Beginning of research at the elite burial mound No. 7 of the Sargat culture at the Tartas-2 site (Baraba forest-steppe): geophysical research and elements of ritual practice

This article discusses preliminary results of excavations at burial mound No. 7 at the Tartas-2 burial ground in Vengerovo District of Novosibirsk Region (7 km south of the village of Vengerovo) in 2023. A magnetic survey of the burial mound using a cesium magnetometer was made before the beginning of excavation which was done manually. The total research area was 1600 sq. m. A series of sacred objects were discovered after removing the mound. They included jaws, teeth, and skulls of at least 33 horses, mandibles of three adult cows, one whole skull of adult sheep, and a part of a fox skeleton. Six horses were 2-3 year old colts; the rest were adult horses. Canine teeth were preserved in every anterior set, which clearly indicates that colts or geldings were buried in the burial mound. Burials of human adults continued the chain on the northern side of mount base. Bone remains were represented by skeletons (complete or fragmentary) of six people: three females 20-25 years of age, one female 18-20 years of age, and a male 20-25years of age. Their postures indicated that they were killed by violence. These people were buried not according to the canons of the Sargat culture. The area of anthropological evidence was 3.07 x 1.6 m. Bear fang and handle fragments of a bronze knife were found among the human remains. Traces offuneral feasts in a form of animal bones have often been found in Scythian burial mounds. Similar situation was observed in the burial mounds of nomads of the Southern Urals and Western Kazakhstan. The combination of human and animal sacrifices was discovered in the Sargat culture for the first time, which testifies to high social status of the buried persons and confirms the elite nature of the burial structure.