Scholarly record

RESULTS OF THE COMPLEX NATURALISTIC STUDIES OF THE NECROPOLIS OF CHULKOV LOG-1 IN THE LOWER KATUN REGION

A. P. Borodovskiy

Abstract

The author discovered an area of unravaged burial complexes on the territory of the Lower Katun mountainous valley regarded a part of the trans-cultural region where large multicultural necropoles were formed. The burial mound group of Chulkov Log-1 is one of them. The monument is located along the Chuya Highway, 1.5 km away to the north-west from the town of Manzherok, Mayminsky District, near the mountainous slope of the Iolgo ridge branches. The burial mound group includes 123 burial mounds with stone structures about 3-15 m in diameter referred to several cultural traditions. Judging by the funeral tradition peculiarities and support inventory, the necropolis was formed in from 1,000 A.D. to the beginning of 1,000 B.C. Complex, multidisciplinary studies (radiocarbon dating, geo-physical, geological studies, petrographic analyses, 3D-modling (rendering) allowed obtaining an array of interesting results. One of them implies localization of the boundaries of distribution of several different cultural traditions of the Early Iron Age, including the Bystryanska, Pazyryk, Karakobin traditions, in-kerf graves as well as deer stones and balbals in the Northern Altai. On the necropolis territory, numerous secondary graves regarded as standard for the Early Iron Age of the Northern Altai were discovered. Another important result was identification of the representative group of graves of the Maima culture attributed to the Hun-Sarmatian period. The archeological and geological studies allowed determining an array of the ancient seismic activity attributes on the stone structures of burial mounds of the second half of 1,000 B.C. Due to carbon dating of some of these burial mounds, one managed to preliminarily establish the absolute and relative chronology of these paleoseismic events. The petrographic analyses of the composition of the stone box plates of the necropolis Karakobin cultural tradition enabled to determine potential deposits of their construction material as well as logistics and seasonality of resource supply. Rendering (3D-modeling) and experimental restoration of the necropolis burial (graveside and intragrave) structures allowed obtaining virtual models of the archeological objects upon completion of their field studies. As a result one obtained comprehensive data required for more correct reconstruction of cultural, historical and geological events of the Early Iron Age in the Northern Altai and the adjacent regions.

Publication Impact Profile

No metrics available.

PLUMX see details

DOI resolver: doi.org/10.5593/sgemsocial2017/22/S07.023

Publication details

Back to publication list