Pazyryk Culture on the Ukok Plateau

Abstract

The article discusses the unique heritage of the Ukok Plateau in the southeastern part of the Altai Mountains. The author shares findings from research on the ancient Scythian culture in Altai and the archaeological monuments discovered. It has been possible to expand the knowledge about the ancient inhabitants of the Plateau due to the complex research work of the groups of Russian archaeologists from Novosibirsk headed by V. I. Molodin and N. V. Polosmak. Particular attention was given to the discovery by N. V. Polosmak in 1993 on the Ukok Plateau, i. e. the mummy of Pazyryk woman who lived in southern Siberia more than two millennia ago. The mummy was found in a mound of permafrost, so the burial was preserved and appeared to researchers in its authentic form: a larch log cabin was placed under the mound, almost three meters deep from the surface, and six horses, fully dressed and harnessed, killed especially for burial, were placed on its northern side. An important component of the Pazyryk culture is the art of the animal style, widespread among the Scythian peoples. Almost all the items of equipment accompanying the burial of a Pazyryk woman belonged to the products of the animal style. Although this burial was common to the Pazyryk people, it had some extraordinary features. First, the woman's burial was a solitary one, while in the barrows excavated earlier, women were buried together with men. Secondly, the barrow itself was solitary, although, as a rule, all the Pazyryk burial mounds are chains of barrows oriented from north to south. Thirdly, the objects of the accompanying inventory were distinguished by high craftsmanship, and the burial chamber was large. And finally, the silk shirt was a great rarity for the Pazyryk inhabitants. Foreign scientists also took part in the research, applying completely new methods of research. For example, ancient DNA was isolated from the tissue of a female mummy which allowed to study of the racial and ethnospecific features of the representatives of the Pazyryk culture of the Altai Mountains. The found artifacts testify to the presence of a developed culture belonging to the so-called Pazyryk culture among the ancient inhabitants of Altai.