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Toprak-Kala

Toprak-Kala, in modern Karakalpakstan, Uzbekistan, was an ancient palace city and the capital of in Chorasmia in the 2nd/3rd century CE, where wall paintings, coins and archives were discovered. Its history covers a period from the 1st to the 5th century CE. It is part of the "Fifty fortresses oasis" in modern-day Uzbekistan.

Toprak-Kala palace city
Toprak-Kala appears to have been built by Artav (Artabanos), ruler of Khwarezm, in the 1st or 2nd century CE. The establishment of Toprak-Kala probably followed the abandonment of Akchakhan-Kala, 14 km to the southwest. Wall paintings representing Zoroastrian deities were discovered in the Palace. Others have analysed the coinage evidence as indicating that the Kushan did not control Khwarezm. Several high-reliefs of standing figures drapped in robes of Hellenistic style, which are thought to derive from the style of the Greco-Buddhist art of Gandhara, reflecting the influence of the Kushan Empire, were discovered in the ruins of Toprak-Kala. This abundant sculptural work may also have been accomplished by artisans from nearby Bactria, where a Hellenistic tradition remained active since the time of the Greco-Bactrian kingdom. File:UZ Toprak Kale t2.jpg|Toprak Kala ruins File:Toprak-Kala 03.jpg|The palace In the ruins of Toprak Kale.jpg|Toprak Kala ruins Artifacts File:Топрак-кала, выставочные материалы 09. Part of a sculpture. Alabaster with traces of paint.jpg|Male head with helmet. Alabaster with traces of paint. High Palace (2nd-3rd century CE) File:Топрак-кала, выставочные материалы 13. Face of a woman.jpg|Face of a woman Fragment of a wall painting. Harpist's Hall (2nd-4th century CE). File:Топрак-кала, выставочные материалы 12. Fragment of a wall painting. 2nd-4th centuries. Clay base, mineral paints.jpg|Fragment of a wall painting. 2nd-4th centuries. Clay base, mineral paints File:2nd cent-6th cent CE Wall Painting Woman 2nd-3rd cent CE (3).jpg|Wall painting found in Toprak-Kala (2nd-3rd century CE) File:Топрак-кала, выставочные материалы 07.jpg|Torso of Anahita File:Топрак-кала, выставочные материалы 02. Mosaic.jpg|Mosaic ==Nearby Kyzyl-Kala fortress==
Nearby Kyzyl-Kala fortress
The small fortress of Kyzyl-Kala, also "Qyzyl Qala" ("Red fortress") is located nearby, 1 km to the west, and was also built in the 1st-4th century CE, possibly as a fortified defense for the site of Toprak-Kala (). Kyzyl-Kala was once restored in the 12th century CE. It has also been the subject of a modern renovation program, with the objective of showing what a fortress looked like originally. ==Related sites==
Related sites
Toprak-Kala is somewhat related to another archaeological site 30 km to the southeast, Koi Krylgan Kala, another major component of the "Fifty fortresses oasis". ==References==
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