Archaeological complex of Tamgaly or Tanbaly is located 170 km northwest of the southern capital of Kazakhstan in Tamgaly valley. It is one of the oldest historical monuments of rock art.
It was first discovered in 1957 by an expeditionary team led by Anna Maksimova. Later they were investigated by archaeologists as A.N. Maryashev, A.S. Ermolaeva and A.E. Rogozhinsky.
In 2003, the Tamgaly State Historical, Cultural and Natural Reserve was established here. The next year, the complex was included in the UNESCO World Heritage List.
On its territory there are more than a hundred monuments dating from different eras. The most famous of them are petroglyphs, ancient images carved on rocks and stones. The tumuli, mounds, altars and ancient quarries cause a great interest among tourists. The most ancient petroglyphs of Tamgaly date back to the Bronze Age, and the newest date back to the 14th century AD. The average age of the drawings is more than four thousand years. The core of the archaeological complex is a canyon where the scientists found about three thousand petroglyphs.
For many centuries, the rocks of the canyon in Tamgaly valley remained a place for rituals and magical rites, a place of worship for gods and spirits. Numerous petroglyphs depict animals and the hunt (bulls, horses, deer and wolves), courageous warriors with weapons and deities with halos over their heads. They also found images of women giving a birth and scenes of an erotic nature.
You can get to Tamgaly from Almaty by car in about 4 hours. There are several excursions on the territory of the complex, accompanied by a local guide.
