gems, corundum, Afghanistan.12, Tajikistan.12, spinel, lapis lazuli, ruby, sapphire, clinohumite

Following the presentation, during the First Karamazar Congress in Khujand, of certain materials and results from the study of the history of mining in Karamazar, the Scientific Research Institute of Industry of Tajikistan (NIIPT) considered it necessary to initiate similar work throughout the entire territory of the Tajik SSR. To this end, in November 1931 the Institute approached M. E. Masson with a corresponding written proposal. It was envisaged that the first part of the work would be conducted as a desk study and would consist of the preliminary collection of relevant written historical information and material evidence, the combined analysis of which would help determine where, and in what sequence, it would be most appropriate subsequently to develop expeditionary historical and archaeological work, which would thus constitute the second stage of the research. Finally, the third and concluding part of the work would summarise the results obtained in the form of certain generalisations concerning the history of the development of mining and its techniques in the territory of Tajikistan up to the period of the Russian conquest. The present work is the result of the first stage of the research, at which point it ceased owing to circumstances beyond the author’s control. It was written at the end of 1931 and partly in 1932, at the request of NIIPT.