A birchbark anthropomorphic article from the Early Iron Age Novotroitskoye necropolis in the Upper Ob

Abstract

This paper discusses a burial doll discovered within the Early Iron Age necropolis of Novotriotskoye-1 during field research by the expedition of Barnaul State Pedagogical Institute under the direction of A.P. Umanskii in the Talmensky District of Altai Krai. The object found in a woman's burial is an anthropomorphic image with wingshaped arms and schematically indicated facial features, namely prominent eyes, eyebrows, nose and gouged mouth. The purpose of this work is to publish the Novotriotskoye idol in high quality, since in various publications by A.P. Umanskii and co-authors it was presented only in schematic drawings. Cleaning the object from field dirt, undertaken by the authors, made it possible to better observe the stylistic features of the artifact. Furthermore, the authors made an attempt to create experimental stylistic replicas of the analysed article. Three scenarios of its production have been implemented, and the details are presented in this publication. The authors suggest that the schematic exterior of the Novotriotskoye object allows considering it as a peculiar burial doll. The iconography of the Novotriotskoye anthropomorphic image has been characterized in the context of connections of the Upper Ob River region population of the second half of the 1st mil. AD with the cultures of Northern Asia (Tashtyk, Kokel, “Bulan-Koby”). A wide range of archaeological and ethnographic parallels to the discussed anthropomorphic object has been analyzed. The authors conclude that the routine production of anthropomorphic images and masks was deeply rooted in the Ob River region, and it appeared in the Early Iron Age. Earlier, we came across an opinion, that its origins need to be searched for among the cultures of Southern Siberia — mainly Khakass-Munusinsk Basin and Eastern Siberia. The discovery of the studied birchbark image in the Novotriotskoye necropolis includes the Upper Ob River region into the potential areas of formation of this tradition.

Keywords

• upper ob region
• early iron age
• novotroitsk necropolis
• birch bark image
• funeral rites