Archaeologists are at a loss: in the famous Pazyryk burial ground on the bank of the river, the remains of two bodies - a child and an adult - with their heads separated from the bodies were found.
The Pazyryk culture existed in the 6th-3rd centuries BC. The main objects of this culture were found in the Altai Mountains. The carriers of the Pazyryk culture lived in the adjacent territories of Kazakhstan, the Republic of Altai and Mongolia.
Now experts are examining another find - the skeletons of a child and an adult. The age of the remains is estimated to be at least 2,500 years, but their gender has not yet been established. But most of all, archaeologists were surprised by the fact that both corpses were decapitated - the skulls were next to each other.
This is the first burial of this kind found on the territory of modern Siberia, and it is not entirely clear how to explain it. Perhaps this is part of some ancient ritual - for example, if people were afraid that the dead might be resurrected, or this is some kind of execution.
But so far these versions do not stand up to criticism, since archaeologists also found pieces of fur in the grave, and in them only rich people were sent to the afterlife, "so that they would not freeze."
The researchers also found two small bronze mirrors and pieces of ceramic vessels. That is, everything points to a typical burial of noble persons, which, for example, could be plundered, and then cutting off the head could become an act of humiliation. This could have happened much later (further analysis should show this). However, experts are already ready to abandon this version (but it is still necessary to check it). They believe that it is unlikely that the heads were separated later, because judging by the location of the bodies and the length of the grave, it was originally intended for bodies without heads.
While the "working" version is burial after hostilities. According to the head of the excavation Nikita Konstantinov from the Gorno-Altai State University, the burials of decapitated bodies themselves were quite common during ancient wars: they buried defeated enemies with beheaded, and made cups from their skulls. However, this was not typical of the Pazyryk people: they buried rulers and commanders separately from the army, dressed well as a sign of respect and tried not to damage their bodies. So the separation of the head, especially in a child, puzzled scientists.
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Another assumption is that they wanted to mummify the bodies, but for some reason did not complete the process. Due to climatic factors, mummification was typical for the inhabitants of this area - the mummies previously found here were in excellent condition, scientists were even able to make out the tattoos applied to the bodies (the most ancient surviving examples of tattoos in the world). The loudest local find is the mummified "Princess Ukok", found in 1993.
The general process of mummification of the Pazyryk culture included the separation of the head from the body - after the removal of the brain, it was “put back in place”, but perhaps for some reason this was not done in this case.
The first results of analyzes and examinations will become known in December-January: scientists will be able to establish the gender of people, the approximate age at the time of death and what object the heads were cut off with - these facts will help answer at least some of the questions.
Details of the study were published in the Siberian Times.
Yulia Vorobyova