Metal objects of the 12th-18th centuries from the Irtysh forest-steppe region in a private collection (preliminary report)

First collection of objects made of non-ferrous metal from the northern forest-steppe on the left bank of the Irtysh River (Bolsherechensky District of Omsk Region) is presented in this article. It is in private ownership and was donated to the local residents of the village of Karakul in Bolsherechensky District by one of archaeological looters who operated in the vicinity of the village. In the summer of 2020, the collection was photographed and described. Presently, there is no information on the history of the population living in this region in the Late Middle Ages-Modern period. The publication of material evidence from this time will make it possible to study ethnic and cultural processes in these areas. The collection consists of 39 artifacts: parts ofknife handles, personal adornments including rings, shield rings, earring element, bronze thimble, pendants, fragment of band bracelet with the bear head and paws in the “sacrificial” position, as well as clothing decoration including nonferrous metal buttons (three-dimensional with the single loop; one of them is large and has floral decoration), round sewn stripes, metal belt onlay, and rectangular buckle with two prongs. The collection also contains a three-dimensional hollow fish figurine with scales andfins in relief, and an object made of a copper two-kopeck coin of1797. Most of the items in the collection have been most often found at the sites of the indigenous population living in Western Siberia in the 16th-19th centuries. However, band bracelet of the 9th-12th centuries reflects the specific nature of the collection and does not affect the general dating of the majority of the collection artifacts by the 16th-late 18th centuries.