Uzundara fortress

The Uzundara border fortress was a key strategic point in the extensive defense system of the northern borders of the agricultural oases of ancient Bactria against nomadic raids. The fortress was masterfully positioned by the military strategists of ancient Bactria in a small space among the sheer granite walls of the Kara-Kamar ravine and the Uzun-Dara Gorge, atop the waterless Mount Suzistag. It was one of the important links in the border system of fortifications erected on the border of Sogdia and Bactria no later than the early 3rd century BCE. From the height of the fortress towers, the military garrison controlled vast territories, overseeing roads and mountain passes for dozens of kilometers.

The stone fortress, located in the foothills of Baysun at an altitude of over 1,700 meters, had powerful fortifications in the form of double fortress walls reinforced with 13 towers and sections of outer walls stretching up to 1 kilometer. The fortress was situated between the Uzun-Dara Gorge and the Kara-Kamar ravine, effectively blocking the mountain passage into the valley.

Thanks to the quality of materials used in the construction of the fortress, the walls, built of stone on a clay mortar, have retained their original appearance for over 2,000 years and still stand up to 5 meters high.

The mountain fortress has two basements, the floors of which were originally lined with lead plates. Outside the fortress, there was a trading square where local residents brought goods for the garrison soldiers.

The Uzundara fortress was first discovered by Academician Edward Rtveladze of the Academy of Sciences of Uzbekistan in 1991. He also suggested that the fortress could be one of the so-called “Rocks” mentioned in ancient sources, which were stormed by Alexander the Great. The fortification (refuge) on such a rock belonged to the Bactrian Oxyartes, whose daughter—the famously beautiful Roxana—became the wife of Alexander the Great.

As a result of archaeological research, scientists have been able to determine the location of the northern borders of the Bactrian state. Among the main finds discovered during the expedition were unique coins from the Hellenistic period depicting Alexander the Great, Antiochus I, and all the rulers of the Greco-Bactrian Kingdom from Diodotus to Heliocles.

Additionally, a large number of arrowheads and dart tips were discovered, confirming the occurrence of major battles, particularly on the eastern side of the fortress, and vividly illustrating the possibility of a breach in the fortress.

The fortress existed for approximately 150 years and was destroyed during the reign of one of the last Greco-Bactrian kings between 171 and 166 BCE as a result of the invasion of the nomadic tribes of the Saka and Yuezhi.