Form of monument: Sacral object
Date of monument: era of early iron
Location of monument: Aktobe oblast, Temir region, in 4,6 km to south-east from Kenkiyak village
Researches: Information about this necropolis can be found in the works of P.I. Rychkov and A.I. Levshin. P.I. Rychkov in his work «Topography of the Orenburg province» wrote the following about the Maulimberdi necropolis: «From those places a day’s distance away, along the river Ati-Uil, Kyrghiz call St. Mavlyum koe-Berdy, a sign of the city of stone, from 30 to 40 brick buildings are seen there, a canal is found there as well as arable farming». In 1955 the necropolis was studied by S. Sorokin and in 2002 by S.M. Vinogradov.
Brief description: The territory where the ruins of a medieval mausoleum were discovered is called the St. Maulimberdi necropolis. This necropolis is located on the right bank of the Temir River and includes the medieval mazars, graves of 18th – mid 20th century Kazakhs as well as archaeological mounds of the early Iron Age.
Legend: according to stories, this is the burial place of St. Maulimberdi the son of Asan kaygy, who lived around the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. That is why this area, where people have been buried for several centuries, has been called a saint. The appearance of the necropolis is associated with the Nogays, who in the early 17th century, before the attack of the Kalmyks-Torgauts, stretched an irrigation system from the Temir River. According to the story of Sarykol resident, 75-year-old aksakal Bolysbaiuly Mendykul. At the end of the 50s there were many monuments in the form of embankment hills, but many of them were leveled to the ground in this necropolis. According to oral sources, the medieval town of Kyzylkala was located in the vicinity of the necropolis.
«Maulimberdi or Maulet berdi» means «who created conditions», «who created opportunities». Therefore, it can be assumed that the place was fertile.
The area is named after Maulimberdi, who lived in the Nogai era in the 15th century. There is a necropolis of Kelimberdi 6 km away from this place. According to folklore, the place where Temir flows into Zhem was Asan Kaygi’s winter hut and summer camp. Maulimberdi and Kelimberdi are called saints of the Nogai family. In this regard, we can assume that these saints were famous personalities among the Nogai of the river Zhem valley, who lived in the XV-XVII centuries during the Nogai-Kazakh era.
Each object of this necropolis, from the Iron Age to the XV-XVI centuries, is of great interest to researchers of Kazakh history and architecture.