An Unusual Fabric from Jety-Asar-2, Eastern Aral Sea Region, in the Context of the Central Asian Textile Tradition

2020 ◽  
Vol 48 (3) ◽  
pp. 50-58
Author(s):  
N. V. Polosmak ◽  
E. V. Karpova ◽  
E. V. Amosov
Keyword(s):  
Iron Age ◽  
Silk Road ◽  
Aral Sea ◽  
Early Iron Age ◽  
Wool Fabric ◽  
Technological Characteristics ◽  
Central Asian ◽  
Decorative Motifs ◽  
Interdisciplinary Study

We present the results of an interdisciplinary study of an unusual sample of wool fabric, found at the Jety-Asar-2 fortifi ed site, representing the Jety-Asar culture of the late 4th century BC to early 1st century AD, in the central Turan Plain. We outline the results of the analysis of the dyes and technological characteristics of the fabric. The woven pattern is described in detail. The specimen is compared with the tapestry from Shanpula (Sampul) cemetery in the Hotan oasis, Xinjiang, China. We examine the idea that the Jety-Asar fabric had been manufactured in Shanpula and transported to the Aral basin along the Great Silk Road. Previously, this type of tapestry was believed to have been used only in the Hotan oasis, because no direct parallels with other areas were known. A direct parallel with such a remote westerly region is all the more intriguing. Apparently, colorful strips of woolen tapestry depicting animals, birds, humans, fantastic beings, mountains, and fl owers were in big demand. The tradition, then, may have been distributed much more widely than previously thought. Many anthropomorphic, zoomorphic, plant, and purely decorative motifs have numerous parallels in the Early Iron Age art of the Eurasian steppes, highlands, and piedmont areas. The Shanpula people used such fabric for decorating skirts. In other cultures, it was destined for various purposes.

scholarly journals Dental characteristics of the Scythian time population of the Forest-Steppe Altai

2020 ◽  
pp. 171-186
Author(s):  
N.A. Leibova ◽  
S.S. Tur
Keyword(s):  
Iron Age ◽  
Comparative Data ◽  
Aral Sea ◽  
Early Iron Age ◽  
Forest Steppe ◽  
The Southern Urals ◽  
Western Kazakhstan ◽  
River Region ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Burial Grounds

Materials from the analysed sites of the Staroaleyka and Kamen Cultures in the Forest-Steppe Altai (South-ern Siberia) are dated to the 6th–2nd c. BC. The aim of this study is to introduce the dental data for the Staroaleyka and Kamen Cultures into scientific discourse, to identify and analyse intergroup variability within both communi-ties, their origin and genesis, and the direction of their relations with the Bronze and Early Iron Age populations. Materials of the Staroaleyka Culture are represented by a series from three burial grounds: Firsovo-14, Tu-zovskiye Bugry and Obskiye Plesy 2, dated to the 6th–5th c. BC. The Kamen Culture series from the Forest-Steppe Altai has been collected from six burial grounds: Rogozikha-1 (6th–4th c. BC), Obyezdnoye-1 (5th–4th c. BC), Kamen-2 and Kirillovka-3 (5th–3rd c. BC), Novotroitskoye 1 and 2 (5th–3rd c. BC), Maslyakha-1 (3rd–2nd c. BC). In total, 402 individuals were examined using the Odontological program. The analysed craniological series are stored in the TSU (Tomsk) Cabinet of Anthropology and the Museum of Archaeology and Ethnography of Altai of AltSU (Barnaul). As comparative data, published Bronze and Early Iron Age series from Western, Southern and south of Eastern Siberia, southern Trans-Urals, Aral Sea Region, Central and Western Kazakhstan were used. Study methods: 25 odontoscopic and odontoglyphic features were recorded. Ten key characteristics, which have comparative data in literature, were discussed. The evaluation of the traits and their further analysis were carried out according to the methodology of A.A. Zubov. The construction of circular polygons and calculation of the av-erage taxonomic distances were carried out in the GROUP COMPARISON program (author — Olga M. Leybova), designed for processing of dental data. Intergroup variability was assessed through correspondence analysis in the STATISTICA 8 software. For the first time, dental data for the Staroaleyka Culture population have been re-ceived, and data for Kamen Culture has been significantly extended. Despite the territorial and chronological proximity of the Staroaleyka Culture series, it has been established that they belong to two different odontological variants. Odontological data does not exclude the presence of the «Ural» component in their morphological com-plex. The analysed samples of the Kamen Culture, with the exception of those from Rogoziha-1, appear to repre-sent the Western odontological branch with different proportions of the eastern component in the series. In the morphocomplexes of the groups from the Obyezdnoye-1 and Kamen-2 burials, traits of an undifferentiated gracile type have been identified. The burial complexes of Novotroitskoye 1 and 2 and Maslyakha-1 were left by anthro-pologically uniform population representing a maturized odontological variant. Similarly to the craniological data, a fairly wide range of contacts has been established for the population of the Kamen Culture, including the early nomads of the Southern Urals, Western Kazakhstan, south-western and eastern Aral Sea region on the one hand, and Tuva and the Minusinsk Basin on another. Unlike craniological studies, odontological data does not suggest any proximity to the synchronous Pazyryk population of the Altai Mountains. Significant differences have also been revealed with the Kamen Culture population of the Ob River region near Novosibirsk.

scholarly journals Differential diagnosis of the cranial perforations on the Early Iron Age along the Ancient Silk Road in Xinjiang, China

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (12) ◽  
pp. 6829-6839
Author(s):  
Xiaoya Zhan ◽  
Ai-Jia Mu ◽  
Liang Chen ◽  
Qun Zhang ◽  
Yong Wu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Iron Age ◽  
Anterior Part ◽  
Interpersonal Relationship ◽  
Parietal Bone ◽  
Silk Road ◽  
Early Iron Age ◽  
Sharp Force ◽  
Left Parietal Bone ◽  
Ancient Silk Road ◽  
The Silk Road

Abstract Bioarcheologists and pathologists favor trauma on the skeletons since it could reflect the human activities and interpersonal relationship in the past. In this paper, we present the pattern of two cranial perforations found on an adult male buried in the Xiaoshankou Cemetery, which was part of the Silk Road region, dating back to the early Iron Age. The specimen of interest presents two perforations on his skull, with one perforation located on the anterior part of the left parietal bone, while the other is on the occipital bone near to the lambda. The morphology of the perforations indicates perimortem traumatic lesions, probably produced by a sharp force weapon, possibly arrowhead, through one shot. The interpretation of the penetrating lesions on this cranium offers new perspectives when diagnosing perforations on the skulls in the Xinjiang region. Meanwhile, this study adds literature to the patterns of violence in Xinjiang region as well.

A scientific analysis of cranial trepanation from an Early Iron Age cemetery on the ancient Silk Road in Xinjiang, China

2017 ◽  
Vol 10 (6) ◽  
pp. 1319-1327 ◽  
Author(s):  
Qun Zhang ◽  
Qian Wang ◽  
Boyu Kong ◽  
Chunxue Wang ◽  
Dongya Yang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Iron Age ◽  
Silk Road ◽  
Early Iron Age ◽  
Scientific Analysis ◽  
Ancient Silk Road

scholarly journals ON THE STUDIES OF THE ZOOMORPHIC IMAGES REPERTOIRE IN THE ART OF INKARDARIA SAKAS

2019 ◽  
Vol 33 (4) ◽  
pp. 348-356
Author(s):  
G. S. Jumabekova ◽  
G. A. Bazarbaeva
Keyword(s):  
Iron Age ◽  
High Probability ◽  
Large Series ◽  
Aral Sea ◽  
Objective Analysis ◽  
Early Iron Age ◽  
Wild Boars ◽  
Art Objects ◽  
Burial Grounds

The article is devoted to zoomorphic images analysis received from the Saka sites of the Eastern Aral Sea region — Uygarak (VII—VI cc. BC) and South Tagisken (VII—V cc. BC). The images were studied by the Khorezm archaeological and ethnographic expedition under the guidance of S. P. Tolstov. This material has been due to the fact that now there is an update of the source base of the studies of art objects belonging to the Saka time in the archaeology of the early Iron Age of Kazakhstan. At present the materials on Uygarak and South Tagisken are still among the sites with a large series of excavated mounds, both in the region and in Kazakhstan. Almost completely excavated burial grounds of the early Iron Age containing a large number of objects in Kazakhstan archaeology are single. The analysis of the material on Uygarak and Tagisken depicts that objects with zoomorphic decor were found in every burial. In percentage this makes 21 % in Uygarak and 18 % in Tagisken. According to the archaeologists O. A. Vishnevskaya, M. A. Itina, L. T. Yablonsky, who studied the monuments, the mounds were robbed by contemporaries. Consequently, conducting an objective analysis is difficult, but a trial to trace the dynamics of the emergence of objects created in zoomorphic style seems extremely interesting. There is a high probability that a small number of objects with preserved works of ancient art marks complexes belonging to the steppe aristocracy. Among zoomorphic images, the most common were birds and cat predators. There are objects in the shape of saigas and horses. Images of bears, wolves, deer, argali, wild boars, camels are quite rare. It is worth noting that bird images have never been found in Tagisken materials, and not a single horse and saiga image has been recorded in Uygarak. At the same time, the majority of zoomorphically decorated items are parts of horse equipment.

scholarly journals ON THE PROBLEM OF WOMEN STATUS IN THE CULTURE OF KAZAKHSTAN POPULATION OF THE SAKA AGE (According to Materials from East Aral Sea Region)

2019 ◽  
Vol 31 (2) ◽  
pp. 20-28
Author(s):  
G. I. Bazarbayeva ◽  
G. S. Jumabekova
Keyword(s):  
Iron Age ◽  
Aral Sea ◽  
Early Iron Age ◽  
The South ◽  
The West

Materials from the Early Iron Age cemeteries of the Southern Tagisken (VII—V centuries BC) and Uygarak (VI—VI centuries BC), studied by the Khorezm archaeological and ethnographic expedition under the direction of S. P. Tolstov in the early 1960s, are a source for the analysis. Materials of the sixteen mounds of South Tagisken and twenty-two of Uygarak are analyzed in the article. More than half of the mounds of South Tagisken and Uygarak have a diameter of up to 20 m. The head of the deceased is predominantly oriented to the west. Dromos was recorded only in two South Tagisken mounds and not recorded in Uygarak. Burials at the level of the ancient horizon in South Tagisken were recorded once, while in Uygarak they were recorded four times. A very small number of sacrificial animal parts in the graves of South Tagisken and Uygarak draws attention. An analysis of the South Tagisken and Uygarak subject complex shows that the women graves had products made of metal, bone, and stone. Among such products are: elements of horse equipment, knives, mirrors, altars, jewelry, mirrors, distaff. Weapons are rarely found in women burials of South Tagisken and Uygarak. Probably the functions of the woman were only restricted to housekeeping in the culture of the population that left the South Tagisken and Uygarak cemeteries. Women also served as servants of the cults, which is reflected in the presence of traces of red paint found on pestles, altars, pistils, as well as on tools and devices made of bone.

Sibirskoye I: a Late Irmen Site in the Irtysh Steppe

2019 ◽  
Vol 47 (3) ◽  
pp. 55-67
Author(s):  
A. Y. Trufanov ◽  
L. N. Mylnikova
Keyword(s):  
Organic Matter ◽  
Iron Age ◽  
Raw Material ◽  
Early Iron Age ◽  
Transitional Stage ◽  
High Quality ◽  
Decorative Motifs ◽  
Irtysh Basin ◽  
History Of ◽  
Ritual Site

This article describes the fi ndings at Sibirskoye I, a Late Bronze to Early Iron Age site in the steppe part of the Irtysh basin. The history of excavations is outlined. A detailed description of ceramics, including shard accumulations and fragments of 44 vessels, is provided. We analyze paste composition, provenance of clay, and temper. The principal raw material was high-quality western Siberian montmorillonite and hydromicaceous clay. The temper, preventing cracks and waste, consisted of grog, sand, and organic matter. Shaping techniques are described. On the basis of proportions, groups of vessels are established, and their decoration is analyzed. Decorative motifs combine those typical of the Late Irmen pottery and those marking the Irmen and Krasnozerskoye cultures. The Sibirskoye I ceramics are paralleled by those from Om-1 and Chicha-1. Certain categories of ware are imported. The planigraphy and the distribution of ceramics suggest that this was a ritual site. The ceramics and the site as a whole were associated with the Late Irmen culture, dating to the transitional stage from the Late Bronze to the Early Iron Age. Sibirskoye I is the westernmost Irmen site—the fi rst one discovered on the Irtysh. Judging from parallels with sites having a reliable chronology, we date it to 900–700/600 BC.

Archaeological Investigations at Mavis Grind, Shetland

1983 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 13-39 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephen Cracknell ◽  
Beverley Smith
Keyword(s):  
Iron Age ◽  
Early Iron Age ◽  
Second Phase ◽  
Field System ◽  
M 10 ◽  
Settlement Site

Summary The excavations revealed a stone house and showed that it was oval, 13 m × 10 m, with an interior about 7 m in diameter. In the first occupation phase the entrance was on the SE side. During the second phase this entrance was replaced with one to the NE and the interior was partitioned. The roof was supported on wooden posts. After the building was abandoned it was covered with peat-ash which was subsequently ploughed. There were numerous finds of steatite-tempered pottery and stone implements, which dated the site to late Bronze/early Iron Age. The second settlement, Site B, lay by the shore of the voe and consisted of two possible stone-built houses and a field system. Two trenches were dug across the structures and the results are reported in Appendix I. Although damaged in recent years it was in no further danger.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document