Archaeology, Ethnology & Anthropology of Eurasia @journal-aeae-en
Journal articles - Archaeology, Ethnology & Anthropology of Eurasia
All articles: 584
Scientific article
Archaeological excavations carried out in the Republic of North Ossetia – Alania over the past 15 years have yielded numerous artifacts associated with the Proto-Koban (15th/14th to early 12th century BC) and “classic” Koban culture (9th–8th centuries BC). Here, we analyze antimony artifacts from the cemeteries of Adaidon, dating to the Proto-Koban stage, and Elkhotovo, representing “classic” Koban. The analysis of composition of the metal revealed the recipes used by ancient craftsmen for manufacturing weapons, ornaments, and votive items. Antimony ornaments from Elkhotovo suggest that this substance was used not only in the Middle and the beginning of the Late Bronze Age in the Caucasian highlands, but also much later in the piedmont zone of the region. The study of certain bronze artifacts from Adaidon suggests that to make ornaments and votive items more attractive, antimony in the amount of 4.5–5.0 % was added. As a result, they acquired a light-golden color and luster.
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Application of the decision tree method for differentiating human groups
Scientific article
One of the tasks of modern biological anthropology is to develop a system that could objectively classify humanity on the basis of measurements. Here, the decision tree algorithm was chosen to create a classification of groups. The method helps to evaluate the differentiating power of specific dimensions for separating samples and to assess the composition of clusters at each step of the analysis. Standard cranial measurements were used, and the entropy index was chosen as a heterogeneity measure. Classification units were 39 ethno-territorial groups from 13 major regions of the Old World. At the first step, differentiation is made between broad-faced and narrow-faced groups, demonstrating the classificatory value of this trait. The first cluster includes only Mongoloids, admixed Southern Siberian populations, and Ainu. The second cluster is heterogeneous, but its further subdivision is more in line with the traditional classification. Traits underlying the branching of the tree may be the same in different branches, evidencing their taxonomic importance. Capabilities of the decision tree method proved sufficient to construct a system largely similar to the traditional one. Certain traits separate large groups of populations, while others are efficient at the regional level. The method, therefore, can be recommended as a supplementary tool at the intraspecific level.
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Scientific article
This article presents the findings of the study of a co-burial of a eunuch-official and his wife, found in the city of Uijeongbu, Gyeonggi-do Province, made in accordance with Confucian traditions during the Joseon Dynasty period. A description of finds, perfectly preserved in the grave sealed with lime-soil mixture and charcoal barrier, is given. The writings on the banners draping the coffins are studied. These say that in the left coffin the husband named Lee was buried; he was an official who oversaw the management of palace goods and held the position that was given only to eunuchs. In the right coffin, according to the writing, there was the body of the wife; she was awarded a lady's rank corresponding to her husband's status. Special focus is given to the description of clothes and fabric on the bodies of the buried. The results of anthropological analysis of the remains are given. Morphological features of the pelvic and skull bones provided the information on the sex of the deceased. According to the condition of the auricular surface of the left pelvic bone, the age of the eunuch-official and his wife was determined as more than 60 years. It is concluded that the research materials significantly supplement the scientific information on the position of eunuch-officials in the society during the Joseon Dynasty period.
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Scientific article
This article presents an analysis and additional description of archaeological items of the Jōmon period from A.V. Grigoriev’s collection (No. 1294) at the Department of Archaeology of the Peter the Great Museum of Anthropology and Ethnography (Kunstkamera) RAS in St. Petersburg. The study focuses on the description of decorative motifs and the stylistic attribution of selected samples of pottery. The analysis is based on the published data about the Ōmori shell mound (Tokyo, Honshu Island), visited by Grigoriev in 1878 as a part of the expedition from the Imperial Russian Geographical Society. The early stage of the Japanese archaeology is described with reference to the Ōmori shell mound. Special attention is given to specific features of the Jōmon decorative style. The geographic location of the site suggests that the samples are associated with the Kasori B and Horinouchi styles. Contrary to the Russian tradition, the emphasis is made on stylistic interpretation rather than technology and typology. The combinations of large zonally arranged rectangular designs and spiral motifs are typical of the Kasori B style, to which several samples belong. Others reveal vertically and horizontally arranged patterns consisting of incised arcuate and straight lines, typical of the Horinouchi style.
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Review article
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Review article
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Armed violence among the Altai mountains pastoralists of the Xiongnu-Sarmatian age
Review article
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Artifacts from the Ural-Hungarian center (800–1000 ad), recently found at Ob Ugrian sanctuaries
Scientific article
This article introduces four silver dishes and a copper plaque from Ob Ugrian sanctuaries in the Yamal-Nenets and Khanty-Mansi (Yugra) Autonomous Okrugs. A dish representing a bird snatching a fi sh; a dish and a plaque representing deer; a medallion of a dish showing a griffi n and two fl ying birds; and a dish (sliced into pieces) with a scene of a wedding feast were apparently manufactured at the Ural-Hungarian center in the 9th or 10th century. Parallels from medieval workshops of Iran and Central Asia are listed. In terms of technology and ornamentation, seven artifacts from the Ural-Hungarian center can be regarded as a separate subgroup. Each is made from three superimposed silver sheets without gilding and has a thin punched ornamentation on the face (its negative image is clearly visible on the reverse side). The ornamentation includes a border consisting of two parallel arches and a vertical dash with three round imprints of a punch, arranged in a pyramid, and a punch imprint on the animal’s paw. Both humans and animals have large almond-shaped eyes with iris but no pupil. A dish with a scratched drawing superimposed on the principal composition is the fi rst known example of such an item among the Ural-Hungarian artifacts. An explanation is provided as to why those artifacts survived in the ritual practice of Ob Ugrians, and ways they could be used in the ritual are suggested.
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Avtodrom 2-A Late Neolithic (Artyn culture) site in the Baraba forest-steppe, Western Siberia
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Scientific article
Beads are the most frequent finds in 1st–5th century AD female burials at Tarasovo on the Middle Kama, the largest Finno-Ugric cemetery, dating to the Great Barbarian Migration era. Larger beads are common in burials of women aged 17–45, whereas seed beads were typically worn by girls and young women aged 13–29. This was probably because unmarried girls wore beanies embroidered with beads and bronze ornaments. Also, variously sized beads were attached to bands of the headdress, framing its bottom edges in one or more lines. Single beads found near the crania suggest that they were amulets. In one- and several-strand necklaces, beads alternated with bronze ornaments. Necklaces were often parts of gift sets, some of which are completely preserved, including the organic base. Larger beads were used as pendants. Some of them decorated strips, used for appending knives and other utensils to belts. All these ways of using beads are still practiced by Finno-Ugric women in the Ural area.
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Scientific article
Archaeological and anthropological data concerning two children’s burials representing the early horizon at Boldyrevo-4 kurgan 1, Orenburg Region, excavated in 2019–2020, are presented. Early mounds were covered by a huge kurgan above another, later burial of adults. The entire complex was built by the Yamnaya people at the turn of the early and middle stages of this culture, about 3300–3100 cal BC. Remains of three children, aged about 6, from two graves, were examined. Severe pathological conditions were discovered. The child from burial 3 died of metastatic cancer. Child 1 from burial 4, represented only by a cranium, possibly suffered from scurvy. The oncological condition may have been triggered by a long stay at a smoky hearth or proximity to a metalworking site, since the Yamnaya population of the Southern Urals was engaged in an intense exploitation of copper deposits. In both children’s burials, common elements of the Yamnaya funerary rite were accompanied by certain unusual features. Vessels were similar in form and decoration, but different in manufacturing technique. The organic substances of which the mats under the skeletons were made display certain differences. These features suggest that children belonged to related but separate groups. Children buried under early mounds apparently had a special inherited social status that had an effect on the further construction of the kurgan for members of the elite.
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Bone Carving Among Early Iron Age Nomads of Eastern Kazakhstan: The Case of Berel
Scientific article
This study addresses carved bone artifacts crafted by Early Iron Age nomads of Eastern Kazakhstan as compared to those from more easterly areas of the Altai-Sayan Highland. A large sample of carved horn details of harness and bridle from a horse burial in mound 36 at the Berel cemetery, Altai, is described with a view to revealing the peculiarities of this craft among the Early Iron Age nomads of Kazakhstan. A comprehensive analysis (structural, morphological, and technological) suggests that all the artifacts were manufactured using two types of horn plate as blanks. The collection evidences a variety of techniques for processing antlers. Details of bridle and harness, made of various materials, attest to mobility, rationality, and cyclicity in Early Iron Age nomadic societies of Eurasia.
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