In the summer of 2026, the Altai State University Research and Educational Center for Altaic and Turkic Studies “Greater Altai” conducted six international expeditions in Russia, Kazakhstan, and Kyrgyzstan.
Over 120 scientists and students from five countries took part in the fieldwork, exploring the archaeological sites and ethnographic heritage of the region.
In the Altai Republic and Altai Krai, archaeologists have studied Turkic memorial enclosures from the Khaganate era and discovered an undisturbed burial mound of the Afanasievo culture with preserved burial goods.
At the Balpyk necropolis in eastern Kazakhstan, researchers discovered a unique warrior burial containing two horses, a rare battle axe, and fragments of a combined chainmail suit. In Kyrgyzstan, scientists have documented new Turkic sculptures and 3D scanned a stele with dragons at the Burana Tower complex for a virtual museum.
The season concluded with an ethnographic expedition bringing together researchers from Russia, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan. The scientists studied the traditional life and beliefs of the indigenous peoples of Altai, documenting common historical and cultural parallels between the peoples of Russia and Central Asia.
