Devkeshen

The city Vizier, which has been praised for its flourishing in medieval manuscripts, has been dubbed by the locals as Devkeshengala. It is one of the most amazing monuments of Northern Turkmenistan. Devkeshengala is located on a 30-meter-high cliff in Ustyurt.

As you look down, you will be amazed by the huge wall of the monument. Outside the fortress, a pit was dug on the slope of the rocky hill. This pit has a very strong impression on tourists, because it is his wonder that the monument is associated with the name of the mythical figure that is called Döwkesen (the hero of Turkmen fairy tales, a pit was dug by a giant).

In the 16th century, the famous British ambassador and traveller Anthony Jenkinson visited the city Vizier. In 1558 he travelled to Northern Turkmenistan by caravan. Jenkinson heads from Astrakhan to Mangishlak, where the Turkmens live, and then to the Aral Sea. In his memoirs, he emphasizes that life in Central Asia flourished in the 16th century. He especially praises the two Turkmen cities - Devkeshen and Kunya-Urgench.

According to Jenkinson, “The city Vizier is located on a great natural hill. The southern part of the fort was surrounded by low but very fertile lands. Very tasty fruits and melons are grown here, and the taste and sweetness of Turkmen melons are very different from those of other places, as if they were made of sugar, and the locals eat it instead of drinking sweet juice after a meal. The watermelon of this country is also very tasty, it is bigger than cucumber and as sweet as sugar, and there is also a cereal plant, which is called sesame, which grows very similar to sugar cane, its grains resemble rice, and the grapes are more like honeysuckle grapes. The city is supplied with water through dams drawn from the Ox River.”

He then points out that there is a shortage of water here due to the depletion of the river. In fact, as early as the next century, the city of Vizier-Devkeshen was abandoned due to a lack of water and gradually began to disintegrate.

Three unnamed mausoleums and a simple mosque have been preserved within the ruins of the ancient city of Devkeshen. These buildings are no longer as magnificent as the masters of the past centuries, but they still contain many features of the classical monuments of their time.