Noin Ula

the burial ground of Hunnish nobility from the end of the first century B.C. to the beginning of the first century A.D., located in the mountains of Noin Ula in northern Mongolia. There are more than 200 large barrows up to 2 m high.

The burial ground was excavated in 1924 and 1925 under the direction of P. K. Kozlov and later by the Committee of Science of the Mongolian People’s Republic. The excavations produced a wealth of material characteristic of the Hunnish culture during the period of the Han Dynasty in China, when there were close cultural and family ties between the Hunnish nobility and the Chinese court. Inside the barrows were square burial chambers made of logs. Among the finds were Hunnish artifacts—weapons, household utensils, and art objects—and many Chinese items made of bronze, jade, and lacquered wood, as well as Chinese silks. Of special interest were woolen fabrics of great artistic value from Bactria, Parthia, and Asia Minor. The Huns acquired these fabrics as a result of active trade along the Great Silk Road.