NEW PETROGLYPHS OF THE TEPSEI (ON THE RESULTS OF THE RESEARCH 2019-2020)

В статье вводятся в научный оборот ранее неизвестные наскальные изображения Тепсейского археологического микрорайона (Краснотуранский район Красноярского края), выявленные в последние годы кемеровскими археологами. Новые рисунки обнаружены в разных участках микрорайона, благодаря крупномасштабным разведкам и использованию современных методов документирования памятников наскального искусства. Выявленные изображения относятся к разным хронологическим периодам, выполнены в технике выбивки, гравировки и прошлифовки. Новые рисунки Тепсейского микрорайона дополняют представления об изобразительных традициях, существовавших в Минусинской котловине на протяжении нескольких тысяч лет. The article introduces into scientifi c circulation previously unknown rock images of the Tepsei archaeological area (the Krasnoturansk District of the Krasnoyarsk Region), which were revealed in recent years by Kemerovo archaeologists. New drawings were discovered in diff erent parts of the area due to large - scale explorations and the use of modern methods of documenting rock art sites. The identifi ed images belong to diff erent chronological periods, and are made in the technique of embossing, engraving and grinding. The new drawings of the Tepsei area enlarge the ideas about the pictorial traditions that have existed in the Minusinsk Basin for several thousand years.

MILLET CONSUMPTION IN SIBERIA PRIOR TO MID-SECOND MILLENNIUM BC? A REVIEW OF RECENT DEVELOPMENTS

ABSTRACT In this paper we discuss recent developments in documenting the spread of millet across the Eurasian steppes. We emphasize that, despite a recent proposal that millet consumption in southern Siberia can be attributed to the Early Bronze Age (i.e., the late third to early second millennium BC), at present there are no direct data for southern Siberia indicating the consumption of millet prior to the Late Bronze Age, from the 14th century BC. We also present in full the combined stable isotope and 14C datasets from the Minusinsk Basin to support this conclusion.

Early Iron Age Sword from the Territory of the Middle Yenisei

Purpose. The article is devoted to the characteristics of a double-edged iron sword, which can be attributed to the unique phenomena of the early Iron Age of the Minusinsk Basin. Results. According to its morphological characteristics, the sword is an increased technological modification of the traditional Tagar dagger. The total length of the sword is 59.5 cm; the width of the lenticular blade in cross-section is about 7 cm. The handle with a volute-like pommel is separated from the blade by a narrow butterfly-shaped crosshair. The length of the hilt is 8 cm, which corresponds to the size of the hilts of most Scythian swords. This is a very small size, since in men the average palm width is about 12 cm. Probably, the rounded outlines of the pommel and narrow crosshairs allow, due to their shape, to hold the short handle of a heavy sword more tightly. Conclusion. According to the classification of O. I. Kura, Scythian swords with a narrow butterfly-shaped crosshair and volute-like pommel are included in Group III, Type II A2 dating from the end of the 5th – 4th centuries BC, which corresponds to the boundary between the Podgorny and Saragashen stages of the Tagar culture. The earliest form of sword hilts with typologically similar forms of crosshairs (kidney-shaped, heart-shaped, butterfly-shaped) with bar-shaped pommels appeared in the North Caucasus in the first half of the 7th century BC. On the territory of the Minusinsk Basin, most morphologically similar daggers are usually dated to the 6th – 4th centuries BC. Before the discovery of the Krasnoyarsk sword, long-bladed iron weapons were not known there. At the same time, swords of the Scythian time were found in the nearest regions of Altai and Kazakhstan. The later appearance of the technology for processing iron in the Minusinsk Basin makes it possible to consider the Krasnoyarsk sword an import item. According to another hypothesis, it belongs to the period of the late 3rd – 2nd centuries BC, when local craftsmen mastered the processing of iron and began to make massive quantities of weapons and tools from low-carbon steel. In doing so, they copied traditional archaic forms.

Типология таштыкских поминов южной части Хакасско-Минусинской котловины

The article deals with the Tashtyk commemorations that existed in the HunnoXianbian era. Based on the study and systematization of ground, intra-stone structures and the composition of offerings, the typology of Tashtyk commemorations located in the south of the Khakass-Minusinsk basin is performed

Early Metallurgy of Eastern Xinjiang

This paper examines the form and chemical composition of metal artifacts of three successive cultures of the Hami region. The metal artifacts of the Tianshanbeilu culture are rather diverse in both type and material; body ornaments are dominant, whereas tools and weapons are quantitatively modest. The typological composition and the predominance of body ornaments made of tin bronze, pure copper, and arsenic copper are reminiscent of the Karasuk culture in the Minusinsk Basin and the Siba culture in the Hexi Corridor. Apart from the bulk metal types, there are gold, lead, and antimonial copper. The metal artifacts of the succeeding culture of Yanbulake are morphologically derived from Tianshanbeilu. In the subsequent Heigouliang culture, apart from old types of metal artifacts inherited from the Yanbulake culture, there are a number of new types of artifacts that are morphologically derived from nomadic cultures in the Eurasian steppe. In the cultures of Yanbulake and Heigouliang, the use of tin bronze, arsenic copper, and pure copper prevailed. The source of minerals, especially tin, which is used throughout the three successive cultures, awaits further investigation. Keywords: Xinjiang, Bronze Age, Early Iron Age, metallurgy, Eurasia