ARCHAEOLOGICAL RESEARCH OF THE MUSEUM OF THE YENISEI REGION IN 1920 (TO THE CENTENARY SINCE THE ESTABLISHMENT OF THE ARCHEOLOGICAL DEPARTMENT)

На основе архивных материалов рассматривается история организации и первого года работы отдела доисторической археологии Музея Приенисейского края (Красноярского краевого краеведческого музея). Публикуется отчет Г. К. Мергарта о деятельности отдела в первый год его создания в 1920 г. Представлен маршрут археологической экспедиции музея от Минусинска до Красноярска и Енисейска. Информацию о результатах работ отдела дополняет переписка Г. Мергарта с директором Красноярского музея А. Я. Тугариновым. Публикуемые архивные материалы сопровождаются иллюстрациями археологических коллекций музея. Документы показывают процесс становления начинающего археолога Г. П. Сосновского и его вклад в деятельность отдела. В публикации дана краткая характеристика выразительных археологических коллекций В. А. Данилова, С. М. Сергеева и других исследователей, передавших свои материалы в Красноярский музей в 1920 г. Делается вывод об успешной работе и решающем вкладе австрийского археолога Г. К. Мергарта в создание археологического отдела музея Приенисейского края. On the basis of archival materials, the history of the establishment and the fi rst year of work of the Department of Prehistoric Archaeology of the Museum of the Yenisei Region (Krasnoyarsk Regional Museum of Local Lore) is considered. G. K. Mergart’s report on activities during the fi rst year of the establishment of the department in 1920 is published. The route of the museum’s archaeological expedition from Minusinsk to Krasnoyarsk and Yeniseysk is presented. Information about the results of the department’s work is supplemented by correspondence of G. Mergart with the Director of the Krasnoyarsk Museum A. Ya. Tugarinov. The published archival materials are accompanied by illustrations from archaeological collections of the museum. The documents show the process of formation of novice archaeologist G. P. Sosnovsky and his contribution to the activities of the department. The publication gives a brief description of the distinguished archaeological collections of V. A. Danilov, S. M. Sergeev and other researchers who transferred their materials to the Krasnoyarsk Museum in 1920. The conclusion about the successful work and decisive contribution of Austrian archaeologist G. K. Mergart to the establishment of the Archaeological Department of the Museum of the Yenisei Region is made.

Alagir Gorge of North Ossetia-Alania: in the footsteps of archaeologist E.G. Pchelina

E.G. Pchelina (1895-1972) belongs to the galaxy of outstanding scientists who laid the foundation of Soviet Caucasian studies. She had a multi-faceted talent as a researcher and left a bright mark in archeology, religious studies, ethnography, folklore studies of the Caucasus, Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Central Asia. Most of her works, including those ready for publication, were not published during the scientist’s lifetime. The archive, bequeathed by her to the Academy of Sciences and transferred to LOARAN in 1973 by her daughter-in-law, the highly respected M.L. Pchelina, remained inaccessible until 2019. But the results of her research, reflected in published works and available from Reports of archaeological expeditions and documents in the archives of scientific institutions of North and South Ossetia, Moscow, St. Petersburg, Yaroslavl, were known and highly appreciated by archaeologists, ethnographers, historians. References to the materials of her archaeological collections from the Hermitage and museums of North and South Ossetia are often found in the works of modern researchers of the Caucasus. The name of the talented scientist has not been forgotten all these years. However, only now, with the beginning of work on the study of its archival heritage, it became clear what a wide scope of scientific problems is reflected in the unpublished works of the scientist, what global themes of the history of Ossetia have been studied and reflected in the monographs and articles of Evgenia Georgievna. In 2019-2021, scientific events “Bee Readings” were held in St. Petersburg, dedicated to the problems of studying the archival heritage of E.G. Pchelina and timed to the 125th anniversary of her birth. Thanks to the long-term efforts of the staff of the Archive of the Russian Academy of Sciences, the staff of the Hermitage, the Museum of Ethnography of St. Petersburg, the staff of SOIGSI, the grandchildren of Evgenia Georgievna, Nikolai and Mikhail Pchelin, as well as many people who are not indifferent to the fate and discoveries of Evgenia Georgievna, work with the archive is currently being successfully conducted and gradually reveals the great importance of the research conducted by Evgenia Georgievna in the Caucasus, which will now undoubtedly be known to a wide range of researchers.

Археологические материалы из раскопок 1929–1937 гг. на территории Калмыкии (по фондам Саратовского областного музея краеведения)

Introduction. The history of archaeological studies on the territory of the Republic of Kalmykia began with the 1929 archaeological-ethnographical expedition of the Saratov Oblast´ Museum of Local Studies. The expedition’s field work included archaeological probings and diggings. The aim of the present study is to do a qualitative and quantitative analysis of the archaeological collections of Saratov Museum recovered during archaeological excavations in the Kalmyk Autonomous Oblast´ in the period between 1929 and 1937. Results. In general, the methodological level of the seexcavations directed by P. S. Rykov was quite good for the time they were conducted. The fact that most of the findings were accepted by the Museum immediately after the field season was closed maybe seen as the evidence of the professionalism of the team during the planning of the expedition and its actual work. Notably, practically all the results of the archaeological research (1929–1937) were published. The numbering of finds in the registration cards largely corresponds to that of the field report, which indicates that the field inventory was compiled in the process of field and laboratory work. In addition, some of the finds in the field inventory are listed as fragmented clay vessels, while in the Museum, they are recorded as whole items, which also indicates the methodological level of the work done.Conclusion. The collections in questionare a valuable source as far as the archaeology of the Volga-Manych steppes is concerned, because the physical material that they include is illustrative of the main types of archaeological sites recovered on the territory of modern Kalmykia, i. e. relating to settlement types (settlements, camps, selishcha) and burial types (burials under earth mounds and scattered burials). These collections feature items from allmajor eras: Eneolithic, Bronze, Early Iron, and Middle Ages.

Woodworking tools of the Bashkirs in the XVI I– XVIII centuries (based on the data of archaeological and written materials)

The subject of this research is the woodworking tools of the Bashkirs in in the XVII– XVIII centuries. The goal lies in examination of the tools used by the Bashkirs for wood processing during the XVII – XVIII centuries leaning on the archaeological materials obtained in the course of exploration of Aznayevo settlement and Berekovo rural localities. The article also involves the written record of the authors of the late XVIII sources and the data of historical-ethnographic researcher of later periods. The research relies in the comprehensive approach of the available archaeological, written and ethnographic materials; as well as descriptive, historical-comparative methods, and analysis of real sources. This article is first to examine the woodworking tools used by the Bashkirs in XVII – XVIII centuries. The archaeological collections allows establishing that the Bashkirs used axes, knives, scraper, graver and drill for wood processing. For basket weaving from bast and birch bark was used the curved awl. According to the written sources, the woodworking tools also included adzes and chisels. The explored archaeological and written materials allow concluding that the woodworking tools of the XVII – XVIII centuries continued to exist among the Bashkir population until the XIX – early XXI centuries, which is proven by the results of historical-ethnographic research.

The burial ground on Tankovoye Lake (Iturup Island): brief history and results of researches

The burial ground located on a bank of Tankovoye Lake (Kuibyshevskoye) is one of the key sites in the archaeology of the Kuril Islands. This is due not only to the fact that huge archaeological collections reflecting all stages of peopling of the region have been collected here over many years of excavations but also to the fact that this burial ground still remains the only object of this kind throughout the entire islands chain. Moreover, apart of the burials themselves, the stone burial structures, which have not yet been recorded on other sites of the Kuril Islands, but have analogies in the Jōmon culture, were also revealed at the site. Interest in this site is also enhanced by recent genetic studies, which unexpectedly demonstrated a high level of genetic similarity of a person buried here with modern Koryaks and Itelmens. At the same time, despite the site’s uniqueness, it is heavily underrepresented in available scientific publications. Information about it can be found only in the field reports and in few the hard-to-reach regional publications. Therefore, this article provides a brief overview of all data gathered at this site. It is based on the field reports, data from the private archive of Y. Knorozov, museum collections of the Sakhalin Regional Museum, and on the results of the author’s own research as well. Summing up the outcomes of long-term researches, we have to state that the site’s unique objects remain almost unexplored. For many years, studies here were limited to visual examination, cleaning up of the dune opening, and surface artifact gathering. Therefore, the nature of the burial objects found at the site might be recognized only in the most general terms. Their cultural affiliation also remains questionable. Radiocarbon dates suggest that the early Epi-Jōmon epoch is most powerfully represented near the lake, while the bulk of the ceramics collected here belongs to the later stage of this epoch (in accordance with archaeological data from Hokkaido). In addition, artifacts of Middle and Final Jōmon, Okhotsk culture, Satsumon-Tobinitai culture, and Ainu are presented here as well. Presumably, people could bury their dead here during the epochs of Final Jōmon, Epi-Jōmon and, possibly, the Okhotsk culture.

In Conversation with the Ancestors: Indigenizing Archaeological Narratives at Acadia National Park, Maine

In North America, Indigenous pasts are publicly understood through narratives constructed by archaeologists who bring Western ideologies to bear on their inquiries. The resulting Eurocentric presentations of Indigenous pasts shape public perceptions of Indigenous peoples and influence Indigenous perceptions of self and of archaeology. In this paper we confront Eurocentric narratives of Indigenous pasts, specifically Wabanaki pasts, by centering an archaeological story on relationality between contemporary and past Indigenous peoples. We focus on legacy archaeological collections and eroding heritage sites in Acadia National Park, Maine. We present the “Red Paint People” myth as an example of how Indigenous pasts become distorted through archaeological narratives influenced by Western ideologies and offer a framework for indigenizing archaeological narratives constructed previously through Western lenses, using Indigenous language and community engagement to carry out the study.

Reuniting Archaeology and Archives through the Smithsonian Institution’s Ralph S. and Rose L. Solecki Papers and Artifacts Project

The Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of Natural History recently conducted a two-year project to process and connect the archives and artifacts of archaeologists Ralph and Rose Solecki, most famous for their work at the sites of Shanidar Cave and Zawi Chemi Shanidar in northern Iraq. Through a collaboration between the archivally-focused National Anthropological Archives and the object-focused Department of Anthropology collections management group, the Ralph S. and Rose L. Solecki Papers and Artifacts Project sought to set an example for archaeological collections and archives stewardship by preserving the association between archaeological specimens and archival records through an integrative methodology of archival processing and specimen cataloging to increase their value to future researchers. Further, the project provides a case study intended to contribute to interdisciplinary conversations about the enduring legacy of archaeologists and their collections within archives and museums through collaborative collections and archives management.

The Archaeological Expeditions to Afghanistan (1949-1951) by the American Museum of Natural History (New York) and their Orphaned Archaeological Collections

This article examines the research potential of archaeological collections gathered in 1949–1951 in southern Afghanistan and currently stored in the United States. Included in these materials is an unpublished archaeological survey from the area south of the modern-day city of Kandahar, as well as assemblages from test excavations at the sites of Deh Morasi Ghundai and Said Qala, which have not been studied. An argument is made for a new study of this material along with a reanalysis of the Shamshir Ghar collection in order to question the paradigm of Afghanistan as only a reflection of other cultures in the ancient world.

A Hobbling Marriage: On the Relationship Between the Collections and the Societal Mission of the Museum of National Antiquities in Stockholm

In the late 19th century, the new Museum of National Antiquities in Stockholm was a cutting-edge institution for the presentation of ideas of a universal human development from primitive to modern —ideas that were at the heart of the European colonial project. We argue that the archaeological collections with their unaltered 19th-century structures still represent a narrative that reproduces a colonial understanding of the world, a linear arrangement of essential cultural groups according to a teleological development model. Contrary to this, the contemporary mission of the Museum, inspired by the late 20th-century postcolonial thinking, is directed towards questioning this particular narrative. This problematic relationship is thus present deep within the structure of the Museum of National Antiquities as an institution, and it points to the need for long-term strategic changes to make the collections useful for vital museum activity in accordance with the Museum's mission.