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Digital Archive of Toyo Bunko Rare Books

(»Feuerstein-See«), in 3,995 m. Höhe (4,023 franz. Gen.-St.-K.), findet eine Bifurkation eines Baches statt, der einerseits nach S. W. zum Wachan-darja, anderseits nach N. O. zum Ak-su abfliesst. This is the version of the English and Russian maps. In a note SCHULTZ adds: Die französische Generalstabskarte 1:1,000,000 stellt die Bifurkation nicht dar, sondern zeigt W.-lich des Tschakmaktin-kull einen Riegel, der auf einem 4,230 m. hohen Pass übergangen werden soll. W.-lich von diesem Riegel sammeln sich dann erst die von der Wachan-Kette abströmenden Bäche, um sich nach 8 km. in den Quellfluss des Pändsh, Wachdschire, zu ergiessen. Die Darstellung der Bifurkation auf der russischen Gen.-St.-Karte 1:420,000 halte ich für richtig.

The Russian and English maps, therefore, agree with one another. The Russians seem, however, to have had this view even before the Anglo-Russian Boundary Commission, for on a rather simple map on the scale of 40 versts to an inch, Дорожная Карта Туркестанского военного округа, for 1893, the hydrography of Chakmaktin-kul is drawn exactly as on the English map of 1896. The Burgut-nya is there with its bifurcation to the lake and to the Vakhan-darya or Upper Panj, and from the N. E. end of the lake the Ak-su has its origin.

In the days of HUAN-CHUANG, some 1,300 years ago, the situation may have been different insofar that the bifurcation then probably was easier to see, for the precipitation may have been greater than nowadays. The lake cannot have been much larger, as the valley is nearly flat. But if it has been larger, it may have delivered a direct effluent to the Panj, and the bifurcation would thus have taken place in the lake, and not as now in the Burgut-nya brook.

On August 17th we continued 8.8 km. N. E. along the northern shore of Chakmaktin-kul. The colour of the lake is a beautiful greenish blue. The ground is mostly soft and level with sparse grass; sometimes it consists of coarse sand. Occasionally low undulations hide the view of the lake. A few granite blocks are seen. Somewhat more than halfway we crossed a little brook from the valley Gäsä, which on the English map has no name. The shore-line forms a few capes into the lake where also a little island is seen. Wild geese were not seen here but they appeared in considerable numbers in the lake. The camp of the day was pitched near an aul of three tents and a karaul a short distance from the N. E. end of the lake. Here a brook comes down from the northern side of the valley. Its name was said to be Ak-sai-echkele. On the English map this valley is called Ak-sai, and is, not far from the lake, joined by another valley called Ichkele. Some distance up in the western valley, the Ak-sai, the living rock was some kind of granite in 60° N. 30° W. The lake is said to get the largest quantity of water from the Burgut-nya, though here the greatest part of the water also was regarded as coming from springs. This year, 1895, the supply of water was less than usual. Other years the lake has been larger. By the Burgut-nya one reaches, across a difficult pass,