Korkyt Ata Memorial

Korkyt Ata Memorial, founded in 1980, is located beside Korkyt railroad station, near the village of Josaly, Kyzylorda Province. The complex was erected in this place for a reason: here, on the bank of the Syrdarya River, Korkyt, a famous Turkic poet and composer, was born. 

The monument consists of four vertical steles, made of reinforced concrete. Its height reaches 8 meters (26 ft). Each stela faces a different cardianl point. In the upper part of the steles, where they expand, there is a metal organ consisting of 40 pipes. At the slightest whiff of the wind, the organ makes sounds similar to playing kobyz (a national Kazakh musical instrument). Inside the monument there is an arch, which stands above the central axial symbol. Its decorated with “Tuye Taban” ornament, which translated from Kazakh means “camel's footprint”. It sympolyzes the magical camel, allegedly belonging to Korkyt Ata.

This place is especially attractive for those interested in Kazakh national music, because Korkyt Ata left many works that have become an invaluable musical heritage of Kazakhstan.

Photos provided by the Department of Entrepreneurship and Tourism of the Kyzylorda Province