Nothing too special, this is just a compilation of relatively new articles pertaining to the peoples which inhabited the Eurasian steppes. Enjoy!
The Kokel of Southern Siberia: New data on a post-Xiongnu material culture
From the end of the Xiongnu Empire to the establishment of the first Turkic Khaganate, the territory of Southern Siberia sees the emergence of distinctive local material cultures. The Kokel culture is essentially unknown in the international English-language literature even though archaeological sites pertaining to this material culture are among the most common in Tuva (Southern Siberia). This makes them important for the understanding aspects of the sociocultural dynamics following the collapse of the first “steppe empire”. Here we present the results of the study of a Kokel funerary site recently excavated near the Early Iron Age kurgan Tunnug 1 and discuss the data in the context of the available Soviet and Russian literature. The Kokel culture substantially differs from the material culture of the Xiongnu and has to be seen as a largely independent cultural entity of small tribal groups without a pronounced social hierarchy engaging in frequent violent local conflict.
URL: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8284818/
Mapping Karakorum, the capital of the Mongol Empire
In the thirteenth century AD, the city of Karakorum was founded as the capital of the Mongol Empire. Relatively little archaeological attention, however, has been directed at the site and the phenomenon of steppe urbanism. The authors report new magnetic and topographic surveys of the walled city and the surrounding landscape. The resulting maps reveal the city in unprecedented detail. Combining the magnetic and topographical data with aerial photographs, pedestrian surveys and documentary sources reveals the extent, layout and organisation of this extensive settlement. Road networks and areas of variable occupation density and types of activities deepen our understanding of this important commercial hub and royal palace, which is conceptualised as a form of ‘implanted’ urbanism.
An Imagined Past?
Nomadic Narratives in Central Asian Archaeology
Nomads, or highly specialized mobile pastoralists, are prominent features in Central Asian archaeology, and they are often depicted in direct conflict with neighboring sedentary peoples. However, new archaeological findings are showing that the people who many scholars have called nomads engaged in a mixed economic system of farming and herding. Additionally, not all of these peoples were as mobile as previously assumed, and current data suggest that a portion of these purported mobile populations remained sedentary for much or all of the year, with localized ecological factors directing economic choices. In this article, we pull together nine complementary lines of evidence from the second through the first millennia BC to illustrate that in eastern Central Asia, a complex economy existed. While many scholars working in Eurasian archaeology now acknowledge how dynamic paleoeconomies were, broader arguments are still tied into assumptions regarding specialized economies. The formation of empires or polities, changes in social orders, greater political hierarchy, craft specialization—notably, advanced metallurgy—mobility and migration, social relations, and exchange have all been central to the often circular arguments made concerning so-called nomads in ancient Central Asia. The new interpretations of mixed and complex economies more effectively situate Central Asia into a broader global study of food production and social complexity.
URL: https://www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/10.1086/714245
Archaeological Experiment on Reconstruction of the “Compound” Bow of the Sintashta Bronze Age Culture from the Stepnoe Cemetery
This article presents data from an international experimental study on the reconstruction of the “compound” bow of Sintashta culture of bronze age South Ural, Russia. The project is carried out by a collective of researchers from Greece and Russia as part of the grant program of the world association of experimental archaeology EXARC - “Twinning program”. The article reviews the global context of the design features of bows of the Neolithic-Bronze Age. The features and parts of the Sintashta “compound” bow were considered, and the role of long-range weapons in the life of Sintashta society was discussed. Using authentic technologies and materials, the authors of the article managed to make four versions of the bow reconstruction prior to obtaining the correct version.
URL: https://exarc.net/issue-2021-2/ea/reconstruction-compound-bow-sintashta
in addition I came across two recent video conferences/talks regarding the kurgan hypothesis and the peoples who played a role in the phenomenon. One is by arcaheologist Volker Heyd, the other is with David. W. Anthony, Dorcas Brown and James P. Mallory.
Mongolian Wrestling (Bukh) during the Twelfth-Fourteenth Centuries
The historical development of Mongolian wrestling has been studied by numerous researchers. However, differing approaches to the predominant form of wrestling in the twelfth-fourteenth centuries (Mongol Empire) remain. According to historical sources, pre-twelfth and post-fourteenth century depictions and paintings, vertical wrestling was predominant among the Mongols in this period. Mongolian wrestling became a part of the state ceremonies of the Mongol Empire and developed rapidly, with wrestling uniforms made of silk and cloth. Also, the zodog’s skirt was open, the shuudag was shortened, and the shoes were longer. There is no evidence that women wrestled in Mongolian wrestling at other times in history, but Marco Polo notes that in the thirteenth century, the royal princess was a successful wrestler.
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