrated into the international and Russian network of programs for the preservation of cultural heritage.

- I’m only “for”, but I often heard that, yes, this is an extremely important job, but the world is looking to the future, and we, obsessed with the past, are hopelessly behind it.

- You don't have to fall behind. For example, the Amsterdam Royal Museum, having made its entire collection available to the public, announced a competition for young artists. And this is not a competition for blind copying of masterpieces, but for their implantation into today's reality, the actualization of cultural heritage.

And we have charted the same path for ourselves.

The magic of the place

Eva Rosenthal, representative of the Factum Arte company, on how Lucinda will help preserve unique manuscripts, about homemade sour cream and a rainbow over Cala Koreys:

– The founder of the company, Adam Lowe, is an artist by profession, and initially Faktum Arte was a kind of mediator between artists and modern technologies. Soon, all museums that today may not have heard of such a thing will have to start digitizing their collections in order to preserve them for future generations.

When copying, we use a variety of devices. We develop something ourselves, and we take something ready-made. For example, the Lucinda Scanner is entirely our invention for digitizing manuscripts. But sometimes in the process it turns out that its capabilities are insufficient for detailed digitization of some surfaces. And then we use both a laser scanner and photogrammetry.

The Institute of History, Archeology and Ethnography of the Dagestan Scientific Center of the Russian Academy of Sciences, with which Peri cooperates, eventually received a technique that we developed specifically for their needs. One of the requirements is ease of transportation from region to region during long expeditions.

We have several goals. First of all, we want to preserve cultural heritage for future generations, because nothing in this world lasts forever. We even make special trips to such regions – regions of “high risk”. And the point is not only in wars, civil strife, terrorists, but also in the fact that not all countries have the financial opportunity to preserve such important objects for the whole world. When people simply try not to starve to death, more often than not, their cultural heritage is abandoned, and may eventually disappear. And this cannot be allowed.

The Peri Foundation really wanted our cooperation to begin with Kala Koreish. Of course, going to Dagestan, why hide it, was scary: the news about some incidents with local radicals does not inspire. But then I quickly realized that everything, of course, is not so bad. For all the time that we were in Dagestan, we never felt any threat. And when I got to Cala-Koreish, I was directly covered by the magic of this place. We spent the night in the pilgrims' house. The night we spent there I remember all the time. It was so wonderful to become involved in this antiquity, in this way of life, to wander there, walk, pick flowers. I can't even compare this feeling to anything from my other trips.

Yes, the village seems to be cut off from the world, but inside you feel not isolation, but peace. Yes, far from civilization, there are no amenities, but this is such a colorful, warm, friendly place.

And the fogs, incredible fogs that envelop the village in just a couple of minutes. The morning can be incredibly sunny, clear, and then once - and the veil is like a wall, nothing is visible.

In Kubachi, we were fed milk soup for breakfast. And I ate homemade sour cream. Every morning, a bowl of sour cream with bread. Dagestan cuisine, of course, is amazing. Wherever we ate, it was delicious. Kurze with nettles are still remembered!

One day a group of elderly women came to the village. They made

pilgrimage, moving from place to place for a week, sometimes by car, sometimes on foot. And in Cala-Koreish they climbed with their own feet, and this is very difficult. They appeared gradually: first one, then two more, then three more, then - after 20 minutes - ten more came up. Gathered and prayed. They seemed to me somehow incredible, in traditional long dresses, scarves. And suddenly one of them so casually pulls out of his pocket a super fancy smartphone, a hundred times better than mine, and says: “Can I click on your memory?”!

And what a rainbow we saw there! It was at the very beginning. It was so bright, so close, so solid - it hung over the valley, and clouds floated through it.

curator of antiquities

Magomed Ramazanov, curator of the Cala-Koreish Museum, about how the devils burned the fire, how they met the neighbors, and about compressed time:

- For more than 10 years I have been a caretaker here, I live here from February to November-December, I only come to the city for a salary. And what did I forget there, in this city? I myself am a mechanic, worked for 30 years, retired. At the same time, my cousin, who worked here before me, died in an accident. And since 2004 I have been here instead of him. It's a little strange when your village, where you ran through the streets as a boy, where you lived, went to visit each other, your relatives and neighbors laughed and quarreled, suddenly becomes a museum. And you are with him - as if a guard. Although now it's not very strange, I'm used to it.

I live in my parents' house, I renovated a room there, put some furniture, a bed for myself, I also brought an electric stove, and I live. In the morning I get up at 5-6 o'clock. Sleep reluctance, age, probably. I’ll have breakfast, drink tea and go… “Bypassing” doesn’t sound right, I can say I’m just walking.

When I leave the house, I always stand a little on the threshold. Here, as in Kubachi, the clouds fall directly on the village, whoever is not from here thinks that it is fog, but these are clouds. It can lie down for a week. Through them you look and see: straight ahead - the mountains, a little to the left - the mausoleum, and to the right - the garden. I planted it myself. There are apricots, cherries, white plums, quince, wild cherries, such a bitter one. When they bloom in spring, it is very beautiful, everything glows through the cloud, as if in childhood.

… Mother told how people used to live, but our village is hard to reach, it was hard to earn money to eat. Our family did not go hungry, my grandmother had her own gardens, she hired people, they sowed wheat, harvested, she paid them. But not everyone was like that. When there were famine years, men harvested charcoal in the forest and sold it to Kubachi and Harbuk craftsmen in Amuzgi. And the women went to neighboring villages to sell something, to change. The children went out to the outskirts of the village, crying, waiting for their mothers. Those whose mother has returned will go to bed full. Those who don't have it will go hungry.

… I don’t remember much myself, we were moved to Chechnya in 1944, when I was 6 years old. There was a history teacher in the village while he was alive, together we made a plan of the streets, we wrote down the names, who lived where. Nicknames are also recorded. It was said that one of them once rode a horse home from the kutana and saw a fire. I drove closer, and the devils lit a fire, celebrated. He had a gun with him, he shot into the fire and the devils fled. They ran and shouted "Vorkun-Vorkuna!". So they began to call him - Vorkuna.

… Our village is very old, Urkmutsi used to be called before, then the Arabs came. The Laks were the first in Dagestan to accept Islam; from there the Arabs went down to the Kubachins - they did not accept; then they went down to our village, they look, the place is good, and settled down. And a new name was given - Kala-Koreish. I don’t even know how many centuries our family is, it comes from Amirkhan utsmiya. Here is his grave. There are many other antiquities, there is a grave where a girl, a horse and a dog are buried together. The old people told that during the Friday prayer, when all the men were in the mosque, the village was attacked by neighbors from Kubachi (they had not yet converted to Islam). And the first they met was a girl, she led a horse to a watering hole and the dog followed her. The Cubans killed them. The women saw this and made a fuss. Men jumped out at the noise, 40 young Kubachins were killed. The Kubachins took away the bodies, buried them at night in a mass grave. If anyone asked why you are digging the earth, they answered that we are making a field for grass. They did not want to admit that they had killed so many people.

… I start my detour from the site next to the village. Then I walk along the main street. If there is nettle somewhere, then I mow it, I always have a piece of a scythe on a stick with me. Then I go back up the last street. I look to see if everything is intact, if the wall has collapsed somewhere. Then you still have to go for water, and this mountain, along which you need to go down to the river, is like a horse's back: a thin path and cliffs on both sides. If there is nothing to do, then I go to bed after dinner. Then I get up, I will cook dinner, I have nothing to do and read something. Lately I've been reading books on the history, I wasn't particularly interested before, and there was no time.

But this happens when there are no people. And people come here for ziyarat, even from Chechnya, and tourists come often. When they arrive, you need to show them everything, show them the mausoleum, the cemetery, the mosque. It is strange, this mosque is small on the outside, but when you enter, it is spacious inside, there is a lot of space. One scientist was here, he said that the village is like that - it seems to be small, but inside, like a layer on a layer. "Compressed history" - that's what he said.

But they all leave, and again I am left alone, I go and see if there is a harvest of walnut trees. Sometimes I find myself thinking out loud, as if talking to myself. Or maybe not with myself, maybe I’m talking to the village itself. And it hears

Svetlana Anokhina

Yana Martirosova

Subject: Cala – Koreish - a unique monument of history and culture.

Plan:

1. Introduction.

2.Main part:

2.1.History of Kala - Koreish.

2.2. The role of Kala - Koreish in the history of Dagestan.

3. Conclusion.

4. List of used literature.

5. Applications.

Introduction

Kala-Koreish is the medieval capital of a large feudal estate, the Kaytag utsmiystvo.The settlement was founded 5 km from the famous village in the 7th century by people from the Koreysh tribe (tribe). This place was the first outpost of the spread of Islam in the North Caucasus. The Koreishites founded their settlement on the top of a hard-to-reach mountain, standing at the confluence of five rivers important for the Dargo. Having occupied such a strategic point, they could control trade in the region and at the same time spread their religion

Traditions are passed down from generation to generation that its first inhabitants were Arabs from the Quraysh tribe, which is reflected in the name of the residence. Kala is a fortress. Quraish is a Meccan Arab tribe from which the prophet Muhammad came (according to another version, "Kuresh" means "black", that is, "Black Fortress").

In the Middle Ages, Kala Koreish was an important city, the main attractions of which are the mosque (founded in the 9th century), the mausoleum of the sheikhs and the caravanserai. With the development of the flat in the XVIII-XIX centuries. the importance of Kala-Koreish began to fall, and with Soviet power in the 1930s the last inhabitants were evicted from it.

Now Cala Koreys is a labyrinth of ancient buildings descending from the top of the mountain in terraces, there is also a restored museum and . (1)

Kala-Koreish is notable for the fact that many remarkable monuments of history and culture are concentrated here (a mosque of the 12th-13th centuries with a piece mihrab, semi-cylindrical or “sarcophagus-shaped” tombstones, the mausoleum of the Kaitag utsmi, monuments of Arabic epigraphy, etc.). Together with Kubachi and other neighboring lands, Kala-Koreish is a unique historical and cultural zone.

1.Wikipedia..

Main part.

In the mountainous Dakhadaevsky region of Dagestan a few kilometers from the famous village of goldsmiths Kubachi there is a unique historical monument Kala-Koreish - the oldest settlement in Dagestan, stretching for half a kilometer. For several centuries it was the capital of a large feudal estate - the Kaytag utsmiystvo, an administrative, political and cultural center, the center of the spread of Islam in the North Caucasus. (1)

Qala Qureish was founded by Arabs who came to the mountainous region at the end of the 8th century AD, people from the Qureish tribe, where the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) came from, hence the name Qala Qureish, that is, the fortress of the Qureish. Then it was truly a city and a well-fortified fortress. But what is the history of its occurrence, back to the origins.

In 40 kh. companions led by Salman ibn Rabi in the amount of four thousand brave warriors approached Derbent. The Caliph at that time was Mu'awiyat. When they approached Derbent, its ruler Khakan, seeing the power of the Muslims, surrendered the fortress without a fight. This was the second campaign of the Companions. For the first time they arrived in Dagestan in 22 kh. i.e. in 644. according to the Christian calendar, during the reign of the second Caliph Umar ibn Khatab. The Arabs noticed that there is no single state here, just as there is no single center. They decided to gain a foothold in Derbent and spread Islam throughout Dagestan.

But the local states did not want to give power into the hands of foreigners and could not come to terms with their rule, as a result, uprisings and a number of small battles took place every now and then. And in one of the periods there was a battle between the Muslims and the united troops of the Khazars, Turks and Dagestanis, a battle in which the brave military leader Salman ibn Rabi with forty brave warriors died martyrs.

Only at the very end of the 7th and beginning of the 8th centuries did a new wave of Arab invasions begin in the Caucasus. During this period, the Transcaucasian ruler Caliph Maslyama stays here. Having captured Derbent, Maslyama establishes Sharia rule here, putting things in order and appointing a ruler in Derbent, he returns back to Sham. But over time, disbelief begins to grow here again.. And in 200 kh. or in the 9th century. according to christian calendar

2. Akhmedkhanov K. E. Journey through Dagestan: A Practical Guide. - M.: 1988

the Tabiins again had to take up arms, this time Abu Muslim, the son of Abdurrahman, stood at the head of the army. Having captured Derbent, he strengthens it. Abumuslim subjugates almost all of Dagestan, spreading Sunni Islam here and appointing rulers to various parts of Dagestan. After Abumuslim equips a huge army and personally standing at the head of it, he sets off towards Haidak (then the Kaitag principality) and Zerikhgeran (modern Kubachi). Arriving in Haidak, he overthrows the ruling prince Gazanpar.

Later, Emir Chupan, a descendant of the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him), becomes the first governor of the formed Kaytag utsmiystva, and Kala-Kureish becomes the first capital, the residence of the utsmiystvo.(2)

Kalakoreish played a significant role in the history of the peoples of Dagestan as a major administrative, political, cultural and ideological center of the early medieval era

The role of Kala-Kureish in the history of Dagestan is also evidenced by the large number of first-class monuments of material and spiritual culture preserved here. For several decades, these buildings here were almost completely destroyed. The mosque of the 11th century was destroyed by more than half, once decorated with piece decoration, striking the perfection of decorative motifs. First-class examples of monuments of stone-cutting art have been recorded here. Among them, a piece mihrab of the 11th-12th centuries, tombstones of the mausoleum of the tomb, a family cemetery of the Kaitag utsmi, and sarcophagus-shaped tombstones stood out. The mosque standing in the center of the settlement is one of the oldest in Dagestan.

The Kala-Kureish Juma Mosque is truly one of the most valuable historical monuments in the North Caucasus. At present, it has been restored, the masters have tried to restore it in its original form. The premises of the mosque are - irregular shape rectangle, the length of the walls of the largest of them, the southern one, was 12 m, and the smallest eastern one, 9.4 m. Entering the room, we seem to be immersed in the history of the Middle Ages. The first thing that catches our eye is the four round stone pillars supporting the ceiling of the building, we see laborious and masterful work in them, they are carved neatly and evenly, which shows the professionalism of the workers. The support pillars are set on a low square stone platform. The height of each pillar is about 4 meters; in its shape, none of the pillars repeats the shape of another.

The real decoration of the mosque was a piece mihrab. He was in the south wall

3. Dagestan and the Muslim East. Collection of articles in honor of Professor Amri Rzayevich Shikhsaidov

mosques and consisted of two niches bearing Kufic inscriptions and columns, which also had inscriptions, the decorative possibilities of the “blooming kufi” were used here to the full extent. Moreover, the entire mihrab 3.2 meters high resembles the portal of a mosque. Stucco pano of the cathedral mosque is included in the list of cultural heritage monuments federal significance. Unfortunately, during the restoration, the carving from the piece with patterns was removed, only a few of its samples remained here. Piece-by-piece carving was widespread in Central Asia and Iran (pieces were natural material- a mixture of alabaster and plaster), the walls of the palaces of the Assyrian kings were also decorated with bas-reliefs of alabaster slabs. The absence of the named mineral in the territory of this region and the characteristic Eastern countries the carving testifies to the close contacts of the masters of Iran and Dagestan.

At the very entrance to the mosque, opposite the mihrab, there is a well-preserved tomb stele of one of the most distinguished utsmi, for which he was honored to be buried here. Recently, a scientist from Morocco visited Kala Qureish, examined the slab and the inscription written on it, he said that this slab was not local and that it was brought here.

This stone slab of the owner of Kala-Kureish Akhsibar son of Khizdan 13-14 centuries. The inset Arabic text-semi-kufi reads: “-The Kingdom belongs to the Almighty, the One, the All-Conquering. The owner (sahab) of this grave - in knowledge he resembles the deeds of the prophets, his piety is like the piety of Abu Bakr, his valor is like the valor of Ali, his justice is like the justice of the righteous caliphs, and he is the owner (sahab) of Kala-Kureisha Akhsibar son of Hizdan, may ALLAH enlighten his grave may ALLAH forgive his sins.” Akhsibar is considered the predecessor and possibly the ancestor of the Utsmi.

In the center of the mosque there is a low platform 1 meter long, and a round stand inside it is possible for a jug, apparently it was a place for ablution. Also, near the entrance to the floor, a large clay jug was dug to store a liquid-like substance, probably for fuel.

A two-chamber extension adjoins the western side of the mosque. Judging by the inscription on the wall of the extension, it had the purpose of a room for students, that is, a madrasah. The length of the northern wall is 4.9 meters, and the western wall is about 6 meters. The madrasah was built much later after the construction of the mosque in 1333. It was also half destroyed and rebuilt along with the mosque. The entrance to it is still not big, about 1.3 meters in height with thick walls. Because of the small passage, there was probably no need for a door here. The madrasah itself is located on the second floor, on the first floor there is a room for performing ablution.

Previously, on the site of the modern doors of the Kala-Kureish Juma Mosque, there were carved doors decorated with hereldic lions made in the 11-12th centuries. Now these doors are stored in the national united museum of the city of Makhachkala. They are a unique example of artistic medieval woodcarving. The doors were made from solid oak planks. Front side the edges of the first pair of flaps are covered with a wide strip of a single-groove ribbon pattern raised in relief above the background. In the central part there is a heraldic composition of figurines of lions. The lower panel of the right wing, in the center of which an eagle is carved, stands out with its ornamented frame. The motifs of the ornament and hereldic symbols have analogues with a wide range of monuments of medieval art of the peoples of the Middle East and Western Asia.

Next to the mosque is the mausoleum of the last utsmiy Kaytag. The tomb, which has survived to this day in perfect condition. The mausoleum rises in the middle of the cemetery. From the beginning, the dome of the mausoleum was erected, and later an extension was made in the form of a small room made of local stones. There was also a hazel tree inside the building, they left it and did not cut it down. Now he stands like a faithful guard, towering over the dome and guarding the peace of his masters.

Passing the first small room, we enter the tomb of the Utsmiy. The mausoleum contains the graves of the last four Kaitag utsmi. From left to right, Muhammad Khan, Ali Amir, Ahmed Khan are buried here, on the fourth above the burial ground, the inscription has been erased over time and, unfortunately, cannot be read. Previously, their graves were in the open air. The mausoleum was built in the 20th century. This building was erected by one of the villagers, of course, understanding what benefit he would receive from this in this and another life. A small stone slab (23-23 cm) is mounted in the wall of the dome of the mausoleum, with an incised Arabic inscription testifying to the construction of the mausoleum, it reads ‘’ This house was built by Isa, the son of Hasan-al Qurigi for the sake of paradise’’.

Grave steles and sarcophagus-shaped tombstones occupy a special place among the first-class monuments of stone carving. On the eastern side of the mosque adjoins the family cemetery of the Kaitag rulers with an area of ​​60 by 25 meters, enclosed by a wall almost 1.5 meters high. Over the entire area of ​​​​the cemetery, grave stone steles of the 13th-19th centuries rise of the finest work. Stone carving is one of the ancient types of folk art, it was widely distributed throughout North Caucasus. The earliest stella-shaped tombstones date back to the 13th-14th centuries, and the sarcophagus-shaped tombstones date back to the 11th-12th centuries (in addition to Kala-Kureish, they are also found in Derbent.) Mountain cemeteries have become a kind of reserves for the history of stone-cutting and zpigraphic art of different generations of folk craftsmen. The reliefs of most tombstones are made in the so-called Utsmi style (artificial stone carving resembles the patterns of Kubachi jewelry) and decorated with sacred Islamic texts written in blooming kufi (a later version of Arabic writing). This place is most revered by pilgrims who come here for ziyarat.

Below the fortress there is a cemetery where both ordinary and noble people were buried, it is located on the southeast side of the village on one of the hills. There are tombstones atypical for Muslims - stone sarcophagi, decorated with ornaments and inscriptions. This interesting discovery was made by students of history in 1996. They were covered with earth and only the outermost one was visible from the side of the hill, later they were excavated. They appear in the 9th-10th centuries. The earliest sarcophagi discovered in the Kala-Kureish burial date back to the 11th century. These are nominal tombstones of two juvenile brothers. There are later ones, 13-14 centuries. Such sarcophagus-shaped tombstones on the territory of Dagestan are also in ancient Derbent, this is the sacred cemetery of Kykhlyar, or as it is also called the cemetery of 40 martyrs. Many famous and great people were buried here. Here are those who gave their lives in the first centuries of the spread of Islam. The Kykhlyar cemetery and the Kala-Kureish cemetery are places where pilgrims constantly go, where Muslims try to get barakat and blessings.

Stones for tombstones were hewn from shell rock, one of the rocks, on a hill in one of the nearby mountains. The Maidan where the work was carried out was 50 by 50 meters, it was located 5-6 kilometers from Kala-Kureish. Pretty far away. When the work was completed, the tombstones were placed on a cart and, with the help of bulls, dragged to their destination along a special path. It was quite a complex and time-consuming work, as it was all done by hand. Probably, the graves of the dead, who especially distinguished themselves during their lifetime, martyrs for the faith, were marked with sarcophagi.

The KALA-KUREYSH sarcophagus is also of great interest. It is located on the northwestern side of the fortress. The tombstone - the sarcophagus of KALA-KUREISH is carved from a massive block of shell rock and covered with artistic carvings with pictorial scenes on three sides. On one side, figures of a lion and a lioness are carved in relief, between which there is a heraldic eagle. The lions are shown in profile, but turned towards the viewer, as if guarding the deceased and emphasizing his power. The eagle, releasing its claws, looks at us with one eye, forming a compositional center. On the front side, a relief multifunctional composition is carved - “The Tree of Life”, around which lions and birds are placed. There are no analogies of the sarcophagus anywhere. This unique monument dates back to the 8th-10th centuries, it is believed that the Kufic inscription was applied to it later. Be that as it may, this carved sarcophagus is fraught with many more mysteries.

The territory of the fortress was protected from a possible invasion of the enemy not only by steep mountains, but also by its carefully thought-out layout, as well as the defense system, especially from the side of the road stretched from west to east to the fortress. Along the tops, the remains of the residential quarters of the fortress are dissected throughout by a winding central street from which narrow side streets branch out. Such passages divide the territory of the fortress into small quarters, including complexes of residential and utility premises, usually consisting of 2-6 chambers. Here is the text on camera.

The dwellings towering above the road also served as the defense of the fortress. Separate loopholes were also preserved in the outer walls of the upper floors of the dwellings, apparently keeping the road to the fortress under fire, stretching for more than 300 meters. It was almost impossible to enter the fortress.

Around the fortress, along the main peaks, once there were watchtowers, in the direction of Kubachi, on the dominant eastern ridge, from where the entire seaside Dagestan was overlooked. Through the system of watchtowers, danger signals were transmitted faster than by telegraph and blocked any danger. The period of the 18th century is recorded in bloody letters in the history of not only the Dakhadaevsky region, but the whole of Dagestan. It was during this period in 1741 that from 24 thousand. the Iranian commander Nadir Shah, who has conquered almost half the world, arrives with an army.

Moving through the territory of the Kaitag Utsmiystvo, they devastate individual villages. Some offered decent resistance, and some surrendered to prevent bloodshed. In the villages of Kalkni and Dibgashchi, legends about their desperate resistance are recorded: both auls were taken by attack, the old people and children who remained there were gathered by the Persians on currents and trampled by cavalry. Until now, the place of the terrible massacre “khlishurakhi” - in translation “bloody lake”, has been preserved in the memory of people.

After a series of setbacks in October 1742, Nadir Shah moved his main forces to Qala Qureish. Several weeks of siege of the fortress did not give any result, as soon as Nadyr with his army climbed to the top of the fortress, the brave Kalakureishi repelled the attack and put the army of the Mongol Tatars to flight. The Iranians were surprised by the resilience of the inhabitants of Kala Qureish, their courage and courage. But the food and drink supplies were running out and the famine forced the elders of the village to incline to negotiations with Nadir Shah, on the condition that the Shah leave them at home and fields and forget about taxes. In return, he demanded to give 200 amanats. After long disputes, the foremen found 80 prisoners, the vagabonds dressed them in mountain clothes and gave them to the Iranians, thus avoiding bloodshed. The mass heroism of the peoples of Dagestan in the fight against enemies is striking not only for men, but also for women who fought the invaders on an equal footing with their husbands, brothers and fathers.

Related to the history of Cala Koreish ancient legend about a girl who saved her native settlement from enemies, still walks among the Dargins, who mainly inhabit the area. At the entrance to the fortress there is a small barrow made of stone and a tree, on which, according to tradition, every pilgrim who comes here, as a sign of reverence, ties a scarf or ribbon of fabric. It is believed that in this place there is a grave in which a girl is buried, and with her a horse and a dog. According to legend, once an enemy scout made his way into the village. The enemies decided to sneak into the village at the hour when all the local men were praying in the mosque. But to their misfortune at that time, a girl on a horse and with a dog went down to the spring every day to fetch water. The dog raised a loud bark. The girl managed to hold back the enemies on a narrow road until the prayer ended. She died a martyr's death, but saved her fellow tribesmen ... There is a version that the legend of a girl with a horse is an echo of the legends about the Caucasian Amazons. In ancient Dargin songs there is a mention of a horse, which was placed in the graves of women.

This terrible war contributed to the unity of all Dagestan peoples.

Conclusion.

At present, almost all conditions have been created in KALA-QUREISH for pilgrims arriving at ziyarat. There are many springs near the mountain slope near the river, where the water is cold and healing. One of them is located at the western foot of the fortress on the steep bank of the river. It is still called Utsmian to this day. On the eastern side, near the shore, there is another spring, resembling a small pool from which water flows into another elongated stone container. A prayer room with an arched entrance was built next to it. People who come to ziyarat can stop here, relax, pray or just drink fresh mountain water. At the foot of the mountain to the east of Kala-Kureish, an old caravanserai of the 14th-15th centuries has been preserved, a structure not traditional for Dagestan. Kunachestvo is still developed here today.

Today, Kala-Kureish is included in one of the tourist routes and ziyarats of Dagestan, and the authorities of the republic are trying to restore the complex of buildings of the ancient

4. History of Dagestan from ancient times to the present day. In two volumes. Ed. A. I. Osmanov.

the capital of the Kaitag Utsmiystvo.

Medieval mosques darkened from time to time, minarets rushing to the heights and dilapidated buildings and monuments are preserved for life. Marked with the seal of great taste, monuments of great architecture keep the special traditions of the Muslim religion.

Panorama of the village. Clicking will open a virtual tour.

Fortress-village of Cala-Koreish

We reached the village of Kubachi, asked the locals for directions. It became clear that it would not be possible to drive close to the hill on which the village is located. Wrong car and wrong road conditions (slippery small wet grass in a rut). Gadzhi Murad, my guide, encouraged me on the road, advising me to take some kind of stick to drive the dogs away. Having hung with equipment, and armed, he set off.

About half an hour later down the trail I met a dog. She came around the corner, looked at me and began to growl. The sensations were very unpleasant, especially the next moment when I saw the next pair of legs. But everything worked out. A local resident followed on a horse (unfortunately, I don’t remember his name). Having specified the path with him, I was finally convinced that I was going in the right direction. I had to refuse an invitation to visit, because. time was in short supply. In total, the road to Cala Koreis took me more than 1.5 hours one way. Approximately 2/3 of the way, I basically went down and, only having approached the desired hill, I had to climb.

Located in the Dakhadaevsky district of the republic at an altitude of more than a thousand meters above sea level, this settlement is considered a truly unique place. According to legend, the fortress was founded in the 7th century. descendants of the Prophet Muhammad - the Quraysh, who erected it on top of a hard-to-reach mountain, standing at the confluence of five rivers. The only way to get to the village is along a narrow mountain path that connects Cala Koreys with the outside world. Thanks to this location, the early inhabitants were able to control trade in the region and at the same time spread their faith.

1. Memorial to Sultanov Omar Alievich, a resident of the village of Kala-Koreish, who contributed to its restoration.

About half an hour later I was already walking among the ruins of the village. According to available information, a caretaker, Bagomed Ramazanov, lives in this village. It was not possible to find any of his contacts in advance, so I hoped to get acquainted on the spot. The mosque was the first on the way.

2. Mosque of the village of Kala-Koreish.

Decided to knock. Not knowing which of the doors led to the men's quarters, he knocked on both. But no one opened. I went on to the caretaker's house.

3. Caretaker's house.

Surprisingly, even after all the inhabitants left the fortress, Bahamed Ramazanov remained here - a man for whom the revival of the place where he was born and grew up became the business of his life. In 2012, the keeper of the fortress, together with the Dagestansky Aul Museum-Reserve, continues to restore the sights that have been preserved here and dreams that people will return to live in Kala-Koreish again.

No one opened up for me either. Looking around, I found a note that the caretaker had left to "look for the light" (as it turned out later, the transformer burned out and he left for Makhachkala), as well as a phone number. Called, introduced himself, described the situation. After a short shock of surprise, Bagomed told me where to find the key to the house, and where to find the key to the mosque in the house. Thanking him for this help, I took the keys. I considered it unethical to take pictures of the inside of the dwelling in the absence of the owner. Then I wandered around the neighborhood, took the usual photos.

3. View of the slope. Ruin.

4. General form to the village. In the background: the mausoleum and the building of the mosque. In the distance - the hills, through which the photographer made his way for 1.5-2 hours on foot.

In fact, among all these ruins there are only three buildings: the caretaker's house, the mosque, the mausoleum.

5. View of the cemetery and mausoleum.

6. Tombstone in the cemetery.

7. View of the mosque.

It is here that the oldest mosque in Russia is located. Built in the IX century. it is more than half destroyed. Only at the very entrance is the tomb stele of one of the local rulers, who was buried here, well preserved. Currently, 2 carved wings of one of the doors are in the ethnographic museum "Dagestan aul", and the wings of the other door are in the Dagestan United Museum.

After wandering around the village, familiarizing myself with its geography and shooting sets of ordinary photographs, I started creating panoramas. There were some strange clouds behind the neighboring hill, and I was very worried about the possible cloudiness. I had to shoot quickly. When I had almost finished everything, clouds and fog came running up from behind that hill. I had to pack up quickly and go back. I did not like the prospect of getting wet or wandering in the fog.

The return trip took almost 2 hours. At first I got lost in the village itself - I could not find a path-descent. The return journey was difficult. And I, shod (and dressed) not at all for such trips, and fatigue, and 10-15 kilograms of various junk on my shoulders. 2/3 of the way is uphill, sometimes on a very slippery path. In the end, I took breaks for a short rest every 5-7 minutes. By the end of my ascent, visibility (due to fog) was no more than 7-10 meters. It looked funny. The most unusual sight is the silhouettes of horses (hardly wild, most likely local residents) in this fog. But while I was getting the camera, they fled. Gadzhi-Murat was very glad that I no longer needed to wait (and that the dogs had not eaten) and we drove back to Makhachkala. By the way, the road in one direction was almost 4 hours.

During the entire shooting day in the mountains, I met only one person (that traveler with a dog accompanied). After the cities of millionaires, this is quite unusual.