We present a radiocarbon chronology of key Sayan-Altai monuments from the Scythian period, based on a statistical analysis of dates produced in the 1980s and now supplemented with new dates. These new 14C dates were produced for samples from the Tuekta-1 barrows (burial mounds) and were measured both in St. Petersburg and Groningen. These tree-ring samples were fitted to the calibration curve. Chronologies were established for the Arzhan, Tuekta-1 and Pazyryk-5 barrows. The time of the construction of the Arzhan and Pazyryk-5 barrows is the 9th and late 5th–4th centuries bc, respectively, and agrees with archaeology. According to new data obtained, the time of the Tuekta-1 barrow construction is some years older than has been accepted thus far by archaeologists.
Problems of preservation and research of prehistoric cultural heritage objects in the Arctic are reviewed in the article. To determine the priority tasks in the field of preserving the heritage of this region, the most probable risks of physical loss and loss of quality of objects associated with natural and anthropogenic factors are analyzed. A special feature of the Arctic is its increased sensitivity to anthropogenic influence and climate change. Therefore, in the context of global warming, the risks of losing the cultural wealth of a region and a planet increase substantially. An important role in the preservation of heritage sites can be played by measures to ensure conservation status, involvement in tourism and recreation development projects. One of the aspects of the conservation problem is that the cultural heritage objects of the Arctic region are still poorly understood as a valuable resource of information about nature and society. New methods developed by the authors of the article allow us to consider prehistoric heritage sites as functional elements of the ancient life support system and the modern geocultural space. The use of these methods allows us to zone the territory with the allocation of sustainable areas, which have been performing environmental and informational social functions for thousands of years. It is on these sites that ancient heritage objects are located. Correctly holding the boundaries of prehistoric cultural heritage objects (in the natural boundaries of natural systems) allows us to save information about the functional relationships in the socio-natural system. The article shows that the application of the methodology and research methods developed by the authors of the article will significantly reduce the risks of losing cultural heritage in the Arctic and other regions
The article explores the relationship between oral narrative heritage and specific material monuments on the example of two actual objects situated near the Kolyvan settlement in Western Altai. The State Hermitage Museum's archaeological fieldwork in the Saian-Altaic region was conducted in 1993 and 1996 on Mt. Ocharovatelnaia and Mt. Siniukha. There is a rock precipice of zoomorphic shape on Mt. Ocharovatelnaia that has been used as a sanctuary, but possibly also for astronomic observation by prehistoric people. In one observation site, the sun can be observed as setting in the mouth of the animal-shaped rock during vernal equinox-the animal as if swallows the sun. A Christian sanctuary was later erected on Mt. Siniukha, and a wooden cross stood there even in the early 20th century. On the foot of the mountain there was an Old-Believers' nunnery. Mt. Ocharovatelnaia rises 670 m and Siniaia Sopka, the highest peak of the Kolyvan ridge south of Mt. Ocharovatelnaia 1,210 m above the sea level. It is a rule rather than a coincidence that the zoomorphic pagan sanctuary on Mt. Ocharovatelnaia in the north is located twice as low compared to the Christian cross on the Siniaia mountaintop in the south. In the Christian tradition the warmer South is more revered than the cold North. In several ancient Russian geographic maps, south was situated above and north below. Th21e position of cultic objects on mountaintops situated opposite of each other appears to symbolise the triumph of Christianity over paganism in the 18th century.
The article analyzes the unique fragments of silk textile found in Southern Siberia using different methods. During the study, two types of textiles were identified and details of the sleeve from women’s clothing were reconstructed. The silk textile with embroidery was probably made in China and brought to Siberia in the 13th century.
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