What's in Xixia Black Water City? What is the robbery of Xixia Black Water City?
Speaking of the Black Water City, I believe everyone has heard that it is an ancient country in the Xixia period. This is the first time that Russian explorer potanin introduced this mysterious city to the world. Potanin wrote in his travels from 1884 to 1885: "The Turks said there was an ancient city called Elkharabuk, which means a black city on the east bank of the tributary of Heishui. They say there are still small city walls, which means there are many houses buried by sand around the small city walls. You can find silver by digging yellow sand. Quicksand surrounds the town and there is no water nearby. " The "Elkharab" mentioned in this record refers to the "Harahaote" in the early Mongolian language, and Harahaote specifically refers to the Black Water City. Potanin tried to find the whereabouts of the Black Water City, but he ran into a wall with the Turks. No one told him the specific location of Black Water City, let alone the tour guide service.
Potanin failed to realize his wish, but he revealed the information of Black Water City, which made the explorers in western countries ambitious. In the following years, several western expeditions wandered around the Badain Jaran Desert in search of the Black Water City. Without exception, they were all rejected by the Tuks and failed.
At that time, kozlov was one of the best Russian explorers and visited China many times. 1899, he explored northwest China. When passing by Ejina, he asked the local people about Halahute. Like western explorers before them, the Turkmen did not reveal their secrets to him. Disappointingly, kozlov was able to complete the planned visit to Tibet and Xinjiang. The mysterious Halahute became the goal he will always remember.
Finally, in 1907, kozlov and others had an opportunity. The Russian Royal Geographical Society organized the fourth expedition to China, Mongolia and Sichuan. He was appointed as the leader of the expedition. 1March, 908, in the endless sandstorm, kozlov and his team went deep into the Badain Jaran Desert. This time, kozlov made full preparations. He not only holds a large number of rubles, but also prepares enough weapons to equip a small army in his luggage: 2 1 rifle, 15000 bullets; Six revolvers loaded with 600 bullets. These weapons are not just for self-defense. Kozlov knows very well that if he wants to find the Black Water City, he must get the help of the local people, and these "new things in the west" are the gifts that can most impress Mongolian princes and nobles.
Kozlov and his team first entered the Mongolian monarch's camp. At first, the monarch didn't give him a satisfactory answer. Kozlov wrote in his memory: "The monarch and his two advisers insisted that we thought there was no way to go there. This is a desert of stone or sand, and even the best camel may not reach its destination. " However, after the Russian side paid "high compensation" and polished the revolver into a gift, the Mongolian monarch sent kozlov and his party to the "Alashan Yamen", that is, Turgut Baylor Academy, which has the right to locate the Black Water City. In Alxa League, kozlov gained the trust of Turgut Baylor in the same way. In the military camp of Mongolian monarch and Tehutebele, they made no secret of their keen interest in revolvers and rifles, and often stayed in front of the phonograph for a long time. At that time, the local people's longing for these modern industrial products far exceeded their interest in the nearby ancient ruins. Turgut Baylor, who had an attitude towards Momo at first, soon became enthusiastic. "He asked his guard guide to bring the expedition near the camp and promised to do his best to help us cross the Alashan desert and reach the Harahut site." Bada, who once entered the "cursed land", failed to fulfill the so-called "curse" and became kozlov's guide. Bad luck befalls the "cursed land".
1908 March19, kozlov and his expedition, led by Bada, successfully arrived at the site of Heishui City. He saw more than just the ruins he imagined. An explorer became a robber in an instant. Kozlov wrote in his diary: "We dug, dug, smashed and did everything." During that activity, they dug up many documents and cultural relics, including many Buddhist cultural relics, such as Buddha statues, statues, books and coins. These things are filled with ten big boxes, each weighing 10kg. Due to the limited food and water, kozlov and his party dug for only a few days before returning to the camp. Kozlov did not immediately determine the value of these cultural relics, but just packed them all and sent them to the Russian Royal Geographical Society.
The goal of "discovering the ruins of ancient cities in the depths of Mongolian desert" seems to have been achieved. Kozlov and his party packed their bags and turned to Sichuan. A year later, in May of 1909, kozlov received a notice from the Russian Royal Geographical Society that his discovery of this ancient city site far exceeded expectations. It is a relic of the ancient Xixia Dynasty in China. The Royal Geographical Society of Russia asked him to give up his investigation in Sichuan immediately and return to Heishui City for a larger "scientific investigation". Kozlov nature won't neglect, he returned to the blackwater company again. At that time, kozlov had regarded Shuicheng as "our own Halahute people".
The sight of this city makes kozlov, which is troubled by the ruins, feel very gratified. For more than a year after they left, "no one has been to our dear ancient city." There are ruins everywhere, just like when we left. Even the relics we left behind from the ruins and rubbish have not been moved. "
The first excavation in kozlov was mainly concentrated in the middle of Heishui City, and this time it was mainly concentrated in the west of the ancient city. If the Russians were very lucky to discover all kinds of exquisite cultural relics for the first time, this discovery made kozlov even more ecstatic.
On June 1909, kozlov excavated a pagoda not far from the Western Wall. This tower was later called "Brilliant Sharifutsu" by him. This is indeed a "brilliant" treasure. According to kozlov's memory, the bottom floor area of this tower is about 13 square meters, which is a storage room surrounded by mud and wooden Buddha statues. There are some books in front of the Buddha statue. On the floor where the tower rises, around the platform, there is a pillar in the center of the platform. There is a statue on the wall at the bottom of the tower, as big as a real person. These statues are all colored when they are unearthed. There are also hundreds of books, scrolls and Buddhist paintings with silk coats stacked on the central platform in the tower. It was not until June 20th that it took kozlov and others nine days to move the cultural relics in this "magnificent stupa" to 0. All the books are packed in canvas bags and transported to the camp, and are classified according to the size, shape or some form of logo. Even if some books are only half-volume, the situation is very chaotic and there is no excavation record, so that later scholars can't sort out these precious documents for a long time.
According to kozlov's records, about 24,000 volumes of documents were excavated from the tower. He used 40 camels to transport these documents from the depths of the desert. As the camel caravan could not take all the documents and cultural relics found, kozlov decided to bury some items, including a Buddha statue, in a secret place. He will dig them up and take them with him when he comes back.
1926, when kozlov visited Heishui for the third time, it was already the Soviet era. This is the last time he led a team to Mongolia and Tibet in his life. Within two months, experts conducted a systematic investigation and study on Heishui City. Like the previous two times, they also found some fragments of books and manuscripts, various decorations, pottery and coins. When they visited one of the monasteries, they found some murals and a set of Buddha statues made of clay in the niche on the north wall. This time, the investigation team drew a detailed plan of Heishui City and the plans of some single buildings. However, to kozlov's great regret, he never found the Buddha statue and other buried objects during his second visit, because sandstorms and quicksand destroyed all traces left at that time. They may still be buried there, covered with thick sand, waiting for future generations to discover and study.
These looted cultural relics came to St. Petersburg, which almost made the whole world boil. After kozlov, inspection teams from other countries came to Shuicheng one after another. 19 14, explorer Stan led a British expedition to Ejina Oasis and entered the Black Water City. 1923, an American expedition made an investigation in Shuicheng. 1927 to 1928, Begemann led a Swedish expedition to inspect the Black Water City. These explorations continue the work begun by kozlov. They conducted archaeological excavations in the Ejina Delta and drew a plan of the Black Water City. However, they didn't achieve as much as kozlov, because Russian explorers dug up the Black Water City after three robberies.