Medieval Kurgans With Mustaches Unearthed in Kazakhstan

ULYTAU, KAZAKHSTAN—Ten medieval burial mounds, or kurgans, have been discovered in central Kazakhstan, according to a Live Science report. Archaeologist Zhanbolat Utubaev of the Margulan Institute of Archaeology said that three of the mounds are topped with stone ridges known as mustaches. Excavation of one of the kurgans without a mustache uncovered the remains of a man and a triangular arrowhead. The kurgans are thought to have been constructed by a nomadic group prior to the Mongol conquest of the region in the thirteenth century, Utubaev concluded. To read about excavations of a kurgan in eastern Kazakhstan, go to "Iron Age Teenagers."