Russia's mysterious 'city of the dead'

City of the Dead in the Caucasus Mountains near the remote Daragav village of Russia. There are 3 tombs. Photo: Courtesy of the BBC

There are several medieval tombs near Russia's fortified village of Dargavs. The area is called 'City of the Dead'. The old tomb is located on the sloping roof. Each has a window. And there are hundreds of bodies in each room. Some of the bodies are well preserved.

The flesh of these bodies is still attached to the bone. There are more than 3,000 bodies in these tombs. Many dead people were buried in clothes, belongings and belongings.

When the mysterious mausoleum was built just outside the Georgia border, the matter remains unclear. However, historians are gradually unravelling its history.

In the cemetery the bones of the dead. Photo: Courtesy of the BBC

In the sixteenth century, Russia's southernmost agricultural land was used as a graveyard. However, the origin of the city of the dead is unclear. According to one theory, when the area was endangered by the invasion of the Mongols and the Tatars (a tribe of Turkish origin) in the thirteenth century, locals living in the 3-kilometre-long valley in the Caucasus Mountains set up similar structures to store the bodies from the plains.

The pyramid-shaped roof of the tomb. Photo: Courtesy of the BBC

Another theory suggests that this city of death was created in the Indo-Iranian tradition by immigrant Sarmatians living in southern Russia.

The story of the city of the dead may be linked to another history of the region. That is, plague epidemics occurred in this region in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. The plague-stricken people were then taken to the house to escape the infection.

Visitors marvel at the beauty of this place. Photo: Courtesy of the BBC

Many visitors come to this tomb of 5.7 hectares to see the well-preserved medieval setting. Historian Ludmila Gabova thinks visitors come here for other reasons. He said, “The visitors are amazed at the beauty of this place. At the same time, they feel a sense of calm with the eternal fear of death. '