Tibetan and Himalayan Library - THL

II.2. Superficial structures: Primarily funerary superstructure

Name unknown

Basic site data

• Site name: Unknown
• Site number: D-68
• Site typology: II.2a, II2.b
• Elevation: 4470 m and 4490 m
• Administrative location (township): TengtséSteng rtse
• Administrative location (county): RutokRu thog
• Survey expedition: HTCE
• Survey date: June 7, 2002
• Contemporary usage: None.
• Identifiable Buddhist constructions: None.
• Maps: UTRS II, HAS A2
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General site characteristics

This funerary site, whose name could not be determined, is located south of A OngtsoA ’ong mtsho but still in view of the lake. The four funerary superstructures of the site almost straddle the RutokRu thog and GegyéDge rgyas county lines. As with other funerary sites clustered in the same region (see “Valley of the Dead” sites C-91, C-92, C-153, D-46), the terrain is level and sandy, and it is sited near a series of ridges that enclose the west side of the basin. The site is set on the north end of the “Valley of the Dead” basin. It consists of single-course and double-course quadrate enclosures that are in a poor state of preservation. These structures are constructed of uncut pieces of gray granite, primarily 30 cm to 60 cm in length. Stones were both laid flat and embedded in the ground edgewise.

Oral tradition

None was collected.

Site elements

Funerary Structure FS1

Funerary structure FS1 (7 m by 5 m) consists of a partially intact single-course rectangular enclosure. This structure is aligned in the cardinal directions. The stones of the perimeter walls are laid flat. The largest stone (1.1 m long) of the structure is no longer in situ.

Funerary Structure FS2

Funerary structure FS2 (5 m across) is situated 8 m south of FS1. Only a few stones remain in place in this highly degraded enclosure, several of which are set into the ground edgewise. The most prominent stone of the perimeter walls is 60 cm long and projects 30 cm above the ground surface. Twelve stones, both laid flat and with an upright position, form a separate sub-rectangular enclosure (1.4 m across) as part of the FS2 structure.

Funerary Structure FS3

Funerary structure FS3 (4 m across) is situated 2.7 m south of FS2. The remains of this superstructure are highly deteriorated.

Funerary Structure FS4

Funerary structure FS4 (6 m by 10 m) is situated several hundred meters south of the other three superstructures of the site (41.027΄ / 48.878΄ / 4490 m). The entire structure is elevated about 50 cm above the surrounding plain. Small segments of the single course walls of the enclosure have survived. However, there is also a structural extension to this enclosure that consists of an isolated double-course wall (3 m long, 70 thick). This wall segment is composed of stones that protrude a maximum of 30 cm above ground level.