Anthropomorphic sculpture

myminifactory

The cast bronze anthropomorphic figure was unearthed from tumulus No. 15 of the Timiryazevskiy-1 burial site, where a grave robbery had unfortunately compromised its original location. The artefact could have been left in the north-eastern part of the mound at a shallow depth (about 0.2 m) during a ritual or placed inside the grave, which was later destroyed by robbers. Grave remains were found in the centre of the mound, consisting of cremated bones from an adult and a ceramic vessel. Fragments of two more ceramic vessels were discovered outside the grave, near the south-eastern edge of the tumulus. Who could be depicted in this anthropomorphic figure? Let's try to answer that question by analyzing its details thoroughly. The man is standing in full length, static, with his arms hanging along his body and legs slightly straddled and straight. Some parts of the body are displayed disproportionately, such as an overly large head. His eyes are wide open, and three slanting symmetrical lines mark his cheeks from the eyes to the nose down to the lower jaw - possibly a tattoo or face painting. An oval-like figure of "lifeline" can be seen around the sternum. Details of clothing and armament are easily discernible in the sculpture. The man is wearing shoes with triangle-like tips, and his head probably has a pointed helmet on it. A bladed weapon used for close combat can be seen at around his waist, fastened obliquely on the front side of the body with the handle pointing to the right-hand side. The handle has a ring on the end, and the weapon allegedly hidden in a scabbard is interpreted as a backsword or a combat knife. Such blades already existed in Western Siberia in the latter half of the 1st millennium AD. The man has two pairs of horizontal stripes on each of his arms and legs, which match the anatomical location of joints only in part, making them be interpreted as elements of body armour. Judging by the overall look of the anthropomorphic figure from tumulus No. 15, researchers interpret it as an image of a warrior man. His armament, tattoo or face painting, and clenched fists demonstrate his military muscle. Why was this anthropomorphic figure lying in the mound, and what was its role in the funeral rite? Ethnography of Siberian peoples shows many examples of using miniature "dolls" in most varied ritual practices. Specifically made dolls impersonated dead relatives and served as a temporary home for one of the dead's souls or "life energies". People worshipped the doll for some time, took care of it, used it in different rites, and finally buried it on the cemetery or elsewhere when the dead person's soul got reincarnated. Presumably, the bronze sculpture described above was also an image of a warrior ancestor. This object was scanned by The Laboratory for Interdisciplinary Research in Archaeology "Artefact" of the National Research Tomsk State University