Moscow University
Anthropology
Bulletin
Anthropology
Bulletin
1) State Institute of Archaeology after A.Kh. Margulan Science Committee Ministry of Education and Science of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Almaty, Kazakhstan; 2) Institute of Ethnology and Anthropology, Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow, Russia
Kitov Egor, e-mail: kadet_eg@mail.ru.
Burials with stone mounds, which gave the name to the archaeological culture of Tasmola (“Stone Grave”) are being investigated by archaeologists in the very heart of Kazakhstan. Tasmola sites date to the 8th–3d centuries BC and are mainly located in Central Kazakhstan, though some parallels are found in southeastern Urals and in southern Siberia. The study of skeletal materials excavated over the past several decades resulted in assembling a large collection of ca. 60 individuals of good preservation. Ten male and one female crania demonstrated trepanation holes, all of which are located on the occipital or on the posterior part of parietal bones. The number of trepanations varies between one and 15 per skull. Similar cases have been recorded in the past, but only two concern crania of the same chronological and cultural background. The pattern of trepanations in Central Asia can be related to embalming rites, which have also been recorded in the Pazyryk Culture of the Altai. We assume that in our case perforations were made for ritual purposes and were post mortem, as no traces of healing on male crania were identified. While differing in appearance, trepanation cases from Central Kazakhstan may indicate proximity of the ideological views of Tasmola people to those held by people in Western Siberia, Mongolia, and China, although at the moment it is hard to define the purpose of such operations in Tasmola people. The diameter of holes is too small for brain extraction, and absence of obliteration suggests non-medical purpose of the intrusion. Perhaps, this could be explained by the specificity of the funeral rites of the early nomads Central Kazakhstan. Notably, in this case trepanations were performed on individuals of high social position, buried with golden artifacts, under large mounds. These features can indicate the flourishing of mummification and postmortem cranial autopsy rites in the early Iron Age population of Central Asia. Further analysis of similar manipulations could significantly expand our understanding of the death rituals in the ancient world.
trepanation, Early Iron Age, Central Asia, Central Kazakhstan, death rituals
Цит.: Beisenov Arman, Kitov Egor TREPANATION AMONG THE NOMADS OF CENTRAL KAZAKHSTAN (8TH-3D CENTURIES BC) // Moscow University Anthropology Bulletin (Vestnik Moskovskogo Universiteta. Seria XXIII. Antropologia), 2014; 3/2014; с. 66-66
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