The Deer Stone Legends
Across the Mongolian steppe stand ancient megalithic Deer Stones — carved monoliths dating back 3,000 years to the Bronze Age. Mongol legend says these stones are warriors turned to stone by the sky god Tengri for their arrogance. The deer depicted leaping across the stones represent the souls of fallen warriors ascending to the heavens. Another legend holds that the stones mark the graves of great shamans, with the deer serving as spirit animals to carry the shaman's soul across the sky. The most famous concentration is at the Uushigiin Uvur site in Khövsgöl Province, where over a dozen Deer