Treasures from the origins
In 2007, a Kazakh economist with a passion for archaeology stumbled across some impressive geometric shapes on the ground while surfing Google Earth. He didn't know it at the time, but he had just made a fascinating discovery: geoglyphs, the oldest of which date back 8,000 years! These drawings (crosses, quadrilaterals, circles, swastika...) are visible only from the air, and are made up of a succession of hundreds of earthen mounds, trenches and wooden ramparts. The most impressive, located not far from the village of Ushtogaysky, is a square made up of 101 mounds. Nasa has now taken up the challenge of unlocking the secrets of this age-old architecture! Kazakhstan is also rich in petroglyphic sites. Here, people used pointed stones to carve motifs into smooth rock covered with a natural patina, allowing them to play with the effects of light and shadow. A Unesco World Heritage site, the Tanbaly petroglyphs, the oldest of which date back to the Bronze Age, include superb representations of idols, testifying to the sacred dimension of the site. The entire canyon was used for funerary purposes by various nomadic peoples, as evidenced by the numerous mounds and sacrificial altars found there. The most astonishing example of this sacred architecture is the mausoleum unearthed in 2016 in the Karaganda region. More than 3,000 years old, it impresses with its pyramidal structure built of earth and reinforced by stone slabs on the outside. Its interior layout reflects the hierarchical structure of society at the time, with the chief's burial chamber at the top of the pyramid. Nomadic civilizations dotted the great Eurasian steppes with two types of structures that bear witness to a culture blending power and sacredness. The most famous of these is the 6 m-high, 60 m-circumference Kurgan of Iessik, where the famous armor of the "Golden Man" was found. The juxtaposition of these royal kurgans created vast necropolises revealing burial chambers with astonishing earthen vaults and elegantly carved stones. The Boralday necropolis houses 52 kurgans, the largest of which is 20 m high and 150 m in diameter. Their balbals, or carved totemic stones, found throughout the country, are further fascinating witnesses to the culture of nomadic chiefs, for whom the yurt remains the preferred form of dwelling. The circular shape of the yurt is both practical, as it can withstand the violent winds of the steppes, and symbolic, as it represents the perfection of the cosmos. Easily portable and dismantled thanks to a rope system, it consists of a wooden frame onto which layers of skins or white felt are laid. The interior reveals a fascinating wealth of craftsmanship: painted and carved wooden furniture, carpets and mats woven in floral or geometric patterns, an abundance of colors... nomadism has never prevented luxury!
Splendors of Islam
In the rocky region of Mangistau, you can discover astonishing underground mosques, originally used as hermitage caves by desert ascetics. Whether man-made or formed by erosion, these sacred cavities are often close to necropolises with richly ornamented and stylized tombs. The necropolis of Kochkar Ata and the mosque of Chakpak-Ata with its five halls, one of which is hypostyle (with a column-supported ceiling), are fine examples. The ancient corridors of the Silk Road are dotted with the remains of former trading colonies and princely cities built for the glory of the khans. They can be recognized by their fortified silhouettes, with the tallest towers reaching 15 m in height. Sheltered by the ramparts, caravanserais and palaces can be found. The winding streets and lively bazaar squares, meanwhile, are lined with small one- or two-storey houses, with neighborhoods divided according to activity (crafts, farming, etc.). The Jetyssou region is full of such examples. Until the 12th century, the preferred materials were bricks and terracotta tiles, sometimes reinforced with small stones or wood. Mosques, often square in plan, are organized around a vast central courtyard flanked by minarets and bordered by 4 iwans. In Persian tradition, the iwan is a vaulted room open at one end and facing the mihrab (prayer niche). These high portals protect the courtyard from prevailing winds and provide a platform for nomads to set up their yurts. The exteriors are characterized by the astonishing use of bricks, whose vertical and horizontal layouts create zigzags and other networked patterns (bannai technique). Sayram is one of the country's oldest settlements. It boasts some very fine domes, as well as the Kydyra minaret, whose brick structure reaches 15 m in height. Under the Karakhanids, this classical architecture gained in richness. In Taraz, the famous Mausoleum of Aisha Bibi is one of the most beautiful, nicknamed the Kazakh Taj Mahal. Built of terracotta bricks with layouts representing some 50 different motifs, the mausoleum is surrounded by sumptuous gardens.
But it was in the 14th century, under the Timurid dynasty, that architecture underwent a major change. During the conquests launched by the powerful Tamerlane, scientists and artists were systematically kidnapped to be placed at the empire's disposal and used to build prosperous new cities. It was they who developed a new vaulting system that, thanks to transverse arches, enabled ever larger spaces to be covered. Under the Timurids, monumentality and decorative richness were key. Mausoleums and mosques were often grouped together in a large common structure known as a khanaqa. Arabesques, floral scrolls and calligraphic inscriptions adorn the glazed and colored ceramic tiles, which form elegant mosaics and relief motifs. The most sumptuous form of decoration is called lajvardina and consists of a turquoise-blue glaze base on which the glazes are then laid. Jasper and jadeite are often used to carve tombstones. The finest example of this Timurid wealth is the Mausoleum of Ahmed Yasawi in Turkestan. The iwan that gives access to the building is 50 m wide, while the main dome stands 37 m high and measures almost 18 m in diameter. Wall paintings, alabaster stalactites, glazed tiles with geometric motifs, epigraphic ornaments, a richly carved wooden door - everything is pure refinement. And don't miss the mausoleum mosque, with its superb turquoise-blue and white tiles. As Tamerlane died before the work was completed, the main facade was deliberately left unfinished... which is why you can still see bits of scaffolding stuck in the masonry!
Russian and Soviet influence
The first Russians settled in modest log cabins. Gradually, the pioneers became settlers, and forts and forts were built all over the place to establish the Russian presence in the territory. The tsarist empire worked to adapt Kazakh territory to its needs, developing railroads and new industries. The Russian middle class settled in enclaves that could be recognized by their astonishing modernity: a grid layout of elegant tree-lined avenues lined with mansions featuring superb woodwork, gas lighting and the creation of leisure architecture, including museums and theaters with beautiful painted brick decorations. The styles favored at the time were a skilful blend of neo-Byzantine, Baroque and neoclassical. The finest examples of this early Russian architecture are the Orthodox churches, with their distinctive wooden frames, bulbous golden domes and pastel facades. In Almaty, the Ascension Cathedral, in the heart of the 28-guard Panfilov Park, is one of the most famous. Its all-wood structure was assembled without a single nail! In the villages, small huts give way to elegant houses with A-shaped structures and beautifully carved and painted door and window frames, offering beautiful contrasts with the rough-hewn wood. It's not uncommon to see a mix of different influences, notably Islamic and Chinese, with some mosques taking inspiration from the great Timurid domes, Asian pagodas and Russian wooden architecture. The town of Semei preserves an astonishing example: the Anet Baba Kishikuly mosque. During the Soviet period, architecture oscillated between monumentalism and functionalism. First and foremost, it was a question of imagining a new urbanism in line with the regime's egalitarian and hygienic standards, in which all traces of the past would be erased. Mosques and bazaars were systematically destroyed or transformed. Public buildings, for their part, are entirely designed for the glory of the regime. Drawing their inspiration from ancient codes, Soviet architects used and abused arcades and colonnades to create veritable modern temples. This was complemented by extensive decorative work, as evidenced by the numerous gold and coloured mosaics and bas-relief sculptures adorning the facades of the buildings. Almaty is home to some fascinating reminders of this period, such as the Palace of the Republic, with its astonishing cantilevered glass and concrete structure; the unmistakable Hotel Kazakhstan, with its crown atop its 26 storeys; the Auezov Theatre, an imposing concrete monolith; or the yurt-shaped State Circus and the Arasan Baths, a blend of brutalism and oriental tradition. As factories and industries prospered, the new workforce had to be housed quickly and cheaply. New urban centers sprang up, dominated by large, soulless concrete blocks. Pavlodar is a perfect example. In addition to this industrial and standardized architecture, there are military, nuclear and prison infrastructures. The remains of the Stalinist Karaganda labor camp, known as KarLag, which at its peak covered an area larger than France, and the gigantic Baikonur Cosmodrome (6,717 km2 of platforms, launch pads and silos) and its ghost town, are among the most infamous witnesses to this Soviet occupation.
Since 1991
In 1997, President Nursultan Nazarbayev decided to transfer the capital from Almaty (too socialist for him) to Astana. Self-proclaimed chief architect of the city, which he renamed Nur-Sultan for the occasion, Nazarbayev wanted to turn it into an exuberant city all to his own glory. He wanted to legitimize his power by multiplying references to past architecture (at the city's inauguration, he even performed the ritual of purification by fire performed by the great khans) and to demonstrate his visionary power through monumental, futuristic architecture. To achieve this, he called on some of the world's greatest contemporary architects. Although his initial plan, based on the principles of symbolic and organic urbanism, was not retained, Nazarbayev having opted for axiality and monumentality, Kisho Kurokawa nevertheless designed the new terminals for Nursultan-Nazarbayev airport. Italian architect Manfredi Nicoletti designed the Concert Hall, whose large turquoise glass wings recall both a bird and the Dombra, a traditional two-stringed instrument. In 2017, the city is hosting the World Expo "Astana 2017", whose main theme is renewable energies, even though the entire project is financed by... oil. Adrian Smith and Gordon Gill imagined an immense central pavilion with a glass bridge suspended above a gigantic sphere nicknamed "Death Star". Pyramids, golden cones, mirrored towers - the craziest buildings were erected, costing the country the modest sum of three billion dollars! But the architect who did most to transform the face of Astana was undoubtedly the British architect Norman Foster. He is responsible for the Palace of Peace and Reconciliation, an enigmatic silver pyramid crowned by a stained-glass lantern; the Nazarbayev Center, a gigantic stone bowl topped by a 90-metre glass eye offering views of the 20,000m2 white marble Presidential Palace ; or the Khan Shatyr Entertainment Center, an enormous transparent structure in the shape of an asymmetrical tent, 150 m high, housing a miniature city. Other emblematic buildings include the 97 m-high Bayterek Tower, crowned by a golden sphere symbolizing the egg that Samrouk, the country's mythical bird, is said to have laid on the Tree of Life. The Hazrat Sultan mosque boasts the country's largest dome (51 m high, 28.1 m in diameter), flanked by 4 minarets 77 m high, while the Abu Dhabi Plaza, an undulating obelisk 311 m high, is soon to take pride of place in the center of the city. The city already boasts more than 50 skyscrapers over 100 m tall! Far from having created a coherent, harmonious city, Nazarbayev's ambitions have, in fact, helped to create a kind of city fragmented into scattered centers linked by urban highways, whose monumentality almost erases the presence of numerous green spaces.At the same time, other urban centers such as Almaty are also experiencing an architectural boom, with glass and steel towers and standardized residential buildings rising from the ground, while their outskirts are covered with precarious, unhealthy self-buildings. Faced with these trends, some architects are trying to develop more sustainable projects. Modular ecolodges (Tenir Eco Hotel), sculpture-architecture that questions space (Minima Maxima in Astana), pedestrian and vegetated bridges, glass and wood terminals inspired by traditional yurts (Almaty airport) are among the innovative ideas sketched out to design the Kazakhstan of tomorrow.
