Collections of the Museum of Kemerovo State University as a Basis for Scientific Reconstruction of the Teleut Women’s Costume

Abstract

The research features the historical and cultural heritage of the Teleuts, an indigenous people of Kuzbass, in particular their national costumes stored in the funds of the museum «Archeology, Ethnography, and Ecology of Siberia» (Kemerovo State University). The museum collections form a basis for scientific historical reconstruction of women’s Teleut costume. The paper describes authentic ethnographic items of the main collection and the archives: various collections, field notebooks, expedition diaries, and reports made by scientists of the university, as well as photographs, videos, slides, and sketches. It is the first time the documentary funds have been introduced into scientific use. The research involved the prosopographic database of the scientists who donated valuable collections on the material and spiritual culture of the Teleuts, as well as museum collections of the departments of ethnography and history. The authors also described historical and ethnographic heritage collected by the scientists who organized expeditions in 1960s – late 1990s and donated their collections to the museum. The authors evaluated the contribution the scientists made to the studies of the Teleut culture. In addition, the article introduces an acquisition technique that would guarantee the authenticity of the items related to the Teleut culture.