Culture that flourished in the Yenisei valley and elsewhere in central Siberia from the first to the fourth century.

The Tashtyk tribes were probably of mixed Turkic, Iranian, and Tocharian origin. Their most famous monuments were immense barrows-crypt structures; these have yielded large quantities of clay and metal vessels and ornaments. Tashtyk settlements and hill-forts have been unearthed throughout the Yenisei region, particularly the Sayan canyon area. In addition, numerous petrographic carvings have been unearthed.

Tashtyk culture is particularly known for the richly decorated funerary masks it produced

Bibliography

• Christian, David. A History of Russia, Central Asia and Mongolia. Blackwell Publishers, 1999.

• Tashtyk and other Yenisey Petroglyphs (http://chenzhaofu.nease.net/tuhui/02yru03.htm).