The paper examines the flood regime of the Amu Darya River using all available ancient sources and the results of modern observations. It is shown that over the last millennium the river has had a stable flood regime. With a high degree of confidence, this statement can be extrapolated to the period of construction of the Koi-Krylgan-kala, the main axis of which is oriented to the azimuth of the heliacal sunrise of the Pleiades, which in ancient times coincided with the May flood of the Amu Darya.

In Ancient Khorezm, the May flood was of particular importance. According to modern observations, this flood is the first high-water flood of the Amu Darya after the end of the winter period. The May flood could cause significant damage to the irrigation system, so it was necessary to monitor the water level. The time of its onset, according to Biruni, corresponded to the holiday of Vakhsh-Angam, dedicated to the angel called to watch the river. In addition, the significance of the May flood is explained by the fact that it coincides with the time of irrigation works, the moment of which is determined by the vegetative cycle of crops.

Keywords: archeoastronomy, Koi-Krylgan-kala, flood regime of the Amu Darya, using the visibility of the Pleiades as a flood marker.

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Several works were devoted to astronomical studies of the ancient Khorezm monument Koi-Krylgan-kala (Vorobyova, 1967; Vorobyova, 1969; Bulatov, 1988; Mammadov, 2003). A recent study on this topic [Kolganova et al., 2014] shows that the previous results are erroneous. Until now, it was assumed that the main structure of the complex is oriented along the azimuth of 69 o, which is associated with the direction of sunrise in the middle of the time interval between the spring equinox and the summer solstice and (or) in the direction of the sunrise point of Fomalhaut (α of the Southern Fish) [Vorobyova, 1967, p. 254; Vorobyova, 1969, p. 19, 28]. Using the processing of high-precision satellite images from the Google Earth program, it was shown that the main axis of the Koi-Krylgan-kala complex is oriented along the azimuth of 80°. Comparison of topographic plans with satellite images reveals a metrological problem that is associated with indicating the direction of the meridian line. Both true north and magnetic north can be indicated on a real plan, and sometimes the conversion procedure from magnetic north is not always performed correctly. It was shown by [Kolganova et.al., 2014], that in the basic work on this issue, the authors [Vorobyova, 1967] made a mistake in the sign of magnetic declination. Therefore, all the following studies of Koi-Krylgan-kala, which are based on this work, are incorrect.

Based on the data on the Amu Darya floods provided by Y. G. Gulyamov (Gulyamov, 1957, p. 237), we hypothesized that the main axis of the Koi-Krylgan-kala is oriented in the direction of the azimuth of the heliacal sunrise of the Pleiades. According to Y. G. Gulyamov, the third flood of the Amu Darya was called the "Pleiades flood" and began in mid-May. Our calculations show that the main axis of Koi-Krylgan-kala corresponds to the azimuth of the Pleiades sunrise, which at the time of the construction of the structure occurred in the third decade of May.

However, several significant issues remain unclear. According to Y. G. Gulyamov, since ancient times in Khorezm, four floods of the Amu Darya were recorded and there was a calendar of them. If the main axis of Koi-Krylgan-kala is not accidentally oriented to the azimuth of the heliacal sunrise of the Pleiades, which falls on the time of the third flood of the river, then the question arises why the builders noted this particular flood, and not some other one. In addition, the information provided by Y. G. Gulyamov about floods and their names needs to be independently verified. The purpose of this paper is to clarify these issues.

INFORMATION BY Y. G. GULYAMOV ON AMU DARYA FLOODS AND THEIR RELIABILITY

Y. G. Gulyamov provides the following information about the flood regime of the river:

"Since ancient times, there was a flood calendar in Khorezm, in which the signs of certain changes in the river regime were accurately established. The first flood on this calendar was called "kok kamysh tashuvi" (flood of green reeds). It begins at the time when the first, young reeds grow on islands and lakes. This time corresponds to the twentieth of March... The second flood is called "ak-balyk-tashuvi" (white fish flood) and falls in mid-April, since at this time the movement of white fish from the Aral Sea up the Amu Darya begins... The third - "yulduz-tashuvi" (flood of the Pleiades constellation) - falls in mid-May. The Khorezmians timed this flood to coincide with the appearance of the constellation Pleiades... The fourth - "kyrk-chilgav tashuvi" (flood of forty days of heat) begins in the second half of June and ends in early August. Duration-40 days" [Gulyamov, 1957, pp. 237-238].

According to Y. G. Gulyamov, his informant was Babajan Atabayev, head of the Khazarasp water department of the Khorezm region [ibid.]. On the one hand, the above quotation is quite definite ethnographic information obtained from a particular person, so it should be trusted no less than any other ancient, medieval or modern source. Intelligence

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Gulyamov's data on Amu Darya floods are cited in the works of B. V. Andrianov and A. R. Mukhamedzhanov (Andrianov, 1969, p. 97; Mukhamedzhanov, 1975, p. 102) and are used in the work of M. S. Bulatov (Andrianov, 1969, p.97; Bulatov, 1988, p. 51) .1 This means that this information was not doubted by contemporaries.

On the other hand, given the type of professional activity of Babajan Atabayev, it can be assumed that he collected information about the flood regimes and flood names of the river independently and later shared it with Ya. G. Gulyamov. If this is the case, then at least in the first half of the last century there were sources of this information that could have been preserved to some extent. Therefore, it is necessary to find independent information confirming B. Atabayev's data.

General information about Amu Darya floods can be obtained from the encyclopedic literature. According to the New Encyclopedia Britannica, the Amu Darya River is flooded from March to September:

"The Amu Darya's flow increases from March to May, when the snow melts on the plains and rainfall increases, and the flow is further augmented in June, July, and August as the ice and snow of the mountain ranges thaw. The flow gradually abates from September to February. During winter, ice forms along the banks of the river's upper reaches, and, lower down near the delta, Nukus is icebound for from two to two and a half months. As the ice floes begin to disperse in February and March, they jam the river downstream" [The New Encyclopedia Britannica, Vol. 1, p. 358]2.

From March to May, the water level increases due to rain and snowmelt on the plains. In the summer months, the maximum flow level is reached due to the melting of glaciers in the mountains. Finally, starting in September, the river level decreases. This information is supplemented by data from the Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedia, which confirms the stability of the flood regime: "Like the Nile, the Amu Darya has regular floods that occur from the melting of snow in the mountains surrounding its upper reaches" (Brockhaus, 1894, p. 676).

Similar information is reported by Russian travelers of the XIX century. [Taranov, 1885, p. 91; Semenov, 1899, p. 17]. Thus, the Amu Darya floods occur from March to September and have a regular character, i.e. they are repeated from year to year in approximately the same way.

The Central Asian Research Hydrometeorological Institute (Schultz, 1965) presents the general characteristics of the Amu Darya basin to the extent we are interested in. The climate of the place where the river flow is formed is characterized by a predominance of winter and spring precipitation. The eastern part of the basin, which forms the main flow, is located in a mountainous region and is characterized by an exceptionally large distribution of eternal snow and glaciation. The total number of glaciers in the Amu Darya basin reaches thousands, and, in addition, Fedchenko Glacier is located here - one of the largest glaciers of the valley type. Almost the entire hydrographic network of the Amu Darya is located in a mountainous region, so most of the rivers in its basin are glacial-snow-fed rivers.

The Amu Darya is formed by the confluence of the Panj and Vakhsh Rivers, which form the main flow volume. After connecting them, the river makes its way about 1500 km through flat terrain and flows into the Aral Sea. It should be noted that the Amu Darya receives tributaries only in the first 180 km of the route, i.e. after the confluence of the Panj and Vakhsh, and then it loses water to evaporation and irrigation.

1 The only deviation from Gulyamov's information in Bulatov's work is the replacement of the translation of the name of the third flood from "flood of the constellation Pleiades" to "flood of the star".

2 " The water level in the Amu Darya increases from March to May, when snow melts on the plains and more rain falls, as well as in June, July and August - due to the melting of ice and snow in the mountains. The water level gradually decreases from September to February. In winter, banks are formed in the upper reaches of the river, while closer to the delta, below the Nukus, ice formation lasts 2-2. 5 months. In February and March, floating ice forms congestion in the lower reaches of the river."

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During the Soviet era, a network of distribution waterworks, sluices and reservoirs was built to increase the area of cultivated land in the Amu Darya. From that moment on, the water level in the river began to be regulated artificially and natural floods became invisible. The commissioning of new canals significantly increased the water consumption for irrigation and evaporation losses, which subsequently (due to the collapse of the once unified economy of the region) provoked the shallowing and almost complete drying up of the Aral Sea [Borisova, 2014].

For these reasons, we used observations from the 1920s and 1940s to analyze the dynamics of Amu Darya floods and verify Babajan Atabayev's data. On the one hand, the relevant measurements were specially carried out during this period, and on the other hand, the river regime has not yet been significantly changed by hydraulic structures. Here and further, we will assume that during the specified period (1920-1940-ies), the Amu Darya floods still occurred naturally. Therefore, we will consider the flow of the Amu Darya River in these years to be characteristic of "our time", meaning by this term the epoch of the XIX-XX centuries.

Consider the flow diagrams of the Vakhsh River near the village of Tutkaul and the Amu Darya River near the city of Nukus (Figs. 1, 2) for 1942.The first point is located in the upper reaches of the Amu Darya, outside the territory of historical Khorezm. The second point is located in the lower reaches, at the beginning of the delta, about 200 km downriver from the modern city of Turtkul, in the area of which there is the bed of an ancient canal leading to Koi-Krylgan-kala.

According to the readings of both hydrographers, the increase in the water level in the river occurs in March. In Tutkaul, the water level rises after the first decade, and in Nukus - in the third decade of the month. The second local maximum occurs in April. In the first decade of April, water rises at the level of Tutkaul, and in mid-April in the area of Nukus. As in the first case, the delay in rising water is about 10 days. The third flood in both charts occurs in May, with the same lagging trend. Finally, both hydrographs record the fourth rise of water from June to September. Note that all four maxima are separated by clear minima that correspond to a decrease in the water level. The trend of signal delay is traced at the lows and also amounts to about 10 days. For example, the minimum separating the third and fourth floods in Tutkaul occurs at the very beginning of June, and in Nukus-at the end of the first decade.

The first two floods are associated with precipitation and snowmelt on the plains. As the air temperature increases, snow begins to melt in the mountains at higher altitudes, gradually increasing the supply of rivers. The maximum water level is observed in mid-July, a month after the summer solstice. Then the air temperature gradually drops, which reduces the supply of rivers and the water level in the Amu Darya. According to Figure 2, the decline of the water level at the Nukus level occurs in three stages. Water drops rapidly in early August, early September and October, lingering in the intervals between recessions (in mid-August and during September) at stationary states. The presence of stationary states is determined by the mountain profile of the Amu Darya basin and has a simple explanation. As soon as the average daily air temperature drops below the critical value at a given altitude, the river is stopped feeding at this level of altitude. But the opposite situation is also true, which is implemented in the spring. As soon as the temperature rises to a critical value on a certain mountain plateau, intensive snowmelt begins. The third flood of the Amu Darya is determined precisely by the melting of snow in mountain valleys, and not by precipitation and melting of glaciers, which occurs later.

The Nukus hydrograph describes the state of floods in the territory of Khorezm in our time. According to Figure 2, we observe four floods that occur in late March, mid-April, the second half of May, and late June. This completely coincides with the dates of the floods given by Y. G. Gulyamov with reference to Babadzhan Atabayev. The distance between Tutkaul village and Nukus is about 1400 km, and the distance from Nukus to Turtkul is about 200 km. Then the ascent of the Amu Darya River at the level of Turtkul and the Koi-Krylgan-Kala, which is of interest to us, occurs 1-2 days earlier than

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1. [Schultz, 1965, p. 386].

2. [Schultz, 1965, p. 409].

in Nukus. This difference is insignificant, so you can use the data from the Nukus hydrograph without correction.

Finally, the current extensive publication on Uzbekistan provides the following information about floods and their names for the Amu Darya and Zeravshan rivers:

"The flood (villages) turned a low-water river into a formidable force, causing the destruction of dams and the head parts of canals. These circumstances, as well as the constant threat of flooding and centuries-old observations, have taught local residents to predict the timing of floods in advance: the first one (called "sunnik" or "chuk kamysh doshuvi" in Khorezm, "narzov", "ida sosuvi" or "yulduz doshuvi" in the lower and middle reaches of Zaravshan, "narzov", "ida sosuvi" or "yulduz doshuvi" in Zaravshan).leob") is the most fertile, because it brought a lot of silt and coincided with the irrigation period. He visited in mid-May, during the flowering of jida (in Khorezm - "kirk chilgov doshuvi" , in Zaravshan - "garmob" - in June) " [Uzbeki, 2011, p. 110].

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The name of the first flood of the Amu Darya "flood of green reeds" from the above quote coincides with the name of Babajan Atabayev, but there is a difference in the dates. In Atabayev, the flood begins in the last decade of March, and here it occurs in early April. On the date of April 1, the Nukus hydrograph records the maximum of the first flood, after which the water level decreases. The next flood of the Amu Darya occurs in mid-May, and one of its names is "yulduz doshuvi", i.e." Pleiades flood", which coincides with the testimony of B. Atabayev. At the same time, the flood that occurs in mid-April remains undescribed. The name of the June flood "kirk chilgov doshuvi", or" forty-day heat flood", again coincides with the name of Atabayev, but there is not even an approximate indication of its time. The flood regime of Zeravshan is described correctly. According to the Zeravshan hydrograph, this river had three floods, the maximum of which occurred in mid-May, June, and July (Schultz, 1965, p.483). Thus, the above quotation mentions the first two floods, and their terms correspond to the data of B. Atabayev.

A comparison of B. Atabayev's information with the information from the above quote shows that each text contains some details that are missing in the other. For example, Atabayev has no duplicate names " sunnik "and"ida sosuvi". At the same time, the second quotation omits the April "whitefish flood" and the time of the June flood. Therefore, we can assume that these data are collected from independent sources.

In relation to our study, the most significant confirmation of B. Atabayev's information about the time of onset and the name of the May flood of the Amu Darya. The flood occurred in mid-May, and one of its names was "yulduz doshuvi". In our era, due to the lunar-solar precession, the Pleiades sunrise occurs around the middle of June, so the Pleiades have become unsuitable for predicting the May flood. As a result, the flood received a new name "ida Sosuvi" - "flood of Jida", which blooms just in the second half of May.

It is necessary to pay attention to one important detail that we have not mentioned so far. Babajan Atabayev's information on the number of floods and the time of their occurrence can be confirmed by modern data and information from Biruni. It should be noted that the names of the ancient Khorezm months differ from the modern names, so the information on the dates of floods that we have at our disposal is recalculated. We don't know by whom, when, or how well it was made. However, knowing the current flood date, we can calculate the Julian date of the third flood of the Amu Darya in ancient times.

Let's assume that in our time the third flood begins exactly on May 20. At the same time, we use the Gregorian calendar, in which the spring equinox occurs on average on March 21. In the third century BC, the equinox occurred on March 25 according to the Julian calendar. Assuming that the flood regime has been stable for thousands of years, we find that the flood of the Amu Darya River in the third century BC occurred on May 24 of the Julian calendar. Note that this date corresponds to the date of the heliacal rising of the Pleiades that we calculated earlier (Kolganova, Nikiforov, and Reijs, 2014).

Summarizing the above facts, we can draw the following conclusion. Information from the sources of the XIX century does not contradict the data of Y. G. Gulyamov on the floods of the Amu Darya, but at the same time it is not sufficiently detailed for accurate verification. Information from sources of the XX century confirms the number of floods, the time of their occurrence, as well as the names of three of the four floods. Of the three spring floods, the most significant is the May flood. It was so full of water that it could cause damage to the irrigation system. Therefore, its offensive had to be monitored. In addition, it carried a lot of silt and coincided with the time of irrigation works.

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BIRUNI ON THE AMU DARYA FLOODS

Oxus (the Greek name for the Amu Darya) appears in the works of Greek authors Strabo and Pliny, but they do not report anything about the flood regime of the river (Strabo XI. 6-10; Plin. VI. 18-20). The earliest source describing the floods of this river is Biruni's famous work "Monuments of Past Generations". The chapter that mentions the Jeyhun floods (the Arabic name for the Amu Darya) is called "significant days at the Rum". Biruni called Greek-Roman authors rumas, among whom he mentions Euctemon, Democritus, Hipparchus, Caesar, Ptolemy, etc. The phrase "significant days" refers not to holidays, but to calendar days of the Alexandrian year, during which various weather events occur. Thus, Biruni describes agricultural calendars collected from various sources, which were widely distributed in the Greco-Roman period (see, for example: [Ptolemm ee, 1816]). Sometimes Biruni makes his own inserts and gives detailed comments. In one of these fragments, Biruni reports on the Jeyhun spill:

"On the twenty-fourth day [of the month of Khaziran], nothing is mentioned. It is said that on this day the samums begin and blow for fifty-one days, and the Jeyhun River also floods. Sometimes this causes damage to the banks [of the river] and their inhabitants" [Biruni, 1957, p. 293].

Khaziran is the Turkic name for June, hence the Amu Darya floods on or around June 24. Indeed, according to modern data, the next rise of the Amu Darya occurs in the second half of June (Figure 2). This comment of Biruni was known to Ya. G. Gulyamov, who considered it an argument confirming the data of B. Atabayev. However, Biruni mentions Jeyhun spills in two other places.

"On the twenty-fifth day [of the month of Tammuz] - the south wind (Eudoxus, Caesar); the west or south wind (Copts). On this day, it is forbidden to copulate and get tired, because it is very hot. Jeyhun rises on this day" [Biruni, 1957, p. 298].

The 25th day of Tammuz corresponds to the last decade of July, when, according to modern observations, the maximum water level in the river is reached (Figure 2). Biruni is again accurate, Atabayev does not report anything about this flood, but this does not serve as a counterargument to his information. Let's move on to the next fragment.

"On the twenty-first day [of the month of Nisan], there is a southerly cold wind [Hipparchus]; Sinan states that this is often justified. On this day, the water begins to arrive" (Biruni, 1957, p. 286).

The mentioned date corresponds to April 21. Although Biruni does not say in which river the flood occurs, it is most likely about the Amu Darya. There are three possible arguments in favor of this assumption. First, Biruni describes three floods, two of which belong to the Amu Darya. Therefore, the identification of the flood on April 21 with some other river will be inconsistent.

Secondly, all the Greco-Roman sources known to us, if they mention any flood, it refers to the Nile. But this flood date is not suitable for the Nile. In addition, the agricultural calendars of Pliny and Ptolemy do not mention the Nile at all. Therefore, it is unlikely that this information could have been borrowed from Greco-Roman sources. It is most likely that this insert belongs to Biruni, who described the flood of the Amu Darya (Jeyhun) known to him.

The next argument is that, according to the above data (Figure 2), the third decade of April generally corresponds to the second flood of the river. Therefore, taking into account the above facts, it is possible to identify the flood described by Biruni with the flood of the Amu Darya.

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CALENDAR AND HOLIDAYS OF ANCIENT KHOREZM

Consider the pre-Islamic holidays of the Persians, Sogdians, and Khorezmians described by Biruni. The first holiday of the first month of the year is called Nauruz. It is widely known that in our time, Nauruz is celebrated at the end of March, near the date of the spring equinox. However, this was not the case in pre-Islamic times. Consider the three quotes below.

"We will mention both types of holidays available in each of their months, and start with the first one, that is, with Ferverdin Mach. The first day of this month is Nowruz. This is the first day of the new year and its name in Persian has the same meaning. In the past, when the Persians supplemented the years, it coincided, according to their zijs, with the entry of the Sun into the sign of Cancer, then when it lagged behind, it began to wander through the spring months... " [Biruni, 1957, p. 224].

"In the months of the inhabitants of Sogd, just as among the Persians, there are many festivals and well-known venerated days. Here are some of them that have come to our attention. Nausard. Its first day is Nowruz, and it is a Big Nowruz" [ibid., p. 254].

"The rites of the Khorezmians were similar to those of the Sogdians, and the beginning of summer fell on the first Nausarji... Nausarji. On the first day of this month - the holiday of the beginning of the year, that is, a new day, as we said [above]" [ibid., p. 256].

It follows from this information that in Khorezm, the first day of the month of Nausarji was considered the beginning of summer and the beginning of a new calendar year. That is, the first day of summer coincided with the new year. The same holiday was celebrated by the inhabitants of Sogd, with the only difference being that in Sogd the month was called Nausard, not Nausarji. Note that both names are phonetically similar.

Among the Persians, the first month of summer was the month of Ferverdin-Mach. On the first day of this month, the holiday of Nauruz fell, which also corresponded to the celebration of the new year. In this matter, the rituals of the Persians, Sogdians and Khorezmians coincide - the first day of summer is the beginning of the new year.

The entry of the Sun into the sign of Cancer corresponds to the ecliptic longitude l = 90 o and the moment of the summer solstice. Consequently, among the Persians, the beginning of summer and the new year were determined by the time of the summer solstice. Given the proximity of the Persian traditions with the Sogdians and Khorezmians in counting the beginning of the year and the onset of summer, it is logical to assume that in Khorezm the beginning of summer was also determined by the day of the summer solstice.

Six months after Nauruz, Persians, Sogdians, and Khorezmians celebrated the winter solstice holidays.

"[Month of] Faghakan. The first day of this month was called Neem-Sarda, which means "half of the year". On the second day - a holiday, which the Sogdians call Mnid-Khvara. On this day, [Sogdians] gather in the temples of fire and eat a certain [dish] made from millet flour, butter and sugar. Some people place Nim-Sarda five days before this festival, that is, on the first day of Mir-Maha, so that it [is celebrated] according to the opinion of the Persians. And among the Persians, it was obligatory to count the half of the year when six months and two and a half days would pass from the beginning of the year" [Biruni, 1957, p. 254].

"[Don't Die]. On the first day of this month [called] Azdakand-Hvar-in translation: "the day when they eat bread [baked] with fat." On this day, [people] took shelter from the cold, gathered around burning braziers and ate bread [baked] with fat" [ibid., p. 257].

Six months after Nowruz and the summer solstice, on the first day of the month of Faghakan, Sogd residents celebrated the holiday of Nim-Sarda, which means "half of the year". This name of the holiday indicates a connection with Nauruz and the summer solstice, from which the calendar year is counted. The next day, the Sogdians gathered in the temples of fire and ate a certain dish made from millet flour, butter and sugar. In the Khorezm calendar, the sixth month after the summer solstice corresponds to the month of Umri, on the first day of which people ate bread baked with fat.

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From the descriptions of Biruni, it follows that the inhabitants of Sogd and Khorezm celebrated the same holiday associated with the onset of the winter solstice. This is directly indicated by its Sogdian name, as well as the six-month interval that has elapsed since the beginning of the year (summer solstice).

After we have established that the beginning of the Khorezmian year was counted from the summer solstice, we will consider the holidays of the last, twelfth month of the calendar year.

"[Month of] Ispendermaji. The fourth day of this month is called Khizh-meaning "getting up". The tenth day of this month is a holiday among the Khorezmians, called Vakhsh-Angam. Vakhsh is the name of an angel placed [to watch] over the waters, in particular over the Ceyhun River" [Biruni, 1957, p. 258].

The tenth day of the last month of the Khorezm year, according to Biruni, was dedicated to an angel assigned to watch the waters and the Jeyhun River. Calculate the approximate date according to the Julian calendar, which corresponds to this day. The Khorezmian year consisted of 12 months of 30 days each and five insertion days-epagomains that followed them. Let the summer solstice and the beginning of the new year fall on June 21. That is, June 21 = 1 Nausarji, and June 15 corresponds to 30 Ispendermaji. Then the 10th day of Ispendermaji, which is dedicated to the angel, falls on May 25. According to Y. G. Gulyamov, the Amu Darya May flood occurs in the second half of May; according to our calculations, in the third century BC it occurred around the date of May 24, and according to V. L. Schultz's data for 1942, it occurred in the 20th of May (Fig. 2).

It turns out that the time of Vakhsh-Angam celebration corresponds to the moment of the third flood of the Amu Darya. It can hardly be considered a coincidence of the date of the celebration of the day of the angel, who was assigned to watch the waters and Jeyhun, and the time of the third flood of the river. On the contrary, we believe that the day of the angel was specially dedicated to the May flood of the Amu Darya.

It is noteworthy that the name "angel" - Vakhsh-is consonant with the name of the main tributary of the Amu Darya-the Vakhsh River. However, the name "Vakhsh" begins to be applied exclusively to this tributary, apparently, only after the VII-VIII centuries. [Litvinsky and Pichikyan, 2000, p. 313]. Previously, it referred (according to ancient, ancient Indian and ancient Chinese sources) to the entire middle course of the Amu Darya, including its tributaries [ibid.]. For a detailed review and analysis of materials proving the connection of the Vakhsh deity with the water element, see: Litvinsky, Vinogradov, and Pichikyan, 1985; Litvinsky and Pichikyan, 2000, pp. 313-317. It is significant that the Khwarezmian Uzbeks believed in special spirits (who were compared to parishta angels) who lived in the water and controlled the flow and regime of the Amu Darya. Enraged, the spirits could cause floods to wash away crops [Snesarev, 1960, pp. 200-201; Snesarev, 1969, pp. 242, 243].

Four days before Vakhsh-Angam, Khizh festival was celebrated in Khorezm. The Russian translation of the name of this holiday means "rising", and the same word in the English text is translated as "rising" - "rising" [Al-Biruni, 1879, p. 225]. It is quite possible that this holiday refers to the river and is dedicated to the beginning of the water rise in the Amu Darya. Unfortunately, Biruni doesn't comment for some reason. But if our assumption is correct, then the lack of additional information is due to the fact that one holiday complements another. The hut corresponds to the beginning of the rise of water in the river, and after six days the flood becomes so large that it must be specially monitored (for example, to properly regulate the flow of water in the irrigation system). The Vakhsh-Angam holiday is dedicated to the moment of the beginning of the big flood. So it turns out quite a logical system.

It follows that the May flood of the Amu Darya had a special significance for the inhabitants of Khorezm. At least one holiday was dedicated to him, which was called Vakhsh-Angam. Note that, according to our calculations, the heliacal rising of the Pleiades occurred on May 22-25, i.e. near Vakhsh-Angam [Kolganova, Nikiforov, Reijs,

page 23
2014]. Therefore, the orientation of the main axis of Koi-Krylgan-kala to the azimuth of the Pleiades sunrise may not be random.

Let's sum up the results. None of the contemporary authors questioned Y. G. Gulyamov's information about the timing and names of the Amu Darya floods. On the contrary, it was considered reliable because it was actively cited. The name of the May flood of the Amu Darya "yulduz doshuvi" is confirmed by a modern independent source.

The data of the first half of the XX century on the Amu Darya floods confirm the information of Y. G. Gulyamov on the number of floods and the time of their occurrence. The data of the 19th century do not allow for an accurate comparison with the information of Y. G. Gulyamov, but they do not contradict it.

The April and June floods of the Amu Darya are confirmed by Biruni. It marks the moment of maximum flooding of the river, which occurs in July. Biruni's information is fully supported by modern observations. This means that in the millennia since Biruni, the flood regime of the river has not changed. The flood regime of the Amu Darya has remained stable over the past millennium. With a high degree of confidence, this statement can be extended to the period of construction of Koi-Krylgan-kala.

According to Biruni, in Ancient Khorezm there was a Vakhsh-Angam holiday, celebrated on May 25. It was dedicated to the angel assigned to watch over the flood of the river. The time of the holiday coincides with the May (third in a row) flood of the Amu Darya, which highlights the significance of this flood in relation to all others. It is at this time that the first morning visibility of the Pleiades begins.

According to modern data, the May flood of the Amu Darya is the very first full-water flood after the end of the winter period. It was sufficiently deep to cause damage to the irrigation system, so the time of the May flood had to be monitored.

list of literature

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Bulatov M. S. Geometric harmonization in the architecture of Central Asia in the IX-XV centuries. Moscow: Nauka, 1978.

Vorob'eva M. G., Rozhanskaya M. M., Veselovsky I. N. Koi-Krylgan-kala - pamyatnik kul'tury Drevnego Khorezma IV v. do n. e. - IV v. n.e. [Koi-Krylgan-kala-monument of culture of Ancient Khorezm IV v. B.C.-IV v. n. e.]. Trudy Khorezmskoy arkheologo-etnograficheskoy expeditsii, vol. 5, Moscow: Nauka, 1967.

Vorob'eva M. G., Rozhanskaya M. M., Veselovsky I. N. Drevnekhorezmiyskiy pamyat IV v. B.C. Koi-Krylgan-kala s tochki zrenki istorii astronomii [Ancient Khorezm monument of the IV century BC Koi-Krylgan-kala from the point of view of the history of astronomy]. Issue X. 1969.

Gulyamov Ya. G. History of irrigation in Khorezm from ancient times to the present day. Tashkent: Publishing House of the Academy of Sciences of the Uzbek SSR, 1957.

Kolganova G. Yu., Nikiforov M. G., Reige V. Archeoastronomicheskie issledovaniya drevnekhoremiyskogo kompleksa Koi-Krylgan-kala [Archaeoastronomical studies of the Ancient Gorean complex Koi-Krylgan-kala]. 2014. N 4.

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Litvinsky B. A., Pichikyan I. R. Hellenistic temple of Oxus in Bactria (Southern Tajikistan). T. I. M.: East Lit., 2000.

Mammadov M. Ancient architecture of Bactria and Margiana. Ashgabat: Cultural Center of the Embassy of the Islamic Republic of Iran in Turkmenistan, 2003.

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Snesarev G. P. The rite of sacrifice to water among the Uzbeks of Khorezm, genetically related to the ancient cult of fertility // Materials of the Khorezm expedition. Issue IV. Moscow, 1960.

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Snesarev G. P. Relicts of pre-Muslim beliefs and rituals among the Uzbeks of Khorezm, Moscow: Nauka Publ., 1969.

Strabo. Geografiya [Geography], Transl., art. and comm. by G. A. Stratanovsky; under the general editorship of S. L. Utchenko, Moscow: Nauka Publ., 1964.

Taranov N. A. Russkiy bereg Amu-Darya [The Russian coast of the Amur River]. Edited by P. P. Semyonov, St. Petersburg: Publishing House of the bookseller-typographer M. O. Wolf, 1885.

Arifkhanov Z. Kh., Abashin S. N., Alimov D. A., Moscow: Nauka Publ., 2011.

Shultz V. L. Reki Srednoi Azii [Rivers of Central Asia]. Parts I-II. L.: Gidrometeoizdat, 1965.

Al-Biruni. The Chronology of Ancient Nations / Translated and Edited by C. Edward Sachau. L.: William H. Allen and Co, 1879.

Pliny. Natural History: Books 3-7 / Translated by H. Rackham. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press, 1989.

Ptolémée. Apparitions desfixes et annonces / traduitcs du grec par M. l' abbé Halma, 1816.

The New Encyclopedia Britannica, Amu-Darya. Vol. 1. 1991.

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