Feature: China-Central Asia archaeological cooperation extends exchanges along Silk Road

TASHKENT/BISHKEK, Oct. 12 (Xinhua) -- Archaeological finds are being sorted and examined at a laboratory in Bukhara Region, Uzbekistan, and Wang Shujing is working there for the joint study of an ancient burial site along the Silk Road.

The slope of the burial passage, the arrangement of human remains -- thanks to 3D modelling technology -- the original layout of the Gamkhurd I burial site gradually takes shape on the computer screen.

Wang, from the School of Archaeology and Museology of Peking University, is the leader on the Chinese side of a Sino-Uzbek archaeological expedition, which started in August 2025 with the Samarkand Archaeological Institute.

The team's work includes field excavations of the Gamkhurd I burial ground, where the Bukhara oasis and the desert steppe join in Navoi Region.

Based on burial structures and the characteristics of those unearthed, the joint archaeological team tentatively dated the burial ground to between the 2nd century BC and the 2nd century AD -- a period coinciding with major migrations across the Eurasian steppes and intensified interactions among civilizations along the ancient trade route of the Silk Road.

The team incorporates Chinese specialists in natural sciences and modern material analysis techniques, enabling in-depth research work. Djamal Mirzaakhmedov, who heads the Uzbek side, noted that the collaborative study also makes a significant contribution to the study of the history of Uzbek nomadic and agrarian tribes and peoples.

While filling gaps in the study of regional ancient history, the cooperation, evidently, also carries on the legacy of mutual learning among civilizations along the Silk Road.

Similar cooperation is also seen in Kyrgyzstan, in another aspect of archaeology.

At the Ak-Beshim archaeological site in Chui Oblast, known to Chinese people as the ancient city of Suyab, Bai Yushu, a cultural heritage conservation expert from the Dunhuang Academy in Northwest China, is scrutinizing the ruins alongside fellow researchers to identify signs of structural deterioration.

"Currently, this archaeological site is suffering the erosion of wall foundations, flaking, structural cracking, and the formation of erosion gullies," Bai said, noting that without timely, effective interventions, the damage could become irreversible.

Trying to help, Chinese specialists constructed an experimental wall in an open space nearby with similar environmental conditions and soil properties. They replicated ancient construction techniques, and monitored the changes inside and outside the wall to document the progression of structural deterioration.

The specialists are also conducting reinforcement trials on the wall to assess various conservation techniques. Proven methods are expected to be applied more widely at the Ak-Beshim site in efforts to keep its original appearance as faithfully as possible.

Aisin Duishanalieva, an official for the protection of historical and cultural monuments under the Kyrgyz culture ministry, highlighted the modern scientific methods employed by the Chinese specialists, and expressed hope that the cooperation on conservation work will continue.

The staff from the Dunhuang Academy have the experience of doing conservation work on the ruins of the Beiting Ancient City in Northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, which, like Ak-Beshim, is located on the northern side of the Tianshan Mountains and is severely affected by the regional microclimate.

Like in Ak-Beshim, their conservation methods and techniques may also be used elsewhere in Central Asian countries.

The archaeological cooperation between China and Central Asian countries is not only of academic significance, but the joint finds also help revisit the history of development and prosperity along the Silk Road, with traces seen of exchanges, mutual learning among civilizations, as well as their enrichment and advancement.