BULLETIN OF ARCHAEOLOGY, ANTHROPOLOGY AND ETHNOGRAPHY ¹ 6 (2006)
Anthropology
The article is devoted to the
investigation results regarding big craniological series from the earth cemetery
of Firsovo-XIV attributed to Andronovo culture of the developed Bronze Age. The
cemetery is located in the Altai forest-steppe zone in the vicinity of Barnaul.
Morphologically, the crania could be described as pronouncedly European,
occupying a mid-position between the Andronovo group of proto-European type, and
southern European Mediterranean race.
The investigation of
intra-group variability of the masculine series from Firsovo-XIV identified two
morphological constituents quantitatively roughly equal. The former, with a big
mesocranial brainpan, straight broad forehead, low and broad facial part,
corresponds to the Andronovo kind of proto-European type distinctive of the
Andronovo (Fedorovo) culture population. In the earlier periods, it was never
discovered in the territory of the Upper Ob, and represents the population that
migrated from the farther western areas, bringing along the Andronovo cultural
traditions. The crania of the other morphological constituent are characterized
by features of the Mediterranean anthropological type. On the average, they are
long-headed, strongly dolichocranial, with a fairly narrow retreating forehead,
quite narrow and relatively high facial part. The Mediterranean constituent from
Firsovo-XIV cemetery displays similarity with a foreign European constituent
present among the Yelunino culture population of the Early Bronze Age in the
Upper Ob basin. Basing on the investigation of the anthropological material from
Firsovo-XIV, it is suggested that under the migration, the Andronovo population
groups used to involve the Yelunino people from the Altai south-west areas into
their moving to the Upper Ob. The Yelunino population inhabiting the Low Ob
basin and having certain Mongoloid admixture of the local origin was forced out
into other regions.
As to the feminine part of the
Firsovo-XIV series, its heterogeneity being similar to the masculine one.
Besides, one could identify a minor morphological constituent typical of West
Siberian (Uralian, in earlier terminology) race. Its emergence in the Upper Ob
south areas could be explained by matrimonial relations with the population from
farther northern territories in West Siberian sub-taiga.
Razhev D. I., Courteau P., Zaitseva O. V.
Non-Mound Birial from the Sopinino Necropolis in Terms of Field Anthropology
The paper considers an earth non-mound burial of the Early Iron Age constituting the Sopinino necropolis in the north of Kurgan Oblast. The burial contains the remains of a male adult with accompanying artefacts: a dagger lacking the hilt extremity and cross-piece; bone arrow heads; a belt fastening of the Pyanobor type. The burial complex was investigated in terms of field anthropology – a direction new in the Russian archaeology. The article cites two possible scenarios that determined the position of the skeleton fragments and artefacts to be observed under the excavations. The first refers to the primary, and plundered, burial, whilst the second – to the later added burial.