De Vos and Verlinden, who visited the tomb
of Chinghiz Khan, say that before the Mahomedan invasion, on a hill a few
feet high, there were two courtyards, one in front of the other,
surrounded by palisades.
In the second courtyard, there were a building
like a Chinese dwelling-house and six tents. In a double tent are kept the
remains of the bokta (the Holy). The neighbouring tents contained
various precious objects, such as a gold saddle, dishes, drinking-cups, a
tripod, a kettle, and many other utensils, all in solid silver. (Missions
Catholiques, No. 315, 18th June, 1875.) - This periodical gives (p. 293) a
sketch of the tomb of the Conqueror, according to the account of the two
missionaries.
Prjevalsky (Mongolia and Tangut) relates the story of the Khatun Gol
(see supra, p. 245), and says that her tomb is situated at 11 versts
north-east of lake of Dzaidemin Nor, and is called by the Mongols
Tumir-Alku, and by the Chinese Djiou-Djin Fu; one of the legends mentioned
by the Russian traveller gives the Ordo country as the burial-place of
Chinghiz, 200 versts south of lake Dabasun Nor; the remains are kept in two
coffins, one of wood, the other of silver; the Khan prophesied that after
eight or ten centuries he would come to life again and fight the Emperor of
China, and being victorious, would take the Mongols from the Ordos back to
their country of Khalka; Prjevalsky did not see the tomb, nor did Potanin.
"Their holiest place [of the Mongols of Ordos] is a collection of felt
tents called 'Edjen-joro,' reputed to contain the bones of Jenghiz Khan.
These sacred relics are entrusted to the care of a caste of Darhats,
numbering some fifty families. Every summer, on the twenty-first day of
the sixth moon, sacrifices are offered up in his honour, when numbers of
people congregate to join in the celebration, such gatherings being called
tailgan." On the southern border of the Ordos are the ruins of
Boro-balgasun [Grey town], said to date from Jenghiz Khan's time.
(Potanin, Proc. R. G. S. IX. 1887, p. 233.)
The last traveller who visited the tomb of Chinghiz is M. C. E. Bonin, in
July 1896; he was then on the banks of the Yellow River in the northern
part of the Ordo country, which is exclusively inhabited by nomadic and
pastoral Mongols, forming seven tribes or hords, Djungar, Talat, Wan,
Ottok, Djassak, Wushun and Hangkin, among which are eastward the Djungar
and in the centre the Wan; according to their own tradition, these tribes
descend from the seven armies encamped in the country at the time of
Chinghiz's death; the King of Djungar was 67 years of age, and was the
chief of all the tribes, being considered the 37th descendant of the
conqueror in a direct line. His predecessor was the Wushun Wang. M. Bonin
gives (Revue de Paris, 15th February 1898) the following description of
the tomb and of the country surrounding it.
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