Preliminary results of survey in the Bagan District of Novosibirsk Region in 2024

During the archaeological survey conducted in the autumn of 2024 in the Kulunda steppe, the Bagan District (Novosibirsk Region), a team from the Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography SB RAS discovered three potential burial mounds: Gorobtsova-1, Gorobtsova-2, and Baturskaya-1. The survey methodology for the Kulunda steppe, which is subject to the extensive agricultural development, is described. Classical methods were employed during the survey, including walking routes aimed at searching for topographical anomalies, detailed examination of these anomalies, searching for surface materials, and documenting the main typical features of the burial mounds. Significant attention was given to the marker vegetation or crop marks. Additionally, a method that has only recently become widespread was applied, i.e. the analysis of remote sensing data. The course of the survey showed that classical methods alone are not always sufficient for obtaining the reliable data in the areas subjected to the extensive agricultural development. The article provides brief data on mentioned burial mounds, including their geographical location and description of their morphological characteristics. A total of 8 round burial mounds were found, with 6 of them having a small height of the mound up to 0.25 m and a diameter of up to 8 m, whereas two are more distinctly defined with a diameter of up to 17 m and a mound height of up to 0.7 m. The results of the work can be considered a preliminary expansion of the distribution area of burial mounds in the central part of the Bagan District, moving further away from the Baganka River. Furthermore, an issue of verification of some burial mounds in the Bagan District has been raised which is associated with their morphological features, such as low mounds and the absence of well-defined ditches around the mounds.