Sarmatian Research Articles

The Geochemistry of Unalloyed Copper Metallurgical Group Indicates Copper Ore Sources in the Late Bronze and Early Iron Ages of the Urals

Trace elements in copper artifacts from Late Bronze and Early Iron Age sites in the Urals, formerly attributed to the metallurgical group of “chemically pure” copper, were analyzed using the method of laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry. The metal of which artifacts included in this group are made reveals geochemical markers suggesting that “pure” copper actually falls into several subgroups. The PCA analysis of the results identifies 11 clusters corresponding to various sources of copper ores and their mixtures. At least seven principal associations can be linked to copper deposits of different geological types and origin: Au-Te-Bi, Au-Se-Te-Sb, Fe-Co-Ni-As-Sb, Fe-Co-Ni -Zn, Se-Co-Fe, Ag-Pb-Ni, and Sb-Pb-Zn-As. Also, several mixed associations reflect the fusion of copper items and metal scrap initially obtained from different sources: Sn-Pb, Fe-Co-Ni-Zn + Sn, Fe-Co-Ni + Au-Te-Bi-Ag, Fe-Co-Ni + Au-Te-Bi + Sn. A separate association, for which the ore source remains unknown, consists of artifacts characterized by a low content of trace elements, jointly making up less than 0.01 wt%. The largest sample in the Late Bronze Age “pure copper” group falls within the Sn-Pb cluster representing a mixture of local copper and imported Sn-containing copper scrap. Judging by trace elements, the main sources of ore in the “pure copper” group of the Itkul and Sarmatian cultures were the Gumeshki mine and another unidentified source. Both could have been used already in the Final Bronze Age.

Scythian–Sarmatian art as part of the cultural landscape of Crimea

The subject of the study is Scythian–Sarmatian art in the cultural landscape of Crimea, expressed in sculpture, monumental and decorative arts. The object of the study is the Crimean artifacts of the Scythian–Sarmatian culture (details of jewelry, weapons, sculpture, vase painting) in comparison with similar objects from other regions of settlement of the Scythian–Sarmatian nomadic peoples. The author pays special attention to the identification of the main distinctive features of the Scythian and Sarmatian culture, which is complicated by how much mixed culture develops in the Northern Black Sea region and transformations of the animal style of the Scythian–Sarmatian culture in the Crimean diaspora associated with the influence of ancient culture and Near Asian civilizations. The use of the animal style as part of all subsequent styles, including the Crimean Art Nouveau, which is a reflection of the synthesis of cultures of the multiethnic cultural landscape of Crimea, is also traced. The article uses the method of historicism in retrospect of Scythian–Sarmatian art in the cultural landscape of the Crimea, the comparative method in the comparative analysis of artifacts of the Crimea and the entire territory of Scythia, the method of stylistic analysis in the decorative and applied arts of the Crimea. The main conclusions of the study are: 1. The Crimean cultural landscape is diverse due to the historical polyethnicity of the region, associated with its geographical location and a unique natural complex, which has become a place of numerous ethnic migrations throughout history. This is also connected with the appearance of the Scythian–Sarmatian culture in the Crimea in the ancient era, which left a significant mark on the peninsula. 2. The characteristic features of the Scythian – Sarmatian animal style are simplification of form, linearity and geometrization, which harmoniously fits into the classical anthropomorphic proportions in sculpture, wall painting, vase painting of ancient art. The constructive expediency, conciseness and harmony inherent in the Scythian–Sarmatian animal style through the prism of ancient art became the reason for the global introduction into subsequent architectural and artistic styles, up to the present time. 3. The Scythian–Sarmatian art in the Crimean cultural landscape is unique in that it embodies the original style of the Scythian–Sarmatian people.

Refleksje Józefa Andrzeja Gierowskiego o polskiej kulturze i nauce w XVIII wieku

The issues of the history of culture and science of the eighteenth‑century Polish‑Lithuanian Commonwealth are rare in the works of Józef Andrzej Gierowski. This article analyses his views on these issues. He devoted most attention to the subject of the beginnings of the Enlightenment in Poland, joining a long scholarly discussion about it. He agreed that the precursors of the Enlightenment in Poland were already active in the 1740s, during the era of the Wettins’ rule. He pointed to educational reform, writing activity (Benedykt Chmielowski’s, the political and journalistic work of a number of writers) and publishing (especially of the Załuski brothers), and the development of periodicals as the three pillars on which reforms were carried out in the future – during the reign of Stanisław August Poniatowski. In addition, and just as importantly, he drew attention to methodological weaknesses concerning the study of intermediate periods, i.e. between the Baroque and the Enlightenment. He also pointed out the need for a comprehen-sive picture of the cultural history of the Polish‑Lithuanian Commonwealth in the 18 th century – proponents of both Sarmatian culture and Enlightenment thought.

Moscow, a Submissive City: Jacek Komuda’s View of the East in the Context of Neo-Sarmatism and the Topographic Turn on the Example of “Samozwaniec”

In the neo-Sarmatian trend (which involves an attempt to build individual and collective identities by referring to the Sarmatian cultural formation), an important issue is how one identifies oneself in terms of spatial relations between the West, Centre and East of Europe. Jacek Komuda is one of the most recognisable writers of this trend and thus has a great impact on the reader, especially the young one, and on the shaping of their identity. Moscow occupies an important place in his work: the capital of the Grand Duchy was a place where, following its capture by Polish troops, Russian and Sarmatian culture came into contact. A closer look at the representations of Moscow and its society in the novel Samozwaniec [The Pretender] allows us to see how the neo-Sarmatians perceive the East and what image they present to Polish readers, who on this basis are to determine what cultural circle they belong to.

Patrimoine culturel sarmate dans l’espace social du Duché de Lorraine et de Bar sous le règne du roi Stanisław Leszczyński (1737-1766), expression de l’identité culturelle polonaise

The aim of the article is to discuss the Sarmatian cultural transfer into the social space of Lorraine as a manifestation of the Polish cultural identity of the king of Poland, duke of Lorraine and Bar, Stanislaus Leszczynski, a European and a citizen of the world. Leszczynski’s prolific contributions in his new homeland had its roots in the Sarmatian culture, one in which he grew up and which became ingrained in his consciousness. Through the Polish monarch and his Polish entourage, elements of Polish cultural identity—profoundly anchored in the Sarmatian background—began to permeate into the social space of the new homeland of Lorraine.

Second life of damaged things: repairing and modifying jewellery from the Crimea in the Sarmatian period

Crimean jewellery from the Sarmatian period (2nd century BC – 4th century AD) includes a small but interesting group of adornments with traces of damage and repair. These artefacts were elements of grave inventories of the people of the Late Scythian and Sarmatian cultures – deposited exclusively in female and child graves. Most of the repaired personal ornaments are earrings and bracelets. Their quality is usually very low. The existence of repairs made jewellery look less attractive and they were limited to modifications allowing their owners to use such adornments again. The general quality of the repairs seems to indicate that they were performed by peoplelacking expert knowledge of jewellery making.

Палеоэкологические условия финала сарматской эпохи и их влияния на общества скотоводов и земледельцев Восточной Европы и Западной Сибири

The paper make an attempt to consider the cultural and historical events marking the final stage of the Sarmatian epoch from the point of view of climate dynamics in Eastern Europe. It has been confirmed that the Late Sarmatian period in the Lower Volga region coincided with increasing climate humidity and was characterized by high precipitation during the cold season. This occurred in conditions of the Siberian High weakening, resulted to penetration of the Atlantic and Mediterranean cyclones into the inland regions of Eastern Europe and the western areas of Western Siberia. This led to high snow cover formation and provoked a series of other unfavorable factors that triggered migrations and population decline in nomadic or semi-nomadic societies whose economic basis was cattle herding. We suppose that this climate change scenario was not limited to the Lower Volga region. In the article we analyze paleoclimatic, cultural and historical events of the 3rd – 4th centuries AD which occured in the adjacent regions. We found that during this period the Sargat culture, whose economy was based on semi-nomadic cattle breeding, was declining in most of the forest-steppe east of the Urals. The population in the Southern Urals almost completely disappeared by the last decades 3rd century AD. The area of the Late Sarmatian culture from the Lower Volga region is reduced to the Astrakhan Right Bank of the Volga. Only the Lower Don and the Sal-Manych steppes remained inhabited, which is probably due to the regional resource base specifics. Therefore, in most part of Eastern Europe and the western regions of Western Siberia, the population was declining or disappearing long before the Huns invasion, and increase in climate humidity was among the contributing factors. At the same time, the humid climate of the 3rd – 4th centuries AD had a beneficial impact on the crop production. A high winter precipitation provided the flourish of agricultural societies.

Позднесарматское клинковое оружие из погребений Березовского курганного могильника

Introduction. One of the main types of Sarmatian weapons is bladed weapons, represented by daggers and swords. The relatively small number of Late Sarmatian burials in the forest-steppe Podonye determines the importance of publishing new materials – daggers and swords. Materials. The materials for the analysis were artifacts (iron daggers and swords) discovered during the study of kurgan burial ground 4 near the village of Berezovka in the Vorobyevsky district of the Voronezh region (left bank of the Middle Don). In four of the seven burials examined, bladed weapons were found. The dead were buried under separate mounds in elongated rectangular pits and chambers clogged with continental clay. The heads of the buried were directed to the southern sector (three burials) and to the east-northeast (one burial). Bladed weapons were located according to the tradition of the Scythians and Sarmatians – at the right hand with the tip to the extremities of the legs. Methods. The study used a comparative typological method that allowed us to distinguish the found daggers and swords into a separate type of bladed weapons; the method of analogies, which was used to compare the type with similar finds in the Sarmatian culture; and the chronological method, which made it possible to attribute the discovered blades to the late Sarmatian culture. Analysis. During the analysis of artifacts, typical signs of bladed weapons characteristic of the late Sarmatian culture were identified; although the time of their appearance belongs to the early and Middle Sarmatian periods, their chronological framework was determined (mid-2nd – 4th centuries AD). A dagger and a sword were found together in two burials. Results. All burials in which bladed weapons were found belong to men (age range from 25–30 years to 35–40 years). Judging by the available data, the joint occurrence of a dagger and a sword in the burial may indicate in favor of the opinion that there are burials of professional soldiers in the burial ground.

Частично разрушенные сарматские погребения Есауловского Аксая (ограбление или ритуальное осквернение?)

Introduction. The article is devoted to the problem of the partial robbery of the high-status Middle Sarmatians burials analyzed in the Esaulovsky Aksai River floodplain. The analysis of the burial complexes near the village named Kovalevka revealed an interesting feature. There was partial destruction of the buried Sarmatians bones, but, at the same time, the parts of the bones and accompanying burial equipment remained undisturbed. Typically, these burials had some status artifacts like bronze cast and forged cauldrons, weapons and horse harness items, and ceramics from the Central Caucasus, Kuban, and Lower Don Valley. Methods and materials. The objects of research were not only burials from Kovalevka but also synchronic burial complexes from Zhutovo, Aksai, Peregruznoe, and Oktyabrsky. The research involves using both traditional general scientific methods, including chronological and spatial analysis, and special archaeological research methods, including formal typological, cartographic, and analogy methods, which describe the scientific facts and reconstruct ethnocultural processes. Analysis. These burials are characterized not only by dead-drops under an individual mound but also by a special inventory, where, except for the swords and arrows, there were also spearheads, two-part bits with rodshaped psalms, and horse bones. At the same time, the synchronic Early Sarmatian complexes found in the burial mounds were left intact. Such partial robbery of the high-status Middle Sarmatians burials is also fixed when expanding the area of the neighboring burial grounds of the Esaulovsky Aksai River basin. This observation suggests that a group of well-armed nomads with slightly different traditions characteristic of the Middle Sarmatian culture appeared on the studied territory occupied by the Early Sarmatian population at the turn of the era. Migrants who founded their cemeteries in the floodplain of the Esaulovsky Aksai River aroused the anger of the local Sarmatian groups, which led to the burials desecration of the aliens. Results. We can assume that at the end of the 1st century BC and the beginning of the 1st century AD, in the Don-Volga interfluve, there was a struggle for control over an important transit zone, as indirectly evidenced by a significant number of prestigious imported items discovered in the burials of the investigated territory. Key words: Early Sarmatians, Middle Sarmatians, burial, robbery of burials, Don-Volga interfluve.

Integrating Linguistic, Archaeological and Genetic Perspectives Unfold the Origin of Ugrians.

In the last year two publications shed new light on the linguistic and genomic history of ancient Uralic speakers. Here I show that these novel genetic and linguistic data are compatible with each-other and with the archaeological inferences, allowing us to formulate a very plausible hypothesis about the prehistory of Ugric speakers. Both genetic and archaeological data indicate the admixture of the Mezhovskaya population with northern forest hunters in the late Bronze Age, which gave rise to a "proto-Ugric" community. This finding is consistent with the linguistic reconstruction of the proto-Ugric language. Genetic data indicate an admixture of proto-Hungarians with early Sarmatians and early Huns, and I show that the first admixture can be reconciled with the formation of the Gorokhovo culture and its integration into the early Sarmatian Prokhorovka culture, while the second admixture corresponds to the transformation of the Sargat and Sarmatian cultures due to Xiongnu invasions.

XI Всероссийская научная конференция «Проблемы сарматской археологии и истории»

The article summarizes the results of the All-Russian Scientific Conference with International Participation “Problems of Sarmatian Archeology and History” dedicated to the memory of Prof. Anatoly S. Skripkin. The leading theme of the conference is “Chronology and periodization of the Sauromat and Sarmatian cultures: Regional features”. The conference was held in Volgograd in May 2023 on the base of Volgograd State University.

Антропологические материалы из погребальных комплексов сарматского времени (могильник Вонючка-1, Кавказские Минеральные Воды)

Introduction. Most of the burial mounds of the Caucasian Mineral Waters region combine the burials of representatives of different archaeological cultures separated by thousands of years. Therefore, the rate of accumulation of monocultural synchronous materials in collections for some epochs is quite low, and slows down even more due to the unequal preservation of bone remains. The introduction of new information into scientific circulation based on the results of recent archaeological work will allow faster accumulation of materials and data exchange between researchers working on the same issue. The purpose of this work is to publish morphological features of the skeleton of individuals belonging to the Sarmatian culture of the Pre-Caucasus. Materials and methods. The skeletons of three individuals, from three burials of one mound, dating from the III-I centuries BC and belonging to the nomads of the early Sarmatian time were investigated. The study used both traditional methods of anthropology and bioarchaeological approaches. Sex and age studies were carried out on all preserved parts of the skeleton according to standard anthropological methods. A program for fixing markers of stress and pathological conditions was applied to all the studied individuals. Results. Skeletal remains of two young women and a mature man were studied. Both women had anomalies in the development of teeth: in one case – underdevelopment of enamel, in the other – partial congenital adentia. A set of specific features on the postcranial skeleton of a man allow us to characterize him as a rider, right-handed. Discussion. The results of the study supplement our knowledge about the variability of morphological features of the skeleton of representatives of the nomads of the early Sarmatian culture. Some of the detected signs have a pronounced genetic determination; however, the data obtained is insufficient to identify kinship ties, despite the fact that according to the interpretation of archaeologists, this group of burials is defined as a generic cemetery created during the lifetime of one generation. All the discovered features of the skeleton find analogies among the published materials of synchronous time. @ 2023. This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 license.

SWORDS OF THE LATE SCYTHIAN NECROPOLIS CHERVONY MAYAK

The edged weapons are rather frequently occurring at the Late Scythian necropolises though there is a certain disproportion between Crimean and Lower Dnieper sites in favor of the first. The Chervony Mayak necropolis in Lower Dnieper region provides a representative series of various weapons with the edged one inclusive. Ten swords and their fragments were found in the Chervony Mayak necropolis. One of them came from tumulus grave, nine from the graves of burial ground and another one have been found accidently in the gully near the necropolis.
 The edged weapons were found in the following assemblages: tumulus 1, grave 1; grave 30, skeleton 5; grave 31; grave 32, skeleton 3; grave 40, skeleton 1; grave 94; grave 121, skeletons 1 and 3; grave 133, skeleton 1 and the accidental find in gully. All those buried from intact graves were men or juniors.
 Majority of Late Scythian swords have a tanged hilt without metal pommel and cross-bar. They look like Sarmatian swords of the same type but, on the other hand, resemble a Roman spathae and La Tиne swords.
 The main characteristics of Late Scythian edged weapons are following: a long (up to ca. 1 m) blade with a tang which was the core of the grip (more often wooden). The blades of these swords have parallel cutting edges; mainly they have no central ridge. The blade has a various length: daggers are not longer than 40 cm, the main part of swords is from 50 to 70 cm long, several specimens are from 76 up to 110 cm.
 In the Chervony Mayak necropolis in total 10 swords or their fragments have been found. They are represented by following items.
 
 Fragments of the Oriental iron sword with a bronze cross-bar of the Han type (tumulus 1, grave 1), 4 cm wide, the late 1st— early 2ndcentury AD.
 Fragmented iron sword of Khazanov type 1 with a tanged hilt and cross-bar (grave 31), 4 cm wide, the first half of the 2ndcentury AD.
 Iron sword of Khazanov type 2 (grave 121, skeleton 1), 82 cm long (the total length of the whole sword with hilt), 4 cm wide, the 2ndcentury AD.
 Iron sword of the Oriental type with a tanged hilt and a washer-shaped pommel, without cross-bar (grave 121, skeleton 3), 112 cm long, 5 cm wide, with the iron scabbard slide, the 2ndcentury AD.
 Iron sword with a tanged hilt and small metal washer-shaped pommel, without cross-bar (grave 133 skeleton 1), 98 cm long, 5.5 cm wide, 1st— early 2nd century AD. From one hand this sword has the features of Khazanov type 2 (tanged hilt, no cross-bar, long blade), on the other — its pommel and blade proportions are similar in appearance to the Roman gladius hispaniensis.
 Iron sword with a tanged hilt and small metal washer-shaped pommel, without cross-bar (accidental find from Propasna gully in Chervony Mayak village), 74 cm long, 3.5 cm wide. The sword has some features of Roman spatha (form of blade shoulders and edges, type of handle top).
 
 Fragments of swords from grave 30, skeleton 5, grave 32, skeleton 3, grave 40, skeleton 1 and grave 94 cannot be attributed as a concrete type.
 It should be noted that swords with a ring pommel (Sarmatian type) are absent in the Chervony Mayak necropolis. In the same time this type is represented among more than 50 % of all swords found in another Late Scythian necropolis Ust-Alma in Crimea. Swords with ring pommel are one of the most popular type of the Middle Sarmatian culture.
 The prototype of traditional Late Scythian sword — with long blade, tanged hilt without crossbar and metal pommel — were the late La Tиne imported swords of the type occurred in Scythian Neapolis Mausoleum, Vyshetarasivka, Zolota Balka etc. The specimens from Chervony Mayak demonstrate the acquaintance of the Late Scythian bladesmiths with both Oriental and Western traditions.

Этническая карта Северного Причерноморья на рубеже эр

The article discusses the complicated theme of the localization of peoples and tribes in the northern Black Sea region at the turn of epochs. The authors use the method of interpretation of ancient authors’ information while comparing it with broad archeological data. The research allows to successfully localize particular peoples and numerous tribes of the given time on the ethnic map of the region. The research shows that most tribes and peoples left a bright trace in ethnic history of the northern Black Sea region. However, not all ethnic groups dwelling there at that time found their place in the region’s geographical space. Some localizations still belong to scientific uncertainties. This confirms the relevance of the research. In addition to a thorough analysis of the ancient written tradition, the authors also involve archaeological material to prove the location of the tribes. Thanks to this comprehensive study, it has been established that after the few recorded Sarmatian burials of the II–I centuries BC in the areas between the Dnieper and the Don and in the north-western Black Sea coast, the number of Sarmatian monuments of the second half of the first century B.C – early first century AD to the west of the Dniester increases sharply. Several barrow burial mounds of the Zubo-Vozdvizhensky group of Sarmatian monuments appeared on the left bank of the Kuban River in the second half of the first century BC, which differ in some respects from the Central Sarmatian complexes of the Kuban area. The tombs have pronounced Central Asian cultural elements. In this respect the authors pay special attention to the decay of Southern Ural steppes at the turn of the our era due to aridisation and shift of the center of Middle Sarmatian culture towards the Lower Don. Thus, the study confirms the enormous role of migrations from the depths of Asia in the formation of the Middle Sarmatian culture and in the emergence of many innovations in the Sarmatian culture of the first century AD.

Hiatus III в. до н.э. и incident 1963 г.

In 1963 K.F.Smirnov, V.G.Petrenko, and M.G.Moshkova published two collections of archaeological sources on the Sauromatian culture and the Early Sarmatian (Prokhorovka) culture. At the same time these researchers made a methodological error: using a single archaeological database (card index of monuments), they selected for their publications seventy archaeological complexes and finds, which were both as the latest Sauromatian monuments and as the earliest Sarmatian (Prokhorovka) monuments at the same time. Since the collections of sources were published by category of finds, and not by complexes, the allowed mistake was missed by the authors of the collections when they were preparing the books for publication. And this duplication of materials became a foundation for a system of evidence for the smooth transition of the Sauromatian culture to the Early Sarmatian. When the authors realized this after the books had been published, they decided not to focus on the error believing that the intensive growth of new archaeological material would quickly alleviate the error. However, all the decades after the 1963 incident never gathered sufficient the materi- als of the 3rd century BC. The thesis about the 2nd–1st centuries BC Sarmatian culture ‘growing’ out of the late Sauromatian monuments dated 4th–3rd centuries BC appeared to be rather a declarative statement without any evidence behind. Attempts to statistically analyze large sets of funeral rite signs at sites dated 6th–1st centuries BC in Asian Sarmatia did not give the expected result due to the methodological inconsistency of the study. In addition, the so-called ‘clamped dating method’ is methodologically questionable and anti-historical because the continuity of 6th–4th centuries BC culture and 2nd–1st centuries BC culture is not proven, even though the method was developed by V.M.Klepikov specifically for identifying monuments of the 3rd century BC. All the events considered in the article led Sarmatian archeology to a crisis and to ascertaining the presence of a hiatus in chronological columns for antiquities assigned to the Scythian-Sarmatian type in the Southern Urals and the Lower Volga region.

GENETIC DIVERSITY OF THE CENTRAL CAUCASIAN REGION POPULATION IN THE 1st millennium BC – 1st millennium AD BASED ON MITOCHONDRIAL DNA

This study is the first attempt to analyze the genetic diversity of the Central Ciscaucasia population during the Late Bronze Age – Early Iron Age and Early Middle Ages. The authors analyzed 120 samples from 10 burial grounds of the Koban and Alan archaeological cultures, as well as representatives of the Middle Sarmatian culture and the North Caucasian population of the Sarmatian period. Data on the variability of mitochondrial DNA (m-tDNA) of 71 individuals were obtained. An analysis of the previously collected and published information allows concluding that the analyzed populations are characterized by a significant diversity of mtDNA with a predominance of West Eurasian mitochondrial haplogroups. East Eurasian lines of inheritance can be traced in small numbers among the population of the Koban culture (5%), as well as among the Sarmatian (14%) and Alanian populations (11%). The most common lines of Western Eurasian origin are different variants of haplogroups H, U and N. At the same time, a significant diversity of mtDNA haplogroups is observed at all burial sites, except for the Kich-Malka II burial ground, where during the 7th century BC – the early 6th century AD the succession of individuals on the maternal line was recorded, represented by haplogroup H2a2a1. Study in the latter requires a more detailed approach using whole genome sequencing. Comparison of the analyzed sample with previously published data on the genetic portrait of the North Caucasus population in the Early and Middle Bronze Age makes it possible to conclude that representatives of the East Eurasian cluster of mtDNA haplogroups arrived in the Central Ciscaucasia rather late, it was probably associated with contacts between the Koban culture carriers and the nomadic steppe population.

Сарматские культы и общество сарматов

The proposed article addresses the problem of social reflection of the cult life of the Sarmatians, investigated with the help of archeology and written tradition. In the article, special attention is paid to the concept of priesthood, which is compared with other concepts (healers, fortune-tellers, shamans). There is a practice in the archaeological literature to use a certain set of signs for attributing burials as priestly. Researchers usually refer to priestly burials as female and male burials with extraordinary grave goods. But these burials are more likely to be the burials of leaders and their wives and are associated with the performance of certain cult actions by them. Shrines and ritual sites, as well as cult objects known in Sarmatian culture, are not necessarily associated with the specialization of cult activities. The use of the concepts of ‘Sarmatian priests’, ‘Sarmatian priestesses’ and ‘priestly attributes’ by the archaeologists is rather a tribute to historiography, but upon closer examination, they turn out to be historiographical phantoms rather than a reflection of social realities.

Погребение среднесарматской культуры курганного могильника Песчаный IV: результаты сравнительно-типологического, радиоуглеродного и изотопного исследований

The paper addresses the results of the study of a rich Middle Sarmatian female burial (end of the 1st century BC — first half of the 1st century AD) discovered in the Sal-Manych steppe, on the border between the Rostov Oblast and Kalmykia. The funerary rite and goods are typical for elite burials of the Middle Sarmatian culture (diagonal burial in a large rectangular pit with a recess, two cast bronze cauldrons, clothes with golden elements, imported fibulae, a gem). The authors have conducted the comparative and typological analysis of chronological indicators found among the grave goods, as well as radiocarbon dating, which allowed to narrow down the chronological interval for the burial. Study of strontium (87Sr/86Sr) isotopes ratio from the buried woman’s dental enamel and background samples from the studied region have showed that the Sarmatian woman buried in the Peschany IV barrow group was of local origin. The interdisciplinary approach allowed to reconstruct the life story of the buried woman and her grave goods.

Дитячі поховання з могильника Новий cередньосарматського часу (ранній період)

The paper deals with child burials of cemetery Novyi of the Middle Sarmatian culture. Due to the representative source base of cemetery Novyi, it was possible to examine 44 child burials that were divided by age: up to a year; early childhood (1–3 years); first childhood (4–7 years); second childhood (8–12 years); adolescence (12–16 years). Thus, for children aged up to a year (infants), there is a rather high mortality which predominantly depended on natural selection. Infants were not buried separately, but only with women of different ages. Personal funeral equipment was not provided to children of such age. At the age of 1–3 years child mortality has significantly reduced. Children of this age were buried separately. Education of children aged 4–7 years has already had a strong gender attribute. The greatest indicators of child mortality are observed exactly at this age. In the case of a double burial, children were buried together with women. But for the first time a single case has been recorded when a child (presumably a girl) was buried along with a man. The funeral equipment is already very diverse. At the age of 8–12, children have already been actively involved in various household activities, but girls and boys were clearly separated both in everyday life and entertainment. Boys were trained to handle weapons. Mortality at this age is relatively small, but there were severe injuries of child skeletons which did not heal during life. The funeral equipment in terms of gender turned out to be rather not distinctive. Boys of adolescent age (8–12 years) had almost equal rights with men. In a single burial of an adolescent a complete set of weapons inherent to adult men was found.

БАТЫС ҚАЗАҚСТАНДАҒЫ КЕЙІНГІ САРМАТ МӘДЕНИЕТІНЕ ТӘН ЖЕРЛЕУ ҒҰРПЫ

The article presents statistical materials on the funeral rite of the nomadic population living on the territory of modern Western Kazakhstan in the second half of the 2nd –4 th centuries AD, which are united into a single Late Sarmatian culture. In total, more than two hundred objects were taken into account in the sample. According to external features, regional features are distinguished for the Late Sarmatian monuments of the Jaiyk and Mugaljar river basins. In particular, according to the location in the burial complexes of peculiar and at the same time unique “П”-shaped and “dumbbell-shaped” structures and some elements of the funeral rite. At the same time, the Late Sarmatian monuments of both local regions retain their common diagnostic signs, manifested in the form of a grave pit, the orientation of the backbone to the northern sector, the deformation of the cranial vault and a stable set of funeral equipment. These objects were used as a specific burial rite, religious-ritual burial, or only for religious purposes.