The beginning of the Great Patriotic War and the opening of Tamerlane’s tomb, whether by chance or not, coincided exactly in time. The most detailed account of this was given by one of the participants of that expedition — director and front-line cameraman M.K. Kayumov. Kayumov. The author of the book “Four Friends of the Era. Memoirs on the background of the century” (Moscow, 2013) writer Igor Obolensky personally talked with Malik Kayumovich a few years before his death.
The cameraman told that the preparatory work in the mausoleum was completed by June 17, and scientists opened the graves of Shahrukh and Ulugbek, who were Tamerlan’s son and grandson. Then it was the turn of the remains of the great conqueror himself. On his sarcophagus, researchers found a jade slab, on which was engraved an inscription forbidding to disturb the ashes of the deceased. Those who dared to do so were threatened with terrible punishment.
But on June 21, 1941, Soviet atheist scientists ignored this warning. Just as earlier they had not heeded a similar warning voiced by the honorable custodian of the memorial, Masud Alayev.
During the work of opening Tamerlan’s tomb, the winch broke down. A break was announced, and the young cameraman, who was to capture this historic moment, went to the nearest teahouse. There Malik Kayumov was called by three elders. They showed him an ancient book written in Arabic, which contained a record that expressly forbade disturbing the ashes of the great conqueror, otherwise the spirit of war would break out. M.K. Kayumov studied Arabic at school, so he was able to read these lines.
Having returned, the cameraman told about the warning of the elders to the leaders of the expedition. They went to the teahouse and talked to the aksakals, but did not take them seriously. Therefore, the opening of the tomb continued as soon as the winch was repaired.
And only returning to the hotel after the completion of all the work, the tired members of the expedition were horrified to learn that the war had really begun.
The occasion
The official reason for the excavations was the 500th anniversary of the great poet and philosopher Alisher Navoi, which was widely celebrated in 1941. Since he lived in the Timurid era, the leadership of the Uzbek SSR organized a research expedition to the Gur-Emir mausoleum. This is mentioned in the book “Great Conquerors” (Kharkiv, 2013), which was jointly written by V.M. Sklyarenko, I.A. Rudycheva, V.V. Syadro and O.V. Manzhos.
In fact, the command to start excavations came from Moscow. It was the USSR government that formed a group of researchers. One of their tasks was to establish the exact place of Tamerlane’s burial, because some experts did not believe that he really rested in Gur-Emir.
Curiosity of the leader
Stalin personally signed the documents regulating the beginning of excavations. In general, many historians note that the “leader of the peoples” treated Tamerlan with special reverence. He found much in common between himself and the great conqueror.
One was called iron, and the party nickname of the second was formed from the word “steel”. Both were considered dry-armed. In addition, Tamerlane was lame, and Stalin had fused fingers on his leg. These historical figures were separated by five centuries, but they really had a lot in common. They ruled vast territories without inheriting such power by birthright. They achieved everything on their own. And most importantly, they were both uncharitable.
The respectful attitude of the “leader of nations” to Tamerlane was reflected in school textbooks of that period. In them, the great conqueror was attributed the honor of ridding Russia of the Mongol-Tatar yoke.
Not surprisingly, Soviet scientists sought to satisfy Stalin’s curiosity by investigating the burial of the “Iron Chrome”.
Moscow
After the excavations were completed, Tamerlane’s remains were rushed to Moscow, where M.M. Gerasimov began work on them. Following his unique method, the anthropologist recreated the appearance of the great conqueror. He presented the results of his research in the article “Portrait of Tamerlane (Experience of sculptural reproduction on the craniological basis)”, which appeared in the XVII issue of the journal “Brief Messages of the Institute of the History of Material Culture” for 1947.M.M. Gerasimov concluded that during his lifetime “Iron Khromets” was a rather tall, statuesque man. As a result of disease or long-standing trauma, his right arm almost did not bend at the elbow, and the right leg had a number of pathologies that unequivocally confirmed the lameness of Emir Timur.
As it turned out, the conqueror had an oval face with slightly protruding cheekbones, a steep forehead and a slightly forward chin. Mongoloid structure of eyes, rounded nose tip, wide mouth with thick lips and small ears — such features M.M. Gerasimov endowed the medieval warlord.
In addition, it turned out that Tamerlane wore a wedge-shaped beard and freely hanging mustache. The color of his hair was reddish brown.
A gift to Budyonny
As you know, in the years before the war, the Nazi organization “Anenerbe” was searching for ancient magical artifacts around the world. Stalin, to whom mysticism was also no stranger, could conduct similar work in the USSR.
For example, the above-mentioned book “Great Conquerors” talks about Tamerlane’s saber, which soon after the opening of his tomb, the Uzbek authorities gave to Marshal S.M. Budyonny. And this weapon helped him to defeat five mysterious saboteurs who penetrated into the dacha of the Soviet commander in December 1942 with the purpose of an assassination attempt. The saber of the great conqueror as if gave the new owner strength and made him invulnerable to opponents.
After S.M. Budyonny’s death, the ancient blade was reportedly added to the exposition of the Central Museum of the Revolution, but no one has seen it for a long time.
Re-burial
In the fall of 1942, M. K. Kayumov achieved a meeting with commander G.K. Zhukov at the front headquarters, which was then located near Rzhev. The cameraman told about the meeting with the mysterious elders and the prophecy that had come true. The Soviet commander took this story seriously and promised to immediately report everything to Stalin.
“The Leader of the Peoples” instructed MM Gerasimov to finish the reconstruction of Tamerlane’s appearance as soon as possible. The anthropologist met the record time. And on November 15, the remains of the great conqueror left Moscow. They were carried by airplane along the entire front line.
It is not known what happened to Tamerlane’s ashes for another month. He was solemnly reburied in Gur-Emir only on December 20, 1942, and soon there came a decisive break in the Battle of Stalingrad.
It is no secret that Orthodoxy has a tradition of honoring relics. Religious figures make various requests to the Holy Spirit, who can, as they believe, act through the remains of God’s favorites. Stalin, who received a spiritual education, could not have been unaware of this. Perhaps he hoped to win the war, somehow using the ashes of the invincible commander.
It is only known that in the summer of 1943 the Supreme Commander-in-Chief allocated one million rubles for the reconstruction of the mausoleum where Tamerlane’s remains were laid to rest.