Iron Belt Set from the Burials of the Plotnikovo Burial Ground (Rodanovo Culture, Perm Region)

Abstract

The aim of the research is a comprehensive analysis of the objects of the iron belt set from the Plotnikovo burial ground. The burial ground is located near Kudymkar, Perm region and belongs to the 13th–15th centuries AD. Methods of studying the chemical composition of metals (XRF and SEM analysis) archaeometallographic and tracological, were used to conduct the analysis. The objects from burials № 3, 118, 180 were material for the study. These burials belonged to adult men. As a result, the authors found out that the elements of the belt set were made of raw steel with good forging quality. The rings and frames of the buckle were made of a rounded or square rod. Raw steel was a billet for the main parts of the linings. The conceived forms of the linings or their main parts were knocked out of the plates with a chisel. The tinning process was carried out after the manufacturing of the main parts of the products. Then there was an additional decoration of the products with the help of incrustation. The fastening of the linings to the leather base of the belt was carried out with the help of pins. These finds were the first and only iron products with tinning and incrustation that were found in the materials of medieval sites of the Perm Pre-Urals. Analogies to them can be found in the materials of Laishevo and Semenovka villages located in the basin of the Lower Kama River.