Sites with radial / circular planning: development of the model of sacral space and reconstruction of concepts(from the Sintashta tradition to the early iron age period)

The most spectacular sites with radial / circular planning were createdby the Sintashta population in the Middle Bronze period. The Sintashta Large Kurgan(SLK) composed of two components, namely, a funeral site and a temple / sanctuary, is an outstanding construction. V. I. Stefanov questioned the unconditional attribution of theSLK to the array of sintashta antiquities because the only reconstructed vessel possessescherkaskul traits. It is not sufficient for complete revisiting of the cultural and chronologicalattribution of the sLK. At the same time, the tradition of radial / circular planning of funeralsites in the late Bronze period encompasses a large area, which includes the cherkaskulculture, the Karasuk culture, and, possibly, the so called culture of khereksurs. Repeateddating of the sLK (full or partial) reduces the chronological gap between azhan and thesLK, offering an opportunity to tackle the issue of typological similarity of the two culturesfrom a different angle. The author interprets the radial / circular layout as an image of a spokedwheel, which was used in the Vedic tradition as a symbol of the Year and rebirth.