Qasar-Qurug: Western Headquarters of the Uighur Khagans and the Problem of Por-Bazhyn Identification

Analysis of Old Uighur runic texts discovered in Mongolia and investigated by the Soviet-Mongolian Historical and Cultural Expedition (1969–1990), shows that the western summer headquarters of the Uighur Khagans Qasar-Qurug which existed in the 750s–760s AD and was mentioned in the texts, was located in Tuva, near the Tes River basin, in the place of the ancient settlement of Por-Bazhin which is known today. The article compares the information from the Tes inscription and Terkhin inscription, as well as from the stele Mogoyn Shine Usu, with the results of archaeological excavations at the ancient settlement of Por-Bazhyn.