On the banks of the Yenisei in Tuva, archaeologists have discovered rare jewelry of nomads of the 2nd century BC. e. - 1st century AD e., made of bronze and coal.
The women, buried in a unique ancient necropolis, went to the afterlife in rich decoration: bronze jewelry on their shoulders, coal ones on their belts.
According to the head of the expedition, Marina Kilunovskaya, the excavations took place on the shores that were in the flooded zone under the influence of the Sayano-Shushenskaya hydroelectric power station.
At the Ala-Tei burial ground, where the burials of the Xiongnu, a nomadic people who lived in the steppes north of China in the 1st century BC, are being investigated. - II century AD, archaeologists were especially lucky. Unique jewelry was found there, according to the Siberian Times.
The artifacts are decorated in a special Xiongnu style. The decorations show fantastic beasts, presumably dragons, as well as predators like panthers and leopards. Also found images of snakes, yaks and horses.
The researchers explain that such a set of images is typical for both China and the Scythians, who influenced the formation of the Xiongnu culture.
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Charcoal buckles are very large - sometimes they reach 20 cm in size. They are inlaid with semi-precious stones: jade, coral, carnelian and turquoise.
Such artifacts are a very rare find. All over the world, only six or seven such jewelry were found, in Russia - four. Archaeologists believe that they were intended for very rich people who came from Transbaikalia or Mongolia.
Elena Yakovleva