About the burials of ancient people. Why are there no ancient cemeteries on Earth? Fears and myths

Excavations without an open leaf are prohibited by the Law on the Protection and Use of Historical and Cultural Monuments

In archaeological research, the archaeologist strives for one goal - the most complete study of the historical process. But the methods of these studies are different. There are no universal methods of excavation. Two monuments belonging to the same culture can be excavated using different methods, if the features of the excavated objects so require. The archaeologist must approach excavations creatively, in the process of excavations he must maneuver.

The difference between one monument and another often depends on the features archaeological culture to which the monument belongs. It is necessary to know well not only the proposed structure of the monument, but also the culture as a whole. But even this is not enough, since this or that site does not always contain antiquities of the same type. For example, some monuments contain inlet burials of other cultures.

When excavating, the archaeologist should be clear about his responsibility to science. It is impossible to hope that someone will complete what the archaeologist did not manage or did not have time to do. All necessary observations of the source and conclusions about its structural features must be made in the field.

Excavations of burial grounds. Methods of excavation of cemeteries are different from the methods of excavation of barrows. Separate types of these two main groups of ancient burials require further differentiation of the methods of their excavations.

In cemeteries, external signs of individual graves are usually absent. Therefore, the tasks of the initial stage of excavations are intertwined with the task of reconnaissance: it is necessary
outline the entire burial ground, and in the area under study, identify all the graves without missing a single one. Features of their searches and excavations primarily depend on the characteristics of the soil in which they occur.

Discovery of spots, layers, things and structures. The first link on which the success of excavations depends is the timely detection of spots, layers, things and structures. All these archaeological plots are opened by a digger's shovel, therefore, in order to identify them in a timely manner, it is necessary that each digger understands the purpose of excavations, knows his duties. This, of course, does not mean that the discovery of all spots, things and structures can be entrusted to the digger. His work should be constantly monitored by scientific staff.

For a more complete understanding of their significance, the relationship with other objects of destination, excess land should be removed from open spots of structures and finds, i.e. they should be brought to the state that they had before they were covered by the earth. The clearing of a soil spot consists in the maximum identification of its boundaries and is usually carried out with light horizontal cuts with a shovel. At the same time, cuts must be made in such a way as not so much to cut as to scrape off the soil with which the stain is made, if possible along its day surface. This means that the level of the bottom of the reservoir usually does not coincide with the upper level of the spot, the depth of which needs to be measured.

The clearing of structures is carried out in such a way that every seam, every detail of the building, every fragment of it that has fallen or remained in place is visible. In this regard, the earth is cleaned from all surfaces, cleaned from cracks, from under separate pieces, etc. At the same time, it is necessary to ensure that the part being cleared does not lose balance and retains the position and appearance in which it was before the growth of the cultural layer . Therefore, anchor points are cleared with extreme care, and sometimes not cleared at all until the structure is dismantled, if necessary.
Finally, the clearing of the finds aims to find out the position in which the thing lies, its contours, preservation and underlying soil.

small tool. When clearing, things should not budge, and the earth is removed from them very carefully. It is usually convenient to use a kitchen knife or a thinner point, such as a lancet, for this purpose. In some cases, a honey cutter knife, a plastering trowel (especially for clearing adobe structures) and even a screwdriver and an awl are convenient for clearing. Round (diameter 30 - 50 mm) or flat (flutes 75 - 100 mm) paint brushes are also used. A small brush (usually used for washing hands) is often used. All these tools are used in the clearing of structures. For clearing some masonry, a broom-golik is convenient, and for masonry of various safety, brooms of various hardness are used. Sometimes the earth is blown out of the cracks with bellows.

When using a cutting tool, it is best to use its blade, and it should not be sharp. Picking the ground or structures with the end of a knife is dangerous - you can damage the object. Some archaeologists make "knives" out of wood. Such a tool is especially good for clearing bones: it does not scratch them. Cleared objects need to be photographed, outlined and described.

The search for grave pits. Opening techniques

grave pits are based on some features that are easier to identify in horizontal or vertical sections of these pits (“in plan”, or “in profile”) when they are carefully cleaned with a shovel.

The first sign of any pits may be the difference in color and density between the untouched mainland and the softer dug earth that fills the pit, the layers of which, when mixed, have a darker color. Sometimes the grave stain is painted only along the edge, and in the center does not have a specific color. In cases where the grave contains a painted skeleton, the filling of the pit may include some traces of paint, also indicating that the earth has been dug up. If the remains of a cremation are placed in the pit, then the earth filling it is often colored with ash.

But it is far from always possible to find a hole in the plan, especially with sandy soil. In this case, you can try to find it in a profile that more clearly conveys the color and structural features of the soil.

Cleanup. If the mainland and the filling of the pit (not only the grave, but, for example, the grain pit in the settlement) are of the same color, you need to pay attention to the slightest roughness of the horizontal stripping, since the dug up earth does not give such a smooth cut as the undigged one, and the roughness can be a sign of a pit. In such a case, it often turns out that the holes, which are not noticeable in dry soil, are perfectly traceable after a strong
rain. Therefore, some archaeologists pour water over the cleaned surface (from a watering can) to open pits.

Shoe application. Finally, a common way to open holes is to feel the soil with a probe, based on the fact that the earth in the hole is usually softer to the touch than the mainland. At the same time, it should be borne in mind that if the pit is located in a cultural layer or in very soft sand, it can be difficult to catch the difference in the filling density of the grave and the surrounding earth, and when searching with a probe, there may be gaps, and the pits found are not always grave. On the contrary, sometimes the grave ground, saturated with the decomposition products of a corpse, hardens, and the probe does not detect such a hole. Thus, when using the probe, omissions and errors are possible.

Excavations of the burial ground. The main method of excavation of the burial ground is continuous excavation. At the same time, not only spots of grave pits are found, but the remains of feasts, offerings to the dead, as well as the funeral rite are more fully revealed. In addition, this method makes it possible to explore the space between the graves, which is important if the burial ground is located in a cultural layer (such cemeteries are frequent, for example, in ancient cities).

The excavation should include the entire proposed area of ​​the burial ground, which is determined by the topographic regularity of the location. Landmarks in this case are the places of destroyed grave pits and places of finds of bones. The layout of the excavation is carried out according to the rules for excavations in settlements (see p. 172), and within the excavation a grid of squares 2X2 each is broken up, the corner stakes of which are leveled (see p. 176). Then a plan of the area is taken on a scale of 1:40 or 1:50 with the designation of the excavation and the grid of squares on it. Stones protruding from the ground are applied to the same plan, which may turn out to be part of the lining of the grave or another grave structure (the ground parts of the stones can be shaded).

Excavations are carried out along one line of squares or along two adjacent lines. The task is to expose the mainland, but the soil layer can be quite thick, and it is excavated in layers up to 20 cm thick. Excavations of the second, third and subsequent layers are carried out with care so as not to stir

Rice. 27. Grave spot, Pozdnyakovskaya culture. Borisoglebsky
burial ground, Vladimir region (Photo by T. B. Popova)

possible structures - stones, wood, bones, shards, etc. Everything that is found in this case is left in place until the remains are completely opened in width and depth, cleaned and entered on a special plan on a scale of 1:20 (or 1: 10) , photographed, described and only after that removed.

After the excavation of the first strip of squares, both of its profiles are drawn. The drawing depicts the top line according to the leveling data, the soil layer with all layers and inclusions, parts of grave pits and grave structures, if they fell into the profile. If the remains of the tomb structure are not completely uncovered, they are not dismantled until they are completely uncovered by excavations of the next strip of squares. The spots of grave pits found on the mainland are also not excavated until they are completely open. If no traces of burial pits, no structures, no cultural layer are found in the trench, then it can be used to transfer earth there from a neighboring trench. Cuttings for the full opening of the grave pits are made only if the area where they go is not supposed to be excavated.

During excavations in the cultural layer, it is difficult to trace the outlines of grave pits, so the role of thorough cleaning of the bottom of the excavation is especially great. It should also be borne in mind that in the south there are burials in a thick layer of ancient chernozem at a depth of only 30-35 cm from the modern surface, and burial pits in the chernozem are not visible.

Forms of burial pits. The pits of ancient graves are usually close to quadrangular with rounded corners (almost oval), and their walls are slightly inclined. Pits in sandy soil (Fatyanovo graves) have strongly sloping walls so that their edges do not crumble. Usually, a sloping exit from the pit was made at one end of such a grave.
The depth of the ancient graves is different - in the Fatyanovo burial grounds from 30 cm to 210 cm, in the ancient necropolises - up to 6 m, the wells of the catacomb burials reach a depth of 10 m. One can point to grave pits found in ancient necropolises with vertical walls, wide at the top and narrowing at the bottom with a ledge. In the narrow part of such a pit there is a burial, covered from above by a roll of logs or a stone, therefore these burials are

nia are known in archeology as shouldered graves. If the earth that seeped through the logs of the knurler filled the grave pit even before these logs lost their strength, they can be traced in the form of a horizontal layer of wood decay. If the logs, having broken in the middle, collapsed into the pit, forming a U-shaped figure, they can violate the integrity of the burial and greatly complicate clearing.

A similar picture is presented by a log grave of the Bronze Age. The walls of such graves were rarely lined with logs, but almost always covered with knurling, which rotted over time.

flanks. The graves with lining are deep, regardless of whether there is a mound above them or not. Such graves are a well (sometimes ledge), ending with a pit - a cave in which the burial is located. Caves could only be built in a dense continent, so their ceiling usually does not settle, but only crumbles a little, filling the burial. Between the scree and the new ceiling there is often a free space, almost the same as at the time of the construction of the lining. The hole connecting the well with the lining is sometimes closed with a "mortgage" - logs, stones, a wall of mud bricks, and in ancient graves even amphorae. Therefore, the earth almost did not penetrate into the cave. The well was covered with earth, but often it is littered with large stones and even stone slabs.

earthen crypts. In some cases, an inclined passage-dromos leads to the burial, which is already characteristic of another type of burial structures - earthen crypts or catacombs. At the end of the open dromos in the mainland, a small corridor was cut down, which led to a vaulted burial chamber - an earthen crypt measuring 2 - 3 m wide and 3 - 4 m long. The entrance to such a crypt was closed with a large stone slab, which was removed when repeated burials were made, in some cases there are more than ten of them in the crypt. A well could also serve as an entrance to the crypt. Sometimes at the bottom of the well there are entrances to not one, but two crypts.

In other cases, an earthen crypt is cut into the wall of a ravine. These are catacombs such as Saltov (near Kharkov), Chmi (Northern Caucasus) or Chufut-Kale (Bakhchisarai). The main burial is located in the chamber, and the burials of slaves are found at the entrance.

S. L. Pletneva recommends excavating the catacombs with long narrow excavations (up to 4 m) adjacent to each other. This achieves the necessary continuous coverage by the researcher of the territory of the burial ground, as well as cost savings, since earth can be poured onto the excavated and studied area from the next excavated strip. This method is called by archaeologists "on the pass", or "moving trench method".

Techniques for opening grave pits. The methods of opening grave pits do not depend on whether there are mounds above these pits or not; in both cases, the same methods are used. The grave spot discovered in the excavation must be drawn with a knife and its longitudinal axial line should be marked with a stake on each side. The level of the mainland at the stakes is leveled. The cord between the stakes is not stretched yet. On the general plan of the excavation, the contours of the grave spot, the axial line, the places of stakes, as well as the number of the grave are marked (see Fig. 31, a). If several graves have already been excavated in this burial ground, the numbering should continue, and not start over, so that there are no identical numbers.

The plan of the grave spot is drawn on a scale of 1:10, with the axis oriented vertically, and its deviation from the direction to the north is indicated on the drawing (arrow and in degrees along the compass). The coordinates of the points are measured from the center line of the grave, for which the cord between the stakes serves. Several basic measurements are marked on the plan (see Fig. 31, a). Measurements are calculated in the same units, usually in centimeters (not 3 m 15 cm, but 315 cm). Depth measurements are made from the conditional zero point of the excavation (see p. 173) and it is these figures that are indicated on the plan of the grave. The recalculation of the depth from conditional zero to the depth from the surface of the earth can be given in the diary with a special indication.

Rice. 31. Drawings of the grave pit:
a - the contours of the grave are marked on the drawing of the excavation, the main distances are shown; A-B - center line; the number of the grave is indicated; b - on a similar plan, the contours of the grave pit are plotted, which changed as they deepened; on the same plan, a drawing of the skeleton and vessel was made; c, d, e, f - possible methods for expanding the grave pit; g - a method of projecting the axial line onto the bottom and walls of the grave pit. (According to M.P. Gryaznov)

The filling of the pit is excavated with horizontal layers of a certain thickness. Usually, a layer of 20 cm is removed (the specified thickness of the layer is observed exactly), which approximately corresponds to the height of the iron blade of a shovel. At the same time, the shovel cuts the layer vertically and in thin slices (so that the earth does not crumble from the shovel), which allows the digger to monitor changes in the composition of the earth and possible finds. After removing each layer, its sole is horizontally cleaned with light cuts to make it easier to observe and register changes in the composition of the filling of the grave pit. It is impossible to dig a grave pit at once to the full depth, since things and various layers are possible in it, which can shed light on the nature of the burial. In addition, the position and level of occurrence of the skeleton (or the remains of cremation) are not known in advance, and therefore the skeleton is easy to disturb.

When excavating, for example, Fatyanovo burials, it is recommended to leave a brow in the grave pit - a narrow vertical wall of untouched earth that divides the pit in half and in the side surfaces of which the features of filling the grave and its outlines are more easily traced. Upon reaching the burial, such an edge is disassembled.

As a rule, the filling of the pit is disassembled along its walls, strictly within the soil spot. If the filling does not differ from the soil in which the hole was dug, and when deepening the walls of the hole are not traced, the filling is disassembled within the spot and strictly vertically. The outline of the pit often changes as it deepens. In this case, its contours are entered on one drawing, and each contour is supplied with a depth mark (see Fig. 31.6 and Fig. 32.6).

If the contours of the grave pit are well traced, and the soil is not too loose, some archaeologists take out its filling, retreating inward from the boundaries of the pit (by 10-15 cm). Having taken out 2 - 3 layers, i.e. 40 - 60 cm, the earth remaining near the walls is dug up and with light blows from above on the left strip of earth they collapse. At the same time, the earth often crumbles exactly along the border of the grave pit, exposing its ancient section. Sometimes on this section it is possible to notice traces of the tools with which the pit was dug. This technique is repeated until the walls of the grave are completely exposed and studied.

Rice. 32. Drawings of the grave pit:
a - the main dimensions are indicated, the depth at which the contour line is drawn, the arrow pointing north and the number of degrees of deviation from this direction; b - a similar drawing shows the contours of the grave pit, which changed as it deepened, and the depths at which they were measured; c - on the same plan (b) the found bone and find are plotted; d - in the same drawing, the top layer of the coating is sketched. (According to M.P. Gryaznov)

The described technique cannot be used during excavations, for example, of ancient burials, where the dead were sometimes placed in wooden sarcophagi covered with carvings and plaster decorations. These sarcophagi have been reduced to wood decay, but the grave ground adjacent to the sarcophagus often retains the imprint of such decorations, which can be exposed by careful clearing of wood dust. After clearing, it is recommended to make a plaster cast of the imprint.

Individual items are entered on the plan according to measurements from the center line. On the plan (and on the label) the name of the object, the number of the find, its depth are indicated; bones, wood, stones are sketched without a number, if there are no special circumstances (see Fig. 32, c). When digging up the next layer, all the objects found remain in their places until their relationship is clarified. In this case, the whole complex is sketched, photographed, described. If there is no such connection, these items are removed and excavations continue.

If the pit is narrow or deep, and the ground is unstable, the excavation is expanded to one of the sides, or to all sides (see Fig. 31, c, d, e, f). At the same time, the pegs of the center line must be preserved (which is why it is advisable to hammer them no closer than 1 m from the edge of the pit spot).

Often the burial has a pawn or wooden ceiling, which is cleaned with a knife and brush, sketched and, as always, photographed and described. To draw a ceiling or finds in a pit, it is convenient to project the axial line down and make measurements from its projection (see Fig. 31, g). The ceilings are sketched on the general plan of the grave and the direction of the wood fibers is shown by shading (see Fig. 32, d).

In the event that the grave pit has ledges or there are structures in it, it is necessary to draw its section. To do this, it is necessary to make leveling measurements along the projected center line after 50 cm or more and, using these data, draw the irregularities of the walls of the pit or its bottom. In some cases, a transverse incision is also made, perpendicular to the first.

If the burial ceilings have several layers, their cuts are drawn sequentially, inverting Special attention on a sketch of the underside of each overlap, which can be done from prints. This means that this sketch must be done after the upper

layer, and only when it is finished, you can clean and sketch the bottom layer. It is better to enter the second and subsequent layers on a special drawing so as not to create a pile of symbols.

Skeleton clearing. With the gradual excavation of the filling of the grave pit, some signs of the approach of burial can be traced. The closer to the burial, the more noticeable is the concavity of the layers of the earth in the section of the grave pit, which is explained by the failure of the earth, which pressed through the rotten coffin. With further deepening, a dark spot of solid earth appears, glued together by the decomposition products of the corpse. The lower, the more this spot increases. Finally, already above the skeleton, it is sometimes possible to trace the remains of the tomb. In non-

in which cases there are some vessels near the skeleton, and their appearance warns of the proximity of the skeleton. These signs facilitate the work of the archaeologist, but in some cases they may not be, so the attention of the archaeologist should not weaken.

At the first appearance of the skeleton or vessels, the earth is carefully removed to their level. The skeleton and the inventory accompanying it are cleared in this order.

First, a strip of earth about 20 cm wide is removed between the skull and the wall of the grave to the bedding, on which

the swarm lies the backbone, or, if there is none, to the bottom of the grave pit. If the bottom is not determined by the composition of the earth, then the earth is removed to the level at which the skull lies. Then clearing is carried out to the right (or left) of the skull in order to clear the shoulder, determine the position of the skeleton and finish clearing the corner of the grave. Then they make a clearing on the other side of the skull. Further clearing is carried out from the skull to the legs (and in this area from the spine to the sides).

The earth is cut with a knife not horizontally (this is dangerous for the finds), but only vertically. If the thickness of the opened earth is more than 7-10 cm, then disassembly is carried out, as it were, in two floors. The earth in the cleared area is removed immediately to the bottom of the grave, so that clearing is not done a second time. The cut earth should not be allowed to fall on the cleared part of the burial. It must be thrown back (for example, with a scoop) to the uncleared side of the grave pit, and from there it should be thrown up with a shovel. Bones and things must not be moved. If they lie above the general level, then you need to leave “priests” under them in the form of not too steep cones. The remains of the bedding at the bottom of the grave and the wall fastenings are cleared and left in place until the skeleton is dismantled.

When opening Paleolithic burials, they follow the general rules for clearing pits and skeletons, but there are also some peculiarities. The main one is to determine the filling of the grave pit and the filling of its bottom. In the case when the filling of the pit does not differ from the mainland, it is recommended to reach the bottom (i.e., the skeleton) in some place and, guided by the skeleton, feel for the contours of the grave pit. When clearing the filling of the pit and the skeleton, the question of the accidental or deliberate position of each find is clarified.

Each bone and each object is sketched on the plan, and only very small things that cannot be drawn to scale are marked with crosses. In the latter case, their location must be sketched on a separate sheet in full size.

The bones of the skeleton and things after photographing and fixing on the plan are removed, if possible without destroying the “priests”. If things or bones lie in several layers, first remove the upper ones, clear and fix the lower ones, and only then can the lower ones be removed. The remaining "priests" are cleared with vertical cuts with a knife. The remains of the litter are dismantled, and then the remains of the fastenings of the walls of the pit. Finally, they dig the bottom of the grave pit with a shovel to find hiding places and things hidden

burrowed by rodents. Rodent burrows in some cases can be traced with a probe.

The diary notes the orientation and position of the bones of the skeleton: where it was turned by the crown of the head, the face, the position of the lower jaw, the tilt of the head to the shoulder, the position of the arms and legs, the crouched position, etc. The depth of each thing is indicated, its position at the skeleton (at the right temple, on the middle finger of the left hand, etc.), and their detailed description is also given. On the drawing, in the diary in the description and on the label attached to the thing, its number is indicated. The burial must be photographed. It is advisable not to pour the earth out of the vessels, since under it there may be remnants of food laid to the deceased "in the next world." Laboratory analysis of these residues can reveal their nature. Then all the bones of the skeleton and every single bone of the skull, even destroyed ones, are taken - they are important for anthropological conclusions. For laboratory analysis, you need to take the remains of the tree from the coffin.

In some cases, the bones of the skeleton are poorly preserved. To find out whether there was a burial in a given mound or grave, you can use the phosphate analysis method, which will show a high content of phosphates in the place where the corpse lay, or their absence if there was no burial.

Excavations of wells and cellars. The entrance well or inclined passage (dromos) of earthen crypts is dug out in the same way as ordinary pits, i.e., from above along the spot, in layers of 20 cm. Having reached the entrance to the lining, they disassemble and carefully fix the mortgage covering it and inspect the inside of the lining. Having determined its direction and dimensions, they mark them at the top and excavate the lining from above; excavation of this cave or crypt threatens to collapse from below. At the same time, the excavation pit should be somewhat larger than the crypt, and in the middle and across the pit, a ledge 40–60 cm high should be left to trace the profile, which is important when approaching the burial chamber. Excavations are being carried out to the level of the preserved parts of the walls of the crypt. Upon reaching the chamber, excavations are also carried out along the layers. After the filling is removed, a plan is drawn, a section of the chamber is determined, how much lower it was before, other features are fixed, for example, benches, traces of tools on the walls of the crypt (width, depth, concavity of traces), and then proceed to clearing the skeleton.

When clearing crypts carved into the rock, as well as with deep pits in other reliably strong soil, such precautions are not required and their cleaning from earth filling can be done from the side, i.e. directly through the inlet, but here one must be very careful, following the rules safety technology.

Often, earthen and stone crypts are robbed in antiquity. Robbers penetrated them, breaking through passages into mounds-mines, as pre-revolutionary archaeologists called them, which must be traced, excavated (also from above) and dated (at least approximately). If there are several predatory moves, it is advisable to determine their order.

The study and fixation of stone or rock-cut crypts is carried out according to the rules for studying ground structures (see p. 264).

When opening the cellars and crypts, a mortgage is fixed, possible niches and beds, features of the pit and the crypt (for example, rounding of corners, inclination of walls, asymmetry of the plan). In the event that when opening the pit
soil stains, paint stains, stains from rotten pillars, etc. will be open in its filling, they must also be entered on the plan indicating the depth and thickness (thickness) of these stains. Found shards, things, bones are taken as finds and brought to the background with a mark of the depths and the ordinal number of the find. The contour of the grave pit is applied to all plans.

In addition to drawing fixation, all the indicated and other features of the structure of the grave (depth, dimensions, color and composition of the soil, etc.) are recorded in writing in the excavation diary (see p. 275, note D).

Backbone positions. The position of the skeleton in the grave pit may be different. There are elongated skeletons, lying on the back or on the side with bent legs; sometimes the dead were buried in a sitting position. In each of these cases, there may be options: for example, in one case, the arms are extended along the body, in the other, they are crossed on the stomach, in the third, only one arm is extended, etc. Moreover, even in one burial ground there is often no uniformity in the position of the skeleton . So, in the Oleneostrovsky burial ground in 118 graves there were elongated bones lying on their backs, in 11 pits the dead lay on their side, there were 5 crouched burials, and 4 buried in an upright position.

The deceased could be placed in a grave without a coffin, especially when a roll was built over the grave. To isolate the body from the ground, it was wrapped in a shroud or, for example, birch bark. The so-called tiled tombs are known, where a kind of house of cards was built from tiles over the deceased. The simplest coffins were deck coffins, hollowed out in a log split in half. In some places they are buried in such coffins even now. Sometimes burials, especially for children, were enclosed in clay vessels. If the burial was carried out in a stone or earthen crypt, the deceased was sometimes placed in a wooden or stone sarcophagus. In ancient necropolises, similar coffins made of stone slabs are often called stone boxes or slab graves (each wall of such a grave consists of one slab). Large wooden sarcophagi with flat lids could be inserted into such a stone frame.

In one grave pit there is usually one skeleton, but sometimes there are two or even more such skeletons.
At the same time, it is important to note their mutual position: side by side, one at the feet of the other, heads in opposite directions, etc. It is necessary to find out the sequence of these burials, that is, which of them was committed earlier and which later. On the backbone there may be signs of a violent death (the murder of slaves and wives during the burial of the master). Some bones are lined with stones. The skeletons found in a sitting position often lean with their backs on a pile of stones, on other skeletons there are heavy stones and even millstones, etc. These examples indicate how diverse the cases of corpses are and how difficult it is to count on any specific position of the buried.

Orientation of the buried. In graves of different times and in different territories there is no uniformity in the orientation of the skeleton, but in each cemetery, burials oriented along a certain side of the horizon usually predominate. At the same time, there is almost never a strict orientation of the buried heads, say, exactly to the west or exactly to the north. This is explained by the fact that the countries of the world in ancient times were determined by the place of sunrise, and it changes depending on the seasons. If this is true, then, bearing in mind the basic orientation of the buried in the studied burial ground or kurgan group, we can judge the time of the year in which the burial took place in this mound or in this grave.

In those cemeteries where people belonging to different ethnic groups are buried (for example, near the border of the settlement of these groups, on trade routes, etc.), the unequal orientation of the buried is a sure sign of their different ethnicity.

In some cases, the skeleton may be disturbed, and the burial robbed, but this should not weaken the attention of the researcher. On the contrary, it is necessary to exercise maximum observation in order to find out the reason for the deviation from the usual order. The order of the bones could be broken by robbers or when buried next to the first dead of the second. In this case, the bones are piled up. Finally, the bones could have been pulled apart by shrews or displaced by landslides. It is important to clarify these circumstances and the time when they occurred.

Corpse burning. If in the filling of the pit there are thin layers of light ash, ashes, large coals,

Rice. 39. Scheme of the barrow mound:
a - a mound built at the same time; b - a small barrow, completely covered by a later barrow; in - a mound in a blurred form; d - reconstruction of the original view of the same barrow. (According to W. D. Blavatsky)

it is highly probable that this grave includes cremation. Individual features of this rite are even more numerous than in cremation, but their combinations are rather stable.

With a barrow-free rite, there can be two main cases of burial: burning a funeral pyre over the grave, which is rare, and burning it on the side, on a specially prepared site, when the burnt bones, things from the grave goods and part of the fire were transferred to the grave. At the same time, the burnt bones can be enclosed in a clay pot-urn, but they can also be placed without it.

In view of the fact that the grave always contains only a small part of the bonfire (a burned-out bonfire) or an equally small pile of coals and ash transferred from the bonfire, their opening and clearing can be considered as part of clearing the kurgan fire.

Mound excavations. As well as the study of cemeteries, excavations of mounds begin with the preparation of a general plan of the monument, i.e., a mound group. This plan makes it possible to present both the entire monument as a whole and its individual parts and draw up a plan for their study. If the mound group is small (two or three dozen mounds), first of all, it is necessary to dig collapsing mounds, and if there are none, then mounds located at the edge, since the group retains its monolithic structure.

An admixture of very small coals is also found in the filling of grave pits that enclose the burial.

and it is more difficult to open it. If the center of the group is excavated, the existence of the barrows is in danger. When examining large mound groups (one hundred or more mounds) that are divided into separate parts, one should strive to excavate all the mounds and each of these groups completely in order to be able to chronologically divide the cemetery on the basis of mass material.

Methods of excavation of the burial mound must meet the following conditions: complete identification of stratigraphy
embankments, including ditches, pits, etc.; timely (without damage) detection in the embankment of all pits (for example, inlet burials), structures (stone calculations, log cabins, etc.), things; identification (and therefore safety) of skeletons, bonfires and all things with them, caches, linings and other structures lying below the horizon.

Studying the appearance of the embankment. In accordance with these conditions, the study of the embankment chosen for excavation begins with its photographing and description. The description should indicate the shape of the mound (semi-spherical, segmental, semi-ovoid, in the form of a truncated pyramid, etc.), the steepness of its slopes (where more, where less), sodiness of the surface, the presence of bushes and trees on the mound. It is also necessary to indicate whether there are ditches, on which side they are located, where the jumpers are left. The description also notes ringing (stone lining), damage to the embankment by pits, etc.

The best way to study the burial mound would be to excavate in the reverse order of its construction, so that the last shovels of soil thrown on the mound would be removed first, and the last to clean off the handfuls of earth thrown on the buried. Such ideal excavations would open up great opportunities for the archaeologist. But, unfortunately, such a scheme for studying mounds is unrealistic. After all, it is not always possible to determine which part of the soil fell into the embankment in the first place, which - in the third, which - in the tenth. This is possible only as a result of a thorough study of the barrow profiles and plans. Therefore, it is impossible to know the structure of the mound before its excavation. But this scheme determines the purpose of the excavations: to completely restore the sequence of the construction of the mound, and subsequently to explain this order.

These goals are served by excavations of mounds for demolition, i.e. with the complete demolition of the entire mound, in which the order of its excavation in parts is chosen. At the same time, the nature of the mound and its parts, the nature and structure of all structures (the main and inlet burials, crypts, fire pits, things, etc.) are clarified. The disadvantages of the previous method, when the mound was dug in a well, or at best, in two trenches, are obvious. So, when examining the mound of a large mound in Conversations with a well, it would not be possible to detect its main feature - an annular groove that surrounded the central part of the mound. V. I. Sizov, who explored the large Gnezdovsky mound with a trench, admitted that he had not opened the main part of the fire. Kurgan near the village Yagodny, excavated by a well, gave only a modern burial of a dead cow. In the same mound, when it was excavated for demolition, more than 30 burials of the Bronze Age were found.

If the mound is overgrown with large trees, it is better to postpone its excavations, since the trees do not spoil the burials much, and in the process of excavation and uprooting this burial can be damaged.

The study of the structure of the embankment. Thus, demolition excavations provide for strict procedures and rigid excavation requirements. The structure of the embankment and its composition (mainland, cultural layer, imported soil) must be identified and recorded, for which it is most convenient to trace its structure in several vertical sections - profiles, the significance of which was mentioned above.

In order to be able to fix the layers in a vertical section, it is necessary to leave a brow, which is demolished at the end of the excavation (or demolished in parts during the excavation).

Mound measurement. Before excavation, the mound must be measured and marked. The most characteristic point of the mound is its top, which often coincides with the geometric center of the mound. This highest point, regardless of whether it coincides or does not coincide with the center of the mound, is taken as the origin and marked with a peg. With the help of a compass or compass placed on this central stake, the direction is sighted: north - south (N - S) and west - east
(3 - B), and these directions are marked with temporary pegs placed at an arbitrary distance from each other.

One end of the rail is pressed against the base of the central stake, and the other is oriented in the direction of one of the four radii of the mound, and the rail is set horizontally (by level). At meter divisions, the rails set a plumb line and, according to the indications of its weight, pegs are hammered. If the length of the rail was not enough to mark this direction, its end is transferred to the last hammered peg and the operation is repeated. The line of pegs must necessarily cross the ditch, if any. When the radius of the mound is marked, the temporary pegs are removed and the position of the newly hammered stakes is checked against the compass or compass mounted on the central stake.

In the same way, the markings of other radii are checked.
In this case, care must be taken, because in some barrows, exactly in the center of the mound, directly under the turf, there is a burial urn or vessel, which is easy to pierce with a central stake.

If, when hanging meter marks, we measure the distance from the lower edge of the horizontal rail to the surface of the barrow (along the plumb line), the figures obtained will show how much this point is lower than the one on which the end of the rail stands, i.e., a leveling mark of this point will be obtained. These figures are entered into the leveling plan. If the length of the rail was not enough and it was transferred one or more times, then to obtain a leveling mark, it is necessary to add to the mark obtained by measuring the distance from the rail to the ground the sum of the marks of all points at which the end of the rail stood in succession. In this case, the foot of the central stake (the highest point of the embankment) is taken as the zero mark, and all the obtained leveling marks are negative. It should be noted that much more accurate results are obtained by working with a level, which, in addition, saves time. This simple, accurate and common instrument should be used by every expedition.

Leveling marks at the foot of the mound give a measurement of its height. Since from the moment the barrow was built, its height could decrease due to erosion by precipitation and meltwater, weathering, plowing, or increase due to the accumulation of sedimentary rocks or soil formation, the true height of the barrow is determined only during excavations (the distance from the level of buried soil to the top of the mound). Therefore, before excavation, its height can be measured approximately. Due to the fact that the mound is usually located on a sloping terrain, its height will be different on all sides, and these marks are entered in the diary. At the same time, one must be able to identify the foot of the mound, not to measure the height from the bottom of the ditch or from its walls. A tape measure is then placed along this boundary between the ditch and the embankment to obtain a measurement of the circumference of the mound's base. The circumference of the base of the mound is also recorded in the diary. Based on the data obtained, a leveling plan for the mound is drawn. Ditches and lintels are entered on the same plan, and their length, width and depth are noted in the diary. The diameters of the mounds are measured without ditches.

Altitude and coordinate readings. From what has been said, it follows that the height (or, one might say, depth) readings and the coordinate readings are made from highest point embankments. But this point will eventually be demolished. Therefore, for the convenience of readings, you can drive a stake level with the ground near the mound and level its top. You can also use a level to mark the height of this point of the mound on a nearby standing tree. But it is possible to restore the mark of the height of the barrow from any of the surviving leveled stakes (see p. 303).

eyebrows. Finally, the curbs are marked on the mound, which are needed to obtain a profile, i.e., a vertical cut of the embankment, which will make it possible to find out its structure. In view of the fact that the most characteristic section of the mound should be obtained (and the most characteristic point of the mound is its center), if there are no other reasons, the axial lines of the mound are taken as the basis for the brows, along which one of the sides of the brows should pass. The profile should be drawn (again, if there are no other reasons) from the side of the edge that passes through the axis of the mound. It is necessary to leave two mutually perpendicular edges. For asymmetric or very large embankments, the number of ridges can be increased. The specific placement of the brows depends on the shape of the studied monument. We must strive to obtain the most characteristic cuts.

Rice. 42. Plan of trenches for the study of embankments and ditches:
trenches cross ditches, so there is no trench from the north, since there is no ditch there; trenches are dug from the outside of the brows in order to later expose their profile in the ditches

For example, in elongated burial mounds, the most characteristic cut will be the longitudinal one; in damaged mounds, it is important to obtain a profile passing through the damage; in mounds with corpses on the horizon, it is desirable to obtain a profile (i.e., an image of the edge wall) running perpendicular to the skeleton, etc. Where the position of the edges is indifferent, it is more convenient to orient them according to countries of the world.

Eyebrow marking is simple. From each meter mark along the central axis in one direction, the chosen thickness of the edge is laid perpendicular to the axis and marked with a notch. In the future, the notches are connected along the cord with a solid line.

Clay soil allows a minimum thickness of 20–50 cm, and they stand without crumbling at a height of 2 m.

Roviki. The initial size of the burial mounds is interesting because, based on their volume, it can be decided whether the earth was brought to build the mound from outside or whether it was entirely erected at the expense of the earth from the ditches. It is also important that ditches are ritual structures, which is often forgotten. Finally, ditches mark the original boundary of the mound. In view of the fact that the ditches surrounding the mound are partially swamped, their original size and nature can only be clarified by excavations, which begin earthworks on the mound. At the same time across

ditch, narrow trenches (30 - 40 cm) are laid, one side of which is adjacent to the front (passing through the axis of the mound) side of the edge, which is done so that the desired profile of the ditch enters the drawing of the entire edge. In such a section, the initial dimensions of the ditch and its filling are clearly visible. At the bottom of the ditch, there is often a layer of coal, representing the remains of a cleansing fire burned after the construction of the embankment and, probably, lit at the wake.

Guided by the resulting incision, the ditch is opened along its entire length.

The side of the trench facing the center of the mound is also cleared, since in this part the band of buried (filled with mound) sod is clearly visible, and, therefore, the level of the "horizon" and the initial dimensions of the mound are easily determined.

If the floors of two adjacent mounds are found one on top of the other, then it is recommended to dig the same narrow trench at the place of their confluence along the line connecting the tops of both mounds, allowing you to decide which of these mounds was poured earlier: the layers of its floor should go under the floor of the second more late embankment.

Sod removal. After drawing the obtained profiles and opening the ditches, they begin to remove the sod layer from the mound.

It is best to remove the turf in small pieces, since ancient things and even vessels with the remains of cremation can be in it and under it.

When discarding the earth, neither the mound of the excavated mound should be sprinkled, so as not to do double work, nor the neighboring mounds, as this can change their shape and lead to misunderstandings during subsequent excavations.

When excavating steppe burial mounds, the shape of which has changed greatly, it is difficult to determine the boundaries of the mound. Often such an embankment occupies a significant area and is not limited by ditches or any other landmarks. When excavating mounds, it is necessary to ensure the possibility of cutting in case the boundaries of the embankment are not accurately defined, and therefore the earth must be thrown far enough.

Mound excavations. Excavations of the barrow mound are carried out in layers. They are carried out simultaneously in all sectors of the mound into which it is divided by brows (preferably in rings, see p. 160). The first layers must be divided into two parts - 10 cm each, since the remains of pillars and structures are possible at the top. Yes, on

flat mounds in Denmark traced fences of pillars and domina. Therefore, the sole of each layer is cleaned to reveal various soil spots. The remaining layers can be 20 cm thick. The edges are not dug.

In the event of the appearance of stains from pillars or other origin, a plan of this surface is drawn, indicating its depth from the top of the mound. For ash spots, if they are found in the embankment, a plan is drawn up, on which the contours of each spot are given by a special dotted line or line, the legend indicates the depth of the occurrence of this spot, and the diary indicates its size and thickness.

The presence of coal in the burial mound does not always indicate cremation. Coal sometimes comes from brushwood burned for ritual purposes. The things found in the mound are primarily important for determining the time when the mound was built, since they might not have been there when the person was buried. At the same time, it is necessary to check the simultaneity of the finds in the mound with the burial, i.e., to establish whether the found things did not get into the mound due to digging, etc. These things are also important for studying the funeral rite. An ethnographically known custom is when those present at the funeral threw small things into the grave (“gifts” to the deceased) or when pots with the remnants of food served at the commemoration were broken during burial, etc.

walker (things, shards, bones) in the embankment, a separate plan is drawn up. Each find is entered under the number on the plan, and briefly described in the diary.

Inlet burials. Later burials can be found in the mound mound, the grave pit of which was dug in the already finished mound of the old mound. Above such burials - they are called inlet - there may be a stain of the grave pit, which is sometimes opened by cleaning the sole of the next

formation. When opening such a spot, one proceeds in the same way as when opening a grave in the ground. If the spot of the pit is not traced, when opening the skeleton, you can try to leave a curb crossing it in order to catch the remains of the grave pit. The clearing of the skeleton occurs as described above. Inlet burials should not be confused with burials on a specially made earth bed: the latter is most often located in the center of the mound, and the inlet burial is in the field. But the nature of the burial is finally clarified only after a complete study of the mound.

E. A. Schmidt also points to burials made on a site prepared on the surface of an older burial mound. The mound then fell asleep and became much higher and wider. Such burials are called additional. They are well traced in the brows.

The approach of the main burial can be judged by the signs already described. It should only be noted that the deflection of the layers in the brow may indicate not only the approach to the burial, but also to the grave pit.

When opening a burial that goes under the brow, it has to be demolished. Before demolition, the edge is cleaned, drawn and photographed. Then it is dismantled, but not completely, and not reaching 20 - 40 cm to the base, and only

above the burial, it is removed altogether. The remains of the edge later help to restore it and trace the profile to the mainland (mandatory!). However, in those cases when the edge threatens to collapse, it is necessary to reduce its height before reaching the burial.

Registration of finds of soil and other spots is carried out in a rectangular coordinate system, the beginning of which is the center of the barrow; therefore, it is important to maintain the position of the center point not only vertically, but also horizontally. To restore the position of the center after the demolition of the edge, you need to pull the cord between the remaining extreme pegs of the axis C - Yu and 3 - B. Their intersection will be the desired center. Therefore, it is important to protect the outer stakes of the center lines from damage. In extreme cases, if the stakes are preserved only on one side of the center, the center line can be re-provided with the help of a compass from the remaining stakes. When approaching the burial, it is better to get by with the possibility of restoring the center than to hammer the central stake so as not to damage the burial.

Clearing the main burial occurs in the order described above. After removing things and dismantling the skeleton, both in the case of burial on the bedding, and in the case of burial on the horizon, excavations of the mound area continue in layers: first to the buried sod or the surface on which the mound was erected, and then until the mainland is reached, that is, the entire buried soil must be removed, the thickness of which is sometimes, especially in the chernozem regions, very significant (1 m or more). In this case, it may turn out that the mound was built on the cultural layer of an early settlement, or on buried soil, or on a scorched mainland, etc.

The surface of the mainland is cleaned to reveal hiding places and pits, including a grave pit, which is possible even when one or more burials have already been discovered in the mound or on the horizon.

The identification of grave pits and the clearing of burials in these pits is carried out by the methods used in the excavation of burial grounds.

Signs of cremation. If the mound contains cremation, weak layers of ash or ashes usually appear in the mound, moving from place to place. The methods of excavation of such a mound are no different from the methods of excavation of mounds with corpses.

The fact that the burial mound contains cremation is sometimes revealed even when digging trenches for the study of ditches. Then, in the walls of the trenches facing the center of the mound, a ribbon of buried turf is visible, and on it is the ash of a fire. At the same time, the buried turf is often burnt and in this case it is a white sandy layer of various thicknesses (if the mainland is sandy, the layer is thick, if the continent is clay, the layer is thin), which is the result of burning the grass cover.

Fireplace and its description. Most often, the fireplace does not open immediately. First, ash spots appear in the embankment, the number of which increases as it deepens. All ash stains, and especially possible burnt bones, coals or smuts, must be marked on the plan and described in the diary. These spots move from place to place, become thicker and occupy an increasing area.

When they begin to predominate in this area, it is necessary to remove the soil no longer in vertical, but in horizontal sections. Soon, the entire exposed surface becomes pockmarked with ash stains. This is the top surface of the fireplace.

In the center, the fireplace is black and thick, gray towards the edges and wedged out to nothing. In mounds with a sandy embankment, it is plump, thick, its thickness reaches 30-50 cm, in clay soil it is compressed, 3-10 cm thick.
Even before going to the fire, you need to draw the profiles of the mound and lower the edges so that they rise above the fire by no more than 10 - 20 cm. For an approximate reading of the depth, it is convenient to make the surface of the lowered edges strictly horizontal and know its leveling mark.

Then the fireplace should be described. First of all, its shape attracts attention. Most often, the fireplace is elongated, does not have the correct shape, its borders are winding; sometimes its shape approaches a rectangle. The middle point of the fire pit often does not coincide with the center of the mound. The dimensions of the bonfire as a whole and each of its parts are measured and marked, while the composition and color of each part are described, it is indicated where accumulations of burnt bones and large pieces of coal are found. These data are still (before clearing the fire) preliminary, but they make it possible to present its structure. In the process of clearing, they are refined and supplemented with data on the thickness of the fire in its different parts, on the place and position of the burial urn (buried in coal or not, standing normally or upside down, dug into the mainland, closed with a lid, etc.), about the place accumulations of things and their order, about the layer underlying the fire, etc.

Clearing the campfire and finds. To streamline the clearing of the fire and for the convenience of registering things found in it, it can be drawn (with the tip of a knife) with lines running parallel to the axes of the mound through an integer number of meters. A grid of squares with a side of 1 m is formed. The fire pit is cleared from its periphery to the center. The charcoal layer is cut with a knife vertically, parallel to the nearest center line, so that the profile of the fireplace is visible. Thus, its thickness can be traced anywhere. If at the same time things, sherds and bones are found, it is necessary to indicate whether they were found under the coal layer, in it or above it, since this, in the case of an undisturbed bonfire, helps to judge whether the deceased was simply laid on the fire or above it was a house.

The size of the fire pit usually ranges from two to ten meters in diameter. In rare cases, this diameter reaches 25 m or more. With such a large fire pit, it is useful to level the corners of the drawn squares, and after clearing it, draw the grid again and level it again. Thus, it is possible to restore the thickness of the fireplace in any of its places - it will be equal to the difference in the leveling marks. When dismantling the fire, one must observe the order in which the smuts lie in it. Their position will help determine whether the fire was stacked in a cage or along. The size of the head is also important. To determine the type of wood, large pieces of coal should be selected.

When a large fire pit comes to the surface and when it is dismantled, the spent ash, coals and earth should be poured into wheelbarrows and buckets so as not to be trampled into the ground again.

Items found in the fire pit are immediately brought to the plan and packed, as the clearing of the pit sometimes takes several days and the exposure of the cleared items in the open air threatens their safety. Leaving things on the fire to find out their relative position does not make sense, since the fire is usually disturbed: before the construction of the embankment
he was raked to the center of the mound.

Each find is registered and packed under a separate number, like a shard or an individual find. If things stick together, it is better not to separate them until processing in the laboratory. Poorly preserved items (but not fabrics) can be fixed by spraying them with a weak solution of BF-4 glue. In some cases, they can be taken in a plaster mold.

One should immediately distinguish between objects that were in the fire of a funeral pyre and those already laid on a cooled fire. More often this can be done on the basis of damaged things. Iron resists fire best of all due to its highest melting point. Depending on the position of the iron product on the fire, it can be found covered with rust or a thin layer of black shiny scale, as if bluing. This scale protects the iron from destruction on the outside, but inside the object could rust through. On the scale layer, things that were in the fire stand out easily.

On some objects, for example, on the hilts of swords, wooden or bone parts have been preserved. This indicates that they were placed on a cooled fire. Finally, the campfire produced changes in the structure of the metal, which can be captured by metallographic analysis during laboratory processing.

Non-ferrous metal products, such as wire, usually could not withstand fire and either melted or melted. But some of them still reach us in their entirety, such as belt plaques.

Glass products are very poorly preserved. Glass beads are usually found as shapeless ingots, and only occasionally do they retain their original shape. Amber beads burn in fire, they reach us only when they were protected from it by something.

Carnelian beads change color from red to white. Rock crystal beads are covered with cracks.

Bone products are often preserved, but change color (whiten), become very brittle and are found in fragments. These are piercings, combs, dice, etc. The tree is usually not preserved.

Determination of the place of burning. It is also important to find out where the cremation took place: at the site of the embankment or on the side. In the latter case, the remains of the cremation were transferred to the site prepared for the construction of the mound, in an urn, but sometimes without it. At the same time, part of the fire was also transferred. The burnt bones are grouped in this case only on a small “patch”, they are not in the thickness of the fireplace.

When burned at the site of the construction of the mound, burnt bones, albeit very small, are found both in the center of the fire and on its periphery. (Even the smallest bones must be taken to determine the age and sex of the buried, which is often possible.)
there is very little of it, things from the grave inventory are random, the inventory is incomplete. If the funeral pyre was large, then the soil under it is burned, while the sand may turn red, and the clay becomes like brick. In pre-revolutionary literature, such a place was called a dot.

Cenotaphs. In ancient necropolises there are empty graves - cenotaphs. They, like real graves, had ground monuments, but only individual objects were buried in the ground, symbolizing the laying of a corpse. There were, for example, parts of an imaginary lining lining. Cenotaphs were built in honor of people who died far from their homeland.

If the existence of ancient cenotaphs is undoubted, then there is a dispute about similar ancient Russian burial structures. The basis for the discussion is the fact that in some mounds there are no remains of cremation either in the mound or on the horizon, and the bonfire is a layer of very light ash. Opponents of the idea of ​​ancient Russian cenotaphs believe that such mounds contained the remains of cremations carried out on the side, and the urns with ashes were placed high in the mound, almost under the turf, and were destroyed by random visitors to the mounds. There are known cases when urns were placed under the turf and a pale, inexpressive bonfire lies on the horizon, but there are not so many such mounds and it is difficult to assume that the urns died in more than half of such mounds. It is more likely that most of the mounds, where there are no traces of cremation, were monuments to people who died in a foreign land. A light bonfire in such mounds is a trace of the burning of straw, which played an important role in the funeral rite.

It is difficult to distinguish between these two possible cases of the construction of mounds, and for the exact determination of the significance of such mounds, the most imperceptible and seemingly insignificant facts observed both during the excavation of the mound and when clearing the fire are important.

However, barrows in which the skeleton has not been preserved should not be considered as not containing burials. Such cases are found especially in the burials of infants. The bones of not only children, but often adults, are poorly preserved, especially in sandy or damp soil. Phosphate analysis can serve as a method for checking the position of a corpse.
The layer underlying the fire pit and the mainland. After the fire pit has been cleared to the border of the reduced edges, the layer underlying it is examined. These may be the remains of buried turf, the possible appearance of which is described above, a thin layer of sand sprinkled under the fire; the bonfire could be located on a special elevation made of clay or sand, and finally, the mainland could lie under the bonfire. This underlying layer (for example, a layer of burnt turf), if it is thin, is disassembled with a knife, like a bonfire, or, if it reaches sufficient thickness, it is dug out in layers (for example, bedding under a bonfire). Moreover, before reaching the mainland, it is advisable not to dismantle and not reduce the edge in order to visually represent the connection of the fire, visible in the cut of the edge, with the underlying layers and the mainland.

In some cases, the embankment and the mainland are difficult to distinguish from each other. The difference criterion can be a layer of buried sod, which can be seen even at the beginning of the excavation of the mound when examining the ditch. Sometimes this layer in the mound is not traced at all. In this case, you can rely on the difference in the density of the embankment and the mainland. Great importance have observations over the structure of the embankment and the mainland. In the latter, in some cases, veins of glandular and other formations are visible, which are not found in the embankment.
For greater confidence that it was the mainland that was reached, one can dig a hole on the side and compare the color and structure of the mainland uncovered in it with the nature of the surface discovered in the barrow.

To identify things that may be in the burrows of rodents and in random recesses of the mainland, it is dug to the thickness of one layer. In this case, sub-stone pits that go into the mainland may be revealed. These pits are cleared in the same way as grave pits. Many of them contain items from grave goods.

At the end of the excavation, the brows are drawn and sorted out. This dismantling takes place in layers: the remains of the embankment covering the coal-ash layer are disassembled, separately the fire pit, then the under-stone layer and the bedding, if any.

Varieties of methods of excavation of burial mounds. As the experience of studying burial mounds of the Bronze Age has shown, it is important not only to excavate mounds, but also to explore the space between the mounds, where burials are also discovered. Often these are the burials of slaves.

The space between the mounds is explored with a probe and a movable search trench.

Siberian barrows, with a relatively low height, have a large diameter. Their mound often consists of stones. The soil layer under the embankment is usually so thin that the grave pit is already carved into the rock. These pits are often extensive (up to 7X7 m) and deep. All this requires special methods of excavation of mounds, which are also used in excavations in other areas.

The height of Siberian mounds usually does not exceed two and a half meters, and the diameter of the mound reaches 25 m. After the breakdown of the central axes, lines are marked parallel to the north-south axis, from the western and eastern sides of the mound at a distance of 6-7 m from the edge of the mound. This distance is the flight distance of the earth and stones thrown by the digger. Initially, the floors of the embankment are cut to the marked lines and the resulting profiles are drawn. Then lines parallel to the axis 3 - B are broken from the southern and northern sides of the mound at the same distance from its edge, and the edges of the embankment from the south and north are cut off to these lines. After that, half of the remaining quadrangle is excavated along the axial line N - S, and the earth is thrown as close as possible to the first throw. After drawing the profile, the last remnants of the embankment are excavated. Thus, when excavating stone mounds, the study of their sections occurs without the help of brows, which under these conditions are unstable and cumbersome.

Such a technique allows you to compactly place the vykid, it occupies an annular strip no closer than 2 m from the edge of the barrow, in the center of which there is a large platform, which is necessary in case a grave pit is found.

Of course, the methods of excavating the embankment in horizontal layers, its leveling, clearing the backbone, methods of access to the mainland and other rules that are mandatory for

excavations of earthen embankments are no less obligatory in the case of excavations of mounds made of stones.

Another method of excavating Siberian burial mounds, like the first one, was developed and applied by L. A. Evtyukhova. After the breakdown of the central axes, chords are drawn connecting the points of intersection of the central axes of the circumference of the mound. First of all, the floors of the mound, cut off by these chords, are excavated, then the opposite sectors of the remaining quadrangle, profiles are drawn and the remnants are dug up.

For mounds with a stone fence, MP Gryaznov proposed a research method, which consists in removing all the stones that have fallen from the fence, leaving those that lie in their original place. Such untouched stones usually lie on the horizon. They determine the shape of the fence, its thickness and even height. The latter is being reconstructed based on the total mass of the stone blockage.

Ice-filled mounds. In some mountainous Altai regions, burial pits under stone mounds are filled with ice. This happened because through the mound (usually disturbed by robbers) the water that stagnated in the grave pit flowed quite easily. In winter, the water froze, and in summer it did not have time to thaw, since the sun could not warm up the mound and deep grave pit. Over time, the entire pit turned out to be filled with ice, the ground adjacent to it also froze, and a lens of frozen soil formed outside the permafrost zone.

It is interesting to note that the moment of robbery of such pits is precisely determined by the stratigraphy of the ice, which becomes cloudy and yellow, since the water, originally filtered by the embankment, has already begun to penetrate directly through the robbery hole.

In the pits of such mounds, log cabins were found, separate for people and horses. The log cabins were blocked by the rolling of logs, brushwood was laid over the logs, and then an embankment was erected. Burials of this type, due to the preservation of organic matter in them, provide remarkable finds, but the permafrost, which ensures this preservation, creates the main difficulty in excavations.

Rice. Fig. 50. Scheme of permafrost formation in a Pazyryk-type mound: a — atmospheric precipitation penetrates into the newly poured mound and accumulates in the burial chamber; b - in winter, the water accumulated in the chamber froze, water again flowed onto the formed ice; c - the chamber was filled to the top with ice; the soil adjacent to the chamber also froze

S. I. Rudenko, who dug the Pazyryk and other similar mounds, resorted to melting the ice with hot water when clearing the chamber. Water was heated in boilers and watered over the ice filling the chamber. Grooves were cut in the ice to collect used water and water formed from melting ice, and it was heated again. The sun also contributed to the melting of ice, but it was impossible to rely on solar heat, since this process was too slow.
With this method of clearing, special attention was paid to the methods of conservation of the found things.

In addition to burial grounds and barrow groups, single graves are often found. In Siberia, they are marked with stones, and sometimes enclosed in stone enclosures. The methods of their detection do not differ from those described above, but such a grave must be opened within the fence, capturing the latter.

Excavations in "rings". In the study of some burial mounds in Ukraine, Siberia and the Volga region, B. N. Grakov, S. V. Kislev and N. Ya. Merpert used the method of excavating them in “rings”. These were low (0.1 - 2 m) wide (10 - 35 m) mounds. In Ukraine and in the Volga region, these mounds consisted of black earth. After marking the central axes and laying out the edges, the embankment was divided into two or three annular zones. The first zone - * 3 - 5 m wide - ran along the edge of the mound, the second - 4 - 5 m wide - adjoined it, and in the center of the mound there was a small part of the mound in the form of a cylinder.

First, the outer ring was excavated, while the earth was thrown as far as possible. Encountered burial structures (log logs) and burials were left on the "priests". The mound was dug up to the mainland, upon reaching which the grave pits and the left burials were cleared. After the appropriate fixation of these pits and burials, excavations of the second ring began, and the earth was thrown back to the place vacated after the excavation of the first ring, but possibly further from the boundaries of the second. The study of the mound and burials proceeded in the same order. Finally, a cylindrical remnant was excavated. In conclusion, the profile of the central brows was drawn, and they were also sorted out to the mainland.

Such a method of excavation saved manpower, ensured a complete study of the mound and clearing, but did not allow one to imagine all the burials at once (and there may be 30-40 of them in the Bronze Age mounds). It must be said that for such a simultaneous inspection it is difficult to choose an economical method that justifies this goal. Therefore, the described method can be recommended.

It is interesting to point out that in the mounds of the Volga region, the level of buried soil corresponds to the level of the modern surface near the mound, but under the buried soil there is a layer of chernozem up to 1 m thick, from which a light sandy or clayey continent sharply differs. Therefore, the pits leading into it were clearly visible, while the pits of the inlet burials in the mound were very rarely traced. Ejection from the mainland pits usually helped to capture the level of buried soil.

high mounds. If the mound is not only wide, but also high (diameter 30-40 m, height 5-7 m), it is impossible to dig out its mound, cutting off the floors, firstly, because the farther from its edge, the greater the volume of land discarded , which will not be able to fit in the place cleared after the excavation of the next "ring". Therefore, the earth must be transported from the foot of the mound. Secondly, it is impossible to cut the floors of a steep embankment because a high cliff is created, threatening collapses and making it difficult to access the mound.

For excavations of such mounds, this method can be used. To clarify the structure of an embankment with a diameter of 30 - 40 m, its study with two central edges is not enough. With such dimensions of the mound, it can be recommended to break six brows, of which three should run from north to south, and three from west to east. However, due to the special shape of the barrow, sometimes it is necessary to change the direction of several or even all of the brows in order to obtain the profiles of the barrow in other, more necessary places. The recommended number of brows is also not mandatory, but it creates certain convenience in work.

Two brows are drawn through the center of the mound. The rest are broken parallel to them from all four sides, preferably at the same distance from the center, equal to half the radius of the embankment. Excavations begin from the outer sections of the embankment, which go beyond the line of side edges. They are made in horizontal layers and are carried out until the surface to be removed is approximately 1.5 m below the top of the cut. and the extreme platforms will not become equal to 20 - 40 cm. Then the outer areas are again excavated and so on until the burial is reached, and after clearing it - the mainland. From time to time it is necessary to reduce the height of the central brows in order to avoid their collapse. Thus, with this technique, there are no extreme edges and sections of the mound are directly drawn.

In some cases, this technique can be combined with the method of excavation "rings". When the height of the mound is reduced to about 2 m, its area can be divided into 2-3 zones, which are successively brought to the mainland. In this case, it is more convenient to take not annular, but rectangular zones, so that their excavation does not interfere with the delineation of side profiles.

Mechanization of work during excavation of burial mounds. For a long time, archaeologists were convinced that it was impossible to use machines in excavations. The turning point occurred in 1947, when the Novgorod expedition used 15-meter conveyors with electric motors to eject the earth, and then skips, that is, boxes moving along the flyover. There were no objections to moving the already viewed soil by cars. However, the use of machines in the excavation of mounds and especially the cultural layer was accepted with doubts.

At present, there are frequent cases of the use of machinery in the excavation of burial mounds (for the use of machinery in the excavation of settlements, see Chapter 4). In accordance with the conditions that ensure a complete study of mounds, the criteria for the possibility of using earthmoving machines on monuments of this type are: 1) identification of stratigraphy, including complex, and, therefore, the removal of the embankment in layers of small thickness and good horizontal (layers) should be ensured. and vertical (brows) trimming; 2) timely (without damage) detection of things and cleaning up stains of pits (for example, inlet burials) and wood decay (for example, remains of log cabins); 3) the safety of the skeletons, fire pits, etc. is ensured. If these conditions are met during excavations with earthmoving machines, then their use is possible.

The use of machines for the removal of waste land is almost always possible. The exception is mound groups with closely spaced mounds, where machines can fill in adjacent mounds, distort their shape or damage them. In the case where the maneuvering of the machines is not difficult, they can carry the earth a considerable distance, which will ensure the freedom to apply proper excavation techniques.

When excavating mounds with machines, one must clearly understand the possibilities of both types of earth-moving machines used for this. One of them is a scraper, first used by M. I. Artamonov in the works of the Volga-Don expedition in the early 50s. It is a trailed unit with a steel knife and a bucket for loading the cut earth. Knife width 165 - 315 cm (depending on the type of machine), depth of layer removal 7-30 cm. Due to the fact that the scraper wheels go ahead of the earthmoving unit, they do not spoil the cleaned surface. A scraper with side knives cleans well not only the bottom of the formation, but also the side surfaces (edge).
At the bulldozer, the knife (width 225 - 295 cm) is fixed in front of the tractor moving it, so the observation of the cleaned surface is possible only in a short space between the knife and the tracks. When the bulldozer is working, the expedition employee has to walk next to the machine and catch the change in the ground literally on the go, and having caught it, stop the machine. Therefore, the bulldozer must work at low speed.

Compared to a scraper, a bulldozer is more maneuverable and more productive for moving soil up to 50 m. When transporting soil 100 m or more

meters more profitable to use a scraper. Thus, a scraper is a machine more suitable for archaeological purposes than a bulldozer. But every collective farm has a bulldozer, so it is more accessible than the relatively rare scraper.
Neither a bulldozer nor a scraper can be used on small and steep mounds, as well as mounds with loose sand mounds. In the case of steep embankments, these machines cannot drive to their tops, and for small and sandy mounds, both mechanisms are too rough. Thus, all Slavic burial mounds are excluded from the number of objects where the use of earthmoving machines is possible. It is also impossible to use these machines when excavating burial mounds, the mound of which consists of a cultural layer, as is the case in the necropolises of ancient cities.

The mound, built from cultural layers, is replete with finds that need to be taken into account for dating the burial structure, and such accounting is impossible when mechanizing excavations. It is impossible to use machines when excavating barrow ditches, when digging trenches for the study of such ditches. This work must be done manually.

On shallow mounds with a large diameter, as experience has shown, both mechanisms can work in compliance with all the conditions mentioned above. This refers to mounds with a diameter of 30 - 80 m and a height of 0.75 m (with large diameters - up to 4 m high).

When starting to excavate a mound with earthmoving machines, one should take into account the archaeologist's experience in excavating archaeological sites in a given area without the use of machines. In this case, the archaeologist presents the structural features of the mound and the location of the burials. When using machines, one has to abandon mutually perpendicular edges. Usually they leave one brow going through the major axis of the mound, but you can leave three or even five, but parallel brows. When breaking the edge, as usual, it is marked with pegs, a cord and dug in with a shovel. The thickness of the edge is preferably the smallest, i.e., such that the edge can withstand until the end of the excavation. Experience has shown that the best thickness of such walls is 75 cm.

The mound is excavated from the center to the edges. Excavations begin with the creation of horizontal platforms on the top of the mound on both sides of the brow. In this case, the pegs or notches that mark the brow serve as a guide line for the scraper (or bulldozer). Subsequently, with the removal of each layer, these horizontal platforms expand towards the edges and cover an ever larger area. The earth is pushed away from the embankment and the ditches surrounding it, and even better if it is transported by a scraper. Eyebrows are cleaned with vertical scraper blades, and when working with a bulldozer, they are cleaned manually. A certain member of the expedition monitors possible finds, looks through the cleared surfaces, walking next to the bulldozer or following the scraper. When earth spots, traces of holes or other objects that require manual examination appear, the machine is transferred to the second half of the embankment or to other mounds.

If it is supposed to trace the profile of the mound on several brows, then work is carried out in the corridors formed by them. It is impossible to trace the edges in turn (starting from the bottom or from the top), since this would create sheer walls on which the machine could not work due to the threat of collapse.

It is rational to use an earth-moving machine, especially a scraper, when excavating several mounds at the same time, when a trip in one direction ensures the removal of soil and its removal in turn from several mounds, and the number of slowly turning turns is reduced.

In the case of excavations of high steep mounds, it is rational to use an earth-moving machine in combination with a conveyor. (See page 204 for how to use the conveyor.) When excavating the upper half of the embankment, the conveyor removes the waste earth from the upper platform of the mound to its foot, and the bulldozer pushes it to a certain place. After removing half of the embankment, the bulldozer can climb the rest and work continues as on ordinary blurred steppe mounds.
Safety. When excavating burial mounds and grave pits, safety regulations should be observed. The breakage of the barrow mound should not be higher than one and a half to two meters, since the loose mound is unstable. The same applies to the sandy continent. In the latter case, if it is impossible to reduce the height of the cliff, it is necessary to make bevels, i.e., inclined walls along the hypotenuse of the triangle. The height of the bevel is 1.5 m, the width is 1 m, the distance between two bevels is 1 m. If this bevel is not enough, then a series of steps of this type are built, with each step having a width of 0.5 m.
Walls made of mainland loess or the same clay usually hold up well, but in narrow pits they are best secured with spacers resting against shields on opposite pit walls. Underground rooms in soft ground should be dug from above, not relying on the strength of the ceiling.
Finally, it is necessary to make it a rule: daily check the serviceability of tools - shovels, picks, axes, etc. At the same time, it is especially necessary to monitor their strong attachment so that the tool does not hurt anyone.

Days of Death 1890 Died Heinrich Schliemann- German entrepreneur and self-taught archaeologist, one of the founders of field archeology. He became famous for his pioneering finds in Asia Minor, on the site of ancient (Homeric) Troy, as well as in the Peloponnese - in Mycenae, Tiryns and the Boeotian Orchomenus, the discoverer of the Mycenaean culture. 1941 He died during the blockade of Leningrad - a Soviet archaeologist, a specialist in the Bronze Age of the steppe and forest-steppe zone of Eastern Europe. 2011 Died - Soviet and Russian historian, archaeologist and ethnographer. Doctor of Historical Sciences, specialist in the ancient cultures of the Pacific North.

About 12 thousand years ago, people staged a solemn funeral ritual in honor of a mysterious woman. The group filled her grave with a variety of objects. What is especially surprising, at the end of the ritual, they threw the remains of their food into the pit. Recently, traces of this burial were found in Israel in a cave, where other remains of ancient people were previously found.

Recent Research

Archaeologists have been busy researching the remains since the day they were discovered. At the moment, it has been possible to reconstruct the exact procedure required by the feast among the ancients. Scientists publish all discoveries in a journal dedicated to anthropology. As it turned out, the burial belongs to representatives of the Natufian culture, which was common in the Levant from 15 to 11 thousand years ago.
The bearers of this culture lived in groups and practiced settled way of life even before the development of farming. This is their hallmark- in those days, most people lived in teams of hunters and gatherers, wandering from place to place. The Natufians were also among the first to introduce organized funeral rituals.

Distinctive feature of the find

So, Natufian culture was among the first to attach importance to burial rituals. Perhaps it was then that the structure of society began to become more complicated. This conclusion was reached by Leor Grosman from the University of Israel, who has been researching in the cave for eight years. The solemn ritual was associated with one of the longest funeral banquets ever discovered by scientists. In addition, he is one of the oldest. The banquet featured an impressive menu - fish, mountain gazelles, foxes, martens, snakes and hares, all of these animals were found at the burial site. The main dish was fried turtles - the remains of more than eighty animals were found, that is, about twenty kilograms of turtle meat were eaten. Apparently, there were a lot of people here, although it is difficult for scientists to determine their exact number.

Six stages of preparation

As scientists have determined, the funeral ceremony required serious preparation, which took six well-planned stages. First of all, representatives of the Natufian culture dug a hole in the cave to make a grave. After that, they placed a limestone bowl in the grave, filling it with strange objects - for example, a deer horn, a piece of red ocher, several tortoise shells and pieces of chalk. Then it was all covered in ashes. Only after that the body of the woman was placed in the grave, and he was given an almost sitting position. The leg of a wild boar was placed under her head, and several more turtle shells were placed in the pelvis. In addition, other objects were located around the woman and on top of the body, unusual even for Natufian burials. Among them are sea shells and eagle feathers. The strangest find is a severed human leg, that is, a fragment of the remains of another person. The fifth stage was a feast, after which the remains of food were thrown into the grave. What seems to us to be rubbish was then perfectly appropriate - just to crush the body. At the sixth stage, the grave was covered with a large piece of limestone weighing 75 kilograms. This is the largest piece of limestone ever found in a Natufian burial.

Mysteries of the mysterious burial

It turns out that the funeral ritual required considerable preparation. Hunting and gathering animals must have taken weeks. Scientists are still not clear why this woman received such unusual grave, while in the neighborhood there are much more modest burials. Apparently, judging by her grave, she was a very important person. The objects placed around the body allude to the activities of a shaman who is unique to her community. In addition, her skeleton shows the presence of a deformity, it is likely that she was limping. The kind of funeral ritual this woman received shows that Natufian culture had a complex system of social interaction. Small groups of hunters and gatherers could not come up with such complex traditions because they moved too often to create strong bonds with certain groups of people. Natufian culture was distinguished by symbolism and a special ideology. Now scientists have to look for other graves with a similar design, and maybe even more unusual ones. In addition, the cultures that borrowed their customs from the Natufians are also to be studied.

There is something mystical about death. And where people find their last resting place, there is always a special, slightly creepy atmosphere. It excites the imagination, frightens and attracts at the same time. So there are superstitions, legends, ridiculous rumors creep. Here are collected the most interesting and unusual of them.

Graves of witches and sorcerers

If during life there was a bad rumor about a person, he was buried in a special way. The body could be burned, nailed to the ground, tied with straps, cut, cut the tendons, “sealed” with silver. Many peoples believed that a witch should be buried without a coffin, face down. Graves were often placed outside the fences of cemeteries, in forests, at crossroads. Stones were thrown from above, thorny bushes were planted.

If this is not done, the dead man will be able to get out. There is a belief that holes and cracks appear on the graves of witches and sorcerers over time, through which they come to the surface. A large number of ants, bleeding grass and strange sounds from underground also point to the place where the witch is buried. Without knowing these signs, it will be difficult to find it. But there are also well-known facts:

This cemetery is located in Salem, Massachusetts. Well, I think a lot of people have heard of the famous 1692 Salem witch trials. Then about 200 people were arrested on charges of witchcraft. Some were executed immediately (hanged or crushed with stones), others died in prison.

True, in 1702 the authorities officially recognized the process as illegal, in 1957 all sentences were canceled, and in 1992 the cemetery became a memorial to the victims. By the way, in fact, those convicted of witchcraft were not buried there. There are no witch graves in Salem. But the legend attracts tourists there.

And in the forests of Michigan rests a witch who, according to legend, destroyed an entire city. If in 1874 there were about 1,500 inhabitants in Pere Cheney, then by the beginning of the 20th century there were only 25 of them. Two epidemics of diphtheria wiped out most of the population, the rest left. And the disease, of course, was sent by a local witch.

She is said to have given birth to an illegitimate child and was banished. The baby died, and then the woman cursed the city. In the end, the witch was caught, hanged, and the body was buried. Dark figures and ghostly lights still appear in that forest, the laughter of children can be heard. But get real photos of ghosts so far failed.

Graves of vampires and ghouls

Almost all peoples have legends about the dead who drink living blood. Usually such a fate awaited suicides, sorcerers excommunicated from the church ... yes, many others. And, of course, those who were bitten by a vampire. Naturally, people were afraid of these creatures and took measures so that the deceased would not leave his grave after death. And for this it is important to properly bury someone who can become a vampire.

The body should be burned or at least pierced with an aspen stake and laid so that it is oriented from east to west. It is desirable to separate the head and place it between the feet. So that the corpse could not eat its shroud, it is necessary to slip something under the chin (stone, iron). You can also pour sawdust or grains into the coffin so that the vampire begins to count them and does not have time to get out before dawn. Here are the most famous burials:

In the north part of London there is an old Highgate cemetery. It has attracted attention for a long time. There are frequent reports of vampires, and suspicious graves are marked with a V. Visitors find dug up and decapitated corpses, empty coffins. Several bodies were exhumed, and they looked strange.

Plump, plump… not quite dead… There are real photos of vampires they look exactly like this. But everything is easier to explain. The corpse always swells, this is one of the stages of decomposition. There is blood on the lips. If you pierce the body with a stake, it can make a groan, as the accumulated gases will pass by the vocal cords.

The Père Lachaise cemetery in France is also considered a haven for vampires. It all started in 1848 when some lunatic dug up some graves, pulled out the bodies and badly damaged them. He felt that he should do so. Since then, rumors have spread. However, appearance some gravestones are suggestive.

The symbolism of the burials looks ominous. Skulls and bats, which are considered the visual embodiment of vampires, fatalistic inscriptions ... However, in the 19th century, this was accepted in Western Europe. According to another version of the image bat with outstretched wings served as protection from evil.

Wandering graves and restless crypts

There is a belief that the earth does not accept the ashes of a person if they have not been properly buried. creepy stories about moving graves flooded the Internet. In general, this phenomenon has been known for a long time, but the evidence is bad. Everyone rewrites the same texts, where non-existent cities and people are mentioned. None real photo and there are no documents.

Normal explanations too. Perhaps there are forces and energies at work here that we do not yet know anything about. Like when it exploded Chelyabinsk meteorite, strange things also happened… negative pressure and many other things… But in the case of the graves, it was something else. If they moved at all. Here are a couple of more or less plausible stories:

This event happened even before the revolution in a remote Russian village. At night, a mound of earth with a half-rotted cross appeared in one of the huts. They tried to remove the grave, but it turned out that there was also a lot of earth under the floor. When it was carried out, human remains were found there.

The cross looked like those that were installed in an abandoned cemetery near the village. How all this ended up in the hut, no one understood. The grave was taken out, the bones were reburied. But the house had to be abandoned. Since then, people have avoided the terrible place.

The Chase family crypt is located in Barbados. It is carved into the rock and covered with a marble slab. Every time it was opened, the coffins that were there turned out to be turned on their side, standing upright, scattered ... They seemed to be spreading around the room. This was repeated from 1812 to 1820.

Various versions have been put forward, from Voodoo magic and Masonic rites to floods and shifts in the earth's crust. Researcher Eric Russell in the middle of the 20th century identified a number of patterns in these phenomena. He believed that metal coffins are moved by water under the influence of gravity and a magnetic field.

So what is it? True or just gossip? I don't know.. But here the materials are collected all over the Internet, I didn't even manage to identify the primary sources. And the dead cannot confirm or deny the rumors about them. In anticipation of better times, they will keep their ancient secrets.

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Dear readers, some names, dates and places of action in our material have been changed, because many data on this topic have not yet been declassified. A number of inaccuracies in the coverage of events were deliberately made.

At the end of the 18th century, the famous French Sinologist (Sinologist) Joseph de Guignes discovered in the ancient Chinese chronicles a record of the story of a Buddhist monk named Huishan, which surprised him greatly.

This April marks the 140th anniversary of the birth of a well-known person whose bones are still being washed - Vladimir Ilyich Lenin.

What makes historians carefully read the documents of 90 years ago? First of all, probably, the interest in those events that have not yet been sufficiently studied by specialists and covered in the press for the general public. But people have the right to know what happened to their compatriots on the same territory almost a century ago. Novosibirsk historian Vladimir Poznansky traced the development of the Siberian Holodomor using recently discovered archival sources. Lenin's call - "to save the proletarian center at any cost" - then provoked the death of many people from starvation, not only in the Ukrainian granary, in the Kuban, in Stavropol, but also in such a relatively prosperous area as Siberia.

Not all madmen are talented, but it is believed that the vast majority talented people- usually slightly "hello". And some are not even slightly, but rather thoroughly mournful heads, one might even say - having very serious psychiatric diagnoses. Another thing is that the madness of these geniuses not only did no harm to anyone, but rather, on the contrary, enriched our world with amazing creations that we, simple mortals not examined by psychiatrists, never cease to rejoice and be surprised at.

The day of September 11, 2001 became a kind of milestone in the public mind - the date when international terrorism entered a qualitatively new level of confrontation with socio-political institutions, which the so-called free world declares as the only correct ones. But the circumstances of this tragedy involuntarily lead to some "wrong" thoughts.

Traveling in the south or west of Ukraine, almost at every turn of the road you will certainly see a castle. Shrouded in morning mist, well preserved or even dilapidated, it will make your heart beat faster, reminding you of the chivalric novels you once read.

On that day, July 16, 1676, all of Paris was buzzing like a disturbed beehive. Still, it’s not every day that such a dangerous criminal is executed, and besides, a woman is also executed. And not just a woman, but one of the first beauties of the French kingdom.

An ancient Transbaikal man is "dressed" in a bearskin. Slightly slanted oriental eyes and high cheekbones make him look like a mixture of Keanu Reeves and Jackie Chan. He looks about 30 years old - this is the average age at which they passed away during the Upper Paleolithic. Scientists reconstructed the appearance of our ancient ancestor on the basis of the remains discovered during excavations of the world's largest archaeological complex Ust-Menza, which is located at the confluence of the Menza River with the Chikoy River in southwestern Transbaikalia. There, two years ago, archaeologists found strange burials: small pits, less than a meter in diameter, where people were placed literally rolled into a ring. How and, most importantly, why they did it - scientists can only guess.

To date, this is the oldest burial discovered in Transbaikalia - it is about 8 thousand years old, - says Mikhail Konstantinov, professor of the Department of National History of the Transbaikal State University, head of the Chikoi archaeological expedition (which discovered the burials). - The deceased person was laid on his side in accordance with the contour of the pit, and the body itself is covered with ocher - red paint of natural origin.

Mikhail Vasilyevich has been leading the excavations for more than a dozen years, and it was he who unearthed unusual burials. It is not easy for archaeologists to work in Transbaikalia: there are clayey and, most importantly, frozen soils, so excavations are progressing very slowly. It happens that the found skeleton cannot be removed, because it starts to rain, so you have to build a polyethylene dome, wait until the weather improves and the soil dries out. It is advisable to lift the bones from the ground with a part of the soil, so as not to accidentally damage during cleaning. The discovery is covered with foam rubber, sealed in a box and sent for further study. In this case, to the Institute of Ethnology and Anthropology of the Russian Academy of Sciences. Here, with the help of a special technology, the twisted skeletons were straightened, their skulls were glued together and their teeth were cleaned with "Blendamed". Now you can proceed to a detailed study, which sometimes stretches for years.

Important centimeters

Now the bone samples have been taken by specialists from the Geogenetics Laboratory of the University of Copenhagen, and now we are waiting for clear dates of life, the radiocarbon method should help with this, - Sergey Vasilyev, head of the Department of Physical Anthropology of the Institute of Ethnology and Anthropology of the Russian Academy of Sciences, explains to Ogonyok. - In addition, the Danes will explore DNA samples are part of a large work that is going on all over the world. Scientists take DNA from different areas, for example from Far East, from Transbaikalia, Eastern Siberia, and compared with each other. This allows us to understand how related different populations are, and, accordingly, to find out how ancient mankind migrated and settled.

In the Anthropology Department, in transparent plastic containers with multicolored lids, which we often use to store small things, there are skulls of various colors, shapes and sizes. Some of them are badly damaged, but, surprisingly, despite the thousand-year history, many have beautiful teeth.

Yes, this is surprising, - says the junior researcher of the department Ravil Galeev, who recreated the appearance of the Transbaikal man. - In ancient people, the teeth, as a rule, remained in good condition throughout their lives. Caries arose simultaneously with a change in lifestyle and with the formation of cities.

According to the scientist, the work to restore the appearance of the remaining bones is very long and painstaking. First, all proportions of the skeleton are carefully measured, and sometimes a separate specialist works on each part of the body, whether ears or teeth. The reenactor then restores the missing parts of the skull using a special mixture of wax, rosin and tooth powder - this mixture does not damage the bone and is perfectly preserved. With the help of a 3D printer, an exact copy is made from the skull - a cast of plastic is light, reminiscent of a foam model. Already on top of it, scientists using sculptural plasticine recreate facial features - the methods for this difficult work were developed in this laboratory by the famous anthropologist Mikhail Gerasimov. Now they are used all over the world. At the end of everything, a copy is made of hard plastic or bronze, which, as a rule, is sent to the museum.

To reconstruct the appearance, experts studied in detail the skeletons of ancient people. In total, the remains of eight people were found - five men, two women and one child. It turned out that they are similar to modern people. True, there are still differences - the growth of the ancient Transbaikalians by our standards is slightly below average, they have very narrow shoulders (no more than 31 centimeters even for men) and more elongated forearms. Judging by the remains, ancient people suffered from infections, blood diseases, such as anemia, lack of calcium and cold - this is evidenced by the specially modified facial skeleton and cranial vault, as well as narrowed external auditory canals.

Thanks to anthropological reconstructions, we know that they were Mongoloids, - says Professor Konstantinov from the Trans-Baikal University. - This is the type of person that is most often called Paleo-Asiatic. They form the basis for further Siberian ethnic groups, the closest to them are the Mongolian and Tungus.

In April, Japanese specialists from the famous Tokyo Metropolitan University are going to come to Chita, where last years geoarchaeology and experimental archeology are developing. These relatively new areas recreate the tools, crafts and life of previous generations based on ancient technologies. For example, recently experiments have been actively carried out here to understand how ancient people split stones.

We expect the visit of one of the most famous experts in this field - Professor Masami Izuho, ​​- says Professor Mikhail Konstantinov. - He specializes in the study of the Paleolithic of Eurasia. The Japanese are interested in all the skeletons found in the territory of Transbaikalia. They make copies and then exhibit them at the Central History Museum in Tokyo. The Japanese quite rightly consider all Siberian peoples to be their relatives. In this they, by the way, are very different from the Chinese, who, on the contrary, consider their nation exceptional.

In general, modern science, according to scientists, is changing towards greater complexity, which is very important. Archaeologists work together with geologists, geographers, specialists in fauna and flora, and this allows us to imagine how a person lived in specific natural conditions. True, we still know little.

feel the time

It is not known exactly when people came to Transbaikalia. It is only clear that at first they were Neanderthals, and then Cro-Magnons. Not so long ago, the Chikoi expedition discovered the oldest archeological monument in Transbaikalia - a human site dating back at least 120,000 years. Thus, the history of human presence in this region has increased by about 40 thousand years.

It was previously believed that people appeared here about 80 thousand years ago. They came from the south - from the territory of modern Mongolia and from China. People moved in search of food along the rivers, which are called the roads of antiquity, and from here they went further to Yakutia, to the Arctic. Then, along the then existing land bridge - Beringia, they crossed to Alaska. It is known that this bridge rose from the water at least six times, and each time both animals and later people migrated along it in both directions. So the ancient Transbaikal man is a relative of the American Indians.

In the Trans-Baikal region itself, the climate changed dramatically several times: before the appearance of man, there were subtropics with ferns and lianas, recently in Buryatia, near Gusinoozersk, bones and teeth of a monkey 3 million years old were discovered. But at the time of the ancient Transbaikalians it was already quite cold, mammoths and woolly rhinos were found.

These are Stone Age cultures. People then were hunters, fishermen, gatherers, - says Professor Mikhail Konstantinov. - They knew how to do a lot of things, including building dwellings in the form of tents, using bows and arrows, and making dishes from clay. They also made stone tools, choosing beautiful rocks - jade, jasper, chalcedony. If we talk about recent important finds, I would note the oldest bear sculpture in the world that we found. Its age is 35 thousand years, and it is one of the oldest works of art in the world. The sculpture is made from a rhinoceros vertebra. We also found an elk's head and a very beautiful "chief's rod" made of reindeer antler - these are the rarest finds.

The hardest part is recovering spiritual world ancient people. Their burials always speak of religiosity - of some idea of ​​the afterlife. The burial of the Baikal man is especially interesting in this respect.

It is still unclear why such a strange form of body position was needed, - says Professor Konstantinov, - but red ocher traditionally symbolizes fire, blood and the continuation of life. All this reflects the belief in the afterlife, in life after death. This, apparently, is an attempt to comprehend the world, to find one's place, to strengthen one's strength.

The strange shape of the burials is not the only mystery of the past. Not so long ago, scientists stumbled upon a unique burial of a dog aged 5-7 thousand years. Apparently, the animal was buried with special honors, because stone tools were found next to the body.

To better understand the culture of the distant past, scientists lack more artifacts, but to win them back in these parts is quite problematic. For example, on the Angara and Yenisei, sandy shores often collapse and present finds themselves. There are a large number of unexplored caves in Altai, where, in all likelihood, there is a chance to make a discovery, but here you need to go literally at random. So scientists call patience the main quality of an archaeologist.

Our further efforts will be aimed at discovering more ancient burials, - says Professor Mikhail Konstantinov. - Now we are talking about burials that are 7-8 thousand years old, but we know that a person appeared in Transbaikalia at least 100 thousand years ago. We have found more than a thousand stone tools of that period, defined as the Middle Paleolithic, but the anthropological material of this age is still unknown in Transbaikalia. We hope to find traces of human presence in Transbaikalia, who lived 200-300 thousand years ago. It is paradoxical, but in order to know ourselves, you need to go deep into the centuries.