Kazakh Students Find Rare Saka-Era Daggers

The Kazakh Ministry of Science and Higher Education has said that archaeologists and students from Pavlodar’s Margulan University discovered two ancient bronze daggers believed to date back to the era of the Saka nomads.

The discovery was made during a summer field school in the Bayanaul district of the Pavlodar Region, near the shores of Lake Toraigyr, at a site known for its ancient Saka burial mounds, The Caspian Post reports, citing local sources.

Yelena Tusheva, chief curator of archaeological collections at Margulan University, explained that the daggers were forged using ancient techniques from locally mined bronze. While the manufacturing methods resemble those of the Bronze Age, stylistic features of the weapons suggest they are from the Early Iron Age.

“This find confirms that the region possessed advanced metallurgical skills and had strong cultural links with neighboring societies,” Tusheva stated.

In addition to the weapons, researchers unearthed the skeletal remains of individuals associated with the Tasmola culture, a significant cultural group of the Central Asian steppes. Biological analyses are underway to determine the age, sex, and physical characteristics of the deceased. Excavations in deeper soil layers also revealed an older burial site from the Andronovo culture, further enriching the historical context of the region.

Margulan University, named after renowned Kazakh archaeologist Alkey Margulan, has been conducting archaeological research in Bayanaul for over a decade. The institution continues to oversee and protect some of the region’s most important cultural and historical heritage sites.