The Pazyrykburials are a number of Scythian (Saka) Iron Age tombs found in the Pazyryk Valley and the Ukok plateau in the Altai Mountains, Siberia, south of the modern city of Novosibirsk, Russia; the site is close to the borders with China, Kazakhstan and Mongolia.
The Saka were a group of nomadic Eastern Iranian peoples who historically inhabited the northern and eastern Eurasian Steppe and the Tarim Basin.
A kurgan is a type of tumulus constructed over a grave, often characterized by containing a single human body along with grave vessels, weapons and horses. Originally in use on the Pontic–Caspian steppe, kurgans spread into much of Central Asia and Eastern, Southeast, Western and Northern Europe during the 3rd millennium BC.
The Pazyryk culture is a Saka nomadic Iron Age archaeological culture identified by excavated artifacts and mummified humans found in the Siberian permafrost, in the Altay Mountains, Kazakhstan and Mongolia. The mummies are buried in long barrows similar to the tomb mounds of Scythian culture in Ukraine. The type site are the Pazyryk burials of the Ukok Plateau. Many artifacts and human remains have been found at this location, including the Siberian Ice Princess, indicating a flourishing culture at this location that benefited from the many trade routes and caravans of merchants passing through the area. The Pazyryk are considered to have had a war-like life. The Pazyryk culture was preceded by the "Arzhan culture".
Scytho-Siberian art is the art associated with the cultures of the Scytho-Siberian world, primarily consisting of decorative objects such as jewellery, produced by the nomadic tribes of the Eurasian Steppe, with the western edges of the region vaguely defined by ancient Greeks. The identities of the nomadic peoples of the steppes is often uncertain, and the term "Scythian" should often be taken loosely; the art of nomads much further east than the core Scythian territory exhibits close similarities as well as differences, and terms such as the "Scytho-Siberian world" are often used. Other Eurasian nomad peoples recognised by ancient writers, notably Herodotus, include the Massagetae, Sarmatians, and Saka, the last a name from Persian sources, while ancient Chinese sources speak of the Xiongnu or Hsiung-nu. Modern archaeologists recognise, among others, the Pazyryk, Tagar, and Aldy-Bel cultures, with the furthest east of all, the later Ordos culture a little west of Beijing. The art of these peoples is collectively known as steppes art.
The Ordos culture was a material culture occupying a region centered on the Ordos Loop during the Bronze and early Iron Age from c. 800 BCE to 150 BCE. The Ordos culture is known for significant finds of Scythian art and may represent the easternmost extension of Indo-European Eurasian nomads, such as the Saka, or may be linkable to Palaeo-Siberians or Yeniseians. Under the Qin and Han dynasties, the area came under the control of contemporaneous Chinese states.
The Issyk kurgan, in south-eastern Kazakhstan, less than 20 km east from the Talgar alluvial fan, near Issyk, is a burial mound discovered in 1969. It has a height of 6 meters (20 ft) and a circumference of 60 meters (200 ft). It is dated to the 4th or 3rd century BC. A notable item is a silver cup bearing an inscription. The finds are on display in Astana. It is associated with the Saka peoples.
Katonkaragay, also spelled Katon-Karagay is a district of East Kazakhstan Region in eastern Kazakhstan. The administrative center of the district is the selo of Katonkaragay. It is the easternmost district in Kazakhstan. Population: 28,008 ; 30,056 ; 45,149.
Arzhan is a site of early Saka kurgan burials in the Tuva Republic, Russia, some 60 kilometers (40 mi) northwest of Kyzyl. It is on a high plateau traversed by the Uyuk River, a minor tributary of the Yenisei River, in the region of Tuva, 20 km to the southwest of the city of Turan.
The Barrowsof Tasmola are dispersed throughout central Kazakhstan in the Karaganda, Akmola, and Pavlodar regions.
Begazy-Dandybai culture, is a late Bronze Age culture of mixed economy in the territory of ancient central Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Uzbekistan, centered at Saryarka region. The Begazy Dandybai Mausolea dates from c. 1350–1150 BCE, and was previously dated between the 12th and 8th centuries BCE, or from 13th to 10th centuries BCE. The culture was discovered, first excavated, and published in the 1930s–1940s by M.P. Gryaznov, who took it for a local version of the Karasuk culture. In 1979 the Begazy-Dandybai culture was described and analyzed in detail in a monograph by A.Kh. Margulan, who systematically reviewed accumulated material and produced description of the archeological culture. The most famous monuments of Begazy-Dandybai culture are Begazy, Dandybai, Aksu Ayuly 2, Akkoytas, and Sangria 1.3, it was named after the first two archeological sites.
The Tasmola culture was an early Iron Age culture during the Saka period in central Kazakhstan. The Tasmola culture was replaced by the Korgantas culture. They may correspond to the Issedones of ancient Greek sources.
Boralday, is a kurgan necropolis in Almaty, Kazakhstan, dating to the early Iron Age and associated with the Saka people. Located on the southeastern outskirts of the village of Boralday, the site comprises 47 burial mounds spread over 430 hectares on the left bank of the Bolshaya Almatinka River.
The Sauromatian culture was an Iron Age culture of horse nomads in the area of the lower Volga River to the southern Ural Mountain, in southern Russia, dated to the 6th to 4th centuries BCE. Archaeologically, the Sauromatian period itself is sometimes also called the "Blumenfeld period", and is followed by a transitional Late Sauromatian-Early Sarmatian period, also called the "Prokhorov period".
Shilikty, formerly Chilikti, also more precisely Baigetobe Kurgans in Shilikty Valley, is an archaeological site in eastern Kazakhstan, located in the Chilik river basin. At this site, numerous 8th-6th century BCE Early Saka kurgans were found. Carbon-14 dating suggests a more refined date of 730-690 BCE for the kurgans, and a broad contemporaneity with the Arzhan-2 kurgan in Tuva.
Eleke Sazy is an archaeological site in eastern Kazakhstan with numerous 6th-4th century BCE Early Saka kurgans. In 2020, archaeologists excavated multiple burial mounds in the Eleke Sazy Valley in East Kazakhstan. Here, a large number of gold artifacts were found. These artifacts included golf harness fittings, pendants, chains, appliqués, and more – most of which are in the Animal Style of the Scythian-Saka era dating back to the 5th–4th centuries BCE.
The Taksai kurgans are a series of Saka or Sauromatian funeral mounds or kurgans, located in the Terekti District of the southern Urals, in northwestern Kazakhstan. They are dated to circa 500 BCE. The Kurgan was undisturbed and had provided numerous valuable artifacts. The Taksai-1 kurgan was the tomb of a rich Saka lady, dubbed the "golden lady". Some of her objects reflect the iconography of the Achaemenid Empire, which must have been in contact with these nomadic tribes.
Majiayuan (Ch:马家垸遗址) is an 3rd-2nd century BCE archaeological site in Gansu, China. The site is considered as belonging to rulers of the culture of the Xirong, recently subjugated by the state of Qin, who included them within the defensive wall of King Zhao of Qin, built in 271 BCE. It is rather similar to another Xirong site about 50 km away, the Wangjiawa cemetery (王家洼墓地). Majiayuan was a zone of interraction between the Chinese and their nomadic neighbours to the west and north during the Warring States period.
The Filippovka kurgans are Late-Sauromatian to Early-Sarmatian culture kurgans, forming "a transition site between the Sauromation and the Sarmatian epochs", just north of the Caspian Sea in the Orenburg region of Russia, dated to the second half of the 5th century and the 4th century BCE.
The Araltobe kurgan is a burial ground found near Araltobe, Zhylyoi District, in northwestern Kazakhstan, thought to belong to a member of the post-Saka Sarmatian culture, and dated to the 3rd-2nd century BCE.
Griffins burial mound Berel (5th-3rd centuries BCE) Kazakhstan.JPG
Catlike predator with protomas of two elk burial mound Berel (IV.-III. B.C.) Kazakhstan. [7]
Scene of torment burial mound Berel (5-3rd centuries BCE) Kazakhstan. [7]
Deer in Griffin's beak, burial mound Berel (4-3rd centuries BCE) Kazakstan.
Tigergriffin arthor work based on Scytian- saka animal style burial mound Berel (5-3rd centuries BCE) Kazakstan.
Griffin-Shaped Coffin Nail (replica), 4th-3rd century BCE. Gilt Bronze. Berel Kugan, East Kazakhstan. National Museum of the Republic of Kazakhstan. [9]
