The next in the hierarchy of sacred colours is yellow – sary, which is also polysemantic. On the one hand, it stands for the sun, movement and vastness. On the other hand, it stands for melancholy, sadness and long waiting: sary uaiym, sary qayğy, etc. At the same time in Kazakh language there are also positive connotations: “sabyr tübi – sary altyn”, which means patience – gold.
The yellow colour is actively expressed in the ceramic art of South Kazakhstan, where archaeological research has shown that the so-called “yellow-pink pottery” was particularly popular. Researchers connect the predominance of yellow (lemon yellow) colour with the Sufi tradition: yellow (colour of the sun, fire) was considered the colour of the second stage of the spiritual path (tarikat) and was associated with the subtle substance – the world of the spirit (rukh), the “friend of God” (wali) – the human type. Be that as it may, the colour yellow has a very important symbolic function in Muslim culture in connection with the spirit, the spiritual path, the prophet, etc. At the same time, it is impossible not to mention that yellow (the colour of gold) among Turkic ethnic groups (including Kazakhs) meant the highest value, the beginning of all beginnings, a symbol of divinity, etc.
In Kazakh culture there are many toponyms with the division “sary”: “Sary dala”, “Sary arqa”, etc. Some researchers interpret them as “dry or untamed steppe”, others believe that they were used for far, big and huge. Thus, the toponym Sary-Arqa most likely referred to the northern side. In the Turkic culture, there are different definitions for the colour of the north – it can be both black and yellow. Closely related to sary is gold (altyn) as a projection of the sun. As it is known, gold became the basic material for creative experiments in sak toreutics. In Turkic culture, gold is a universal cosmic symbol associated with ideas of eternity, immortality, permanence, and truth, as well as with rulers and the supreme elite. The art of gold embroidery was one of the most important garments of Kazakh nobles – khans, biis, sultans and others.
The idea of splendour and radiance is connected with the semantics of the word “gold”: altyn tamyr – golden root.
