Akbaur is an interesting natural and historical monument on upper streams of Irtish river, neolithic temple. The term “Akbaur” is applied to surrounding district between the villages of B.Utepov, Vasilyevka, former sanatorium Gornyak, Kochunai and Kok-Tau.

Akbaur is located in the central part of it. It is situated in 38 kilometers from the town of Ust-Kamenogorsk, on headstreams of the river of Akbaur behind the village of Sagyr on Korjimbai mountain.

There are many ancient preserved petroglyphs in grotto on the mountain. 80 images were found including few images of human, mountain goat, shelters and carts, various symbols and signs. Natural hole of the “roof” of the grotto has got a heart shaped form.

Presumably it was done by a human who made a corbel to record the movement of key constellations in night sky. Megalithic constructions – stone plates piled like an amphitheatre – are placed in 500 meters from the grotto.

A narrow part of the amphitheatre is partitioned by an artificial wall. It is oriented strictly from east to west by latitude. There is a middle sized granite column of 1 meter high. It points to the neighboring hill. There is a column pointing to the top of the hill. Ideally this line points to North Star.

All these facts allowed scientists to suggest that Akbaur was an ancient astronomic object designed to observe a night sky. This theory is supported by many researchers. Thus Smashev Z.S. claims that Ursa Major was observed through the hole in the grotto.

L.S.Marsadolos stated that Sun, stars and the constellation of Capricornus were observed here. E.V.Kurdakov names natural rocky formations as “astrological sights” claiming that there was an exact place where people can view three points that Sun passes in the days of vernal equinox, summer and winter solstice. Other scientists state about cultic purpose of the object.

Possibly there were rituals related to the cult of mountains or the cult of the dead. According to their version, Akbaur was designed to conduct funeral ceremony. Anyways, Akbaur is an interesting monument of one of the most ancient cultures in the territory of Kazakhstan.