News-433-1 F

P R E S E RVAT I O N
OF TH E FROZEN TOMBS OF TH E ALTAI MOU NTAI NS

5
Staff Head in the Form
of Large Gryphon’s Head
with a Deer’s Head in its
Beak. Wood and leather;
carved. H. 35 cm Pazyryk
Culture. 5th century bc.
Inv. no. 1684/170.
© The State Hermitage
Museum, St. Petersburg.
The views expressed in the articles contained in

this publication are those of the authors and not
necessarily those of UNESCO.
Table of Contents
Foreword Koïchiro Matsuura 9
Introduction J. Han 11
Maps and Chronology 16 –17
C H A P T E R I SCYTH IANS I N TH E EU RASIAN STEPPE AN D TH E PL ACE OF TH E ALTAI MOU NTAI NS I N IT
The Scythians: Nomadic Horsemen of the Eurasian Steppe H. Parzinger 19
The Frozen Scythian Burial Complexes of the Altai Mountains: Conservation and Survey Issues V.I. Molodin 25
Culture and Landscape in the High Altai E. Jacobson-Tepfer 31
Ancient Altai Culture and its Relationship to Historical Asian Civilizations H. P. Francfort 35
The Silk Roads and the Road of the Steppes: Eurasia and the Scythian World P. Cambon 41
C H A P T E R I I U N ESCO PROJ ECT PRESERVATION OF FROZEN TOMBS OF TH E ALTAI MOU NTAI NS
Background to UNESCO Preservation of the Frozen Tombs of the Altai Mountains Project and Perspectives
for Transboundary Protection through the World Heritage Convention J. Han 49
UNESCO-Sponsored Field Campaigns in the Russian and Kazakh Altai J. Bourgeois and W. Gheyle 55
Climate Change and its Impact on the Frozen Tombs of the Altai Mountains S. Marchenko 61
C HAPTER I I I CHALLENGE FOR CONSERVATION AN D DEVELOPMENT
The Altai: Heartland of Asia Y.P. Badenkov 65
Excavation and Sampling Techniques in the Frozen Tombs of Kazakhstan J. Vasquez 67
Recommendations of the Gorno-Altaisk UNESCO Workshop, March 2006. 73
Afterword Ivan Belekov 77
Acknowledgements 79
7
Foreword
Koïchiro Matsuura
Director-General of UNESCO
T he safeguarding and protection of the world’s cultural heritage has long been considered one
of UNESCO’s foremost achievements. Since its creation some 60 years ago, the Organization has
responded to numerous threats confronting heritage, whether they result from armed conflicts,
Swan. Felt; applique.
H. 30 cm Pazyryk
Culture. 5th - 4th
natural disasters, uncontrolled modernization, touristic development or other factors. In recent years, century bc.
a new threat has emerged as the focus of great international concern, namely climate change. In keep- Inv. no. 1687/262.
ing with its mission to safeguard the world’s cultural diversity, UNESCO has consistently sought to rise © The State Hermitage
to all of these challenges over the past six decades. Museum, St. Petersburg.
In this context, the project presented in this booklet – the Preservation of the Frozen Tombs of the
Altai Mountains – is especially timely. Undertaken by UNESCO’s World Heritage Centre in collabora-
tion with a distinguished international team of partners, this initiative is among the first of its kind,
addressing, as it does, urgent cultural issues related to the environment and climate change. As stated
in its title, the project’s principal aim is to ensure the preservation and conservation of the remarkable
frozen tombs that lie scattered across the Altai Mountains, which spread over China, Kazakhstan,
Mongolia and the Russian Federation. These ancient tombs, or kurgans, contain unique relics of the
vast Scythian civilization that once flourished on the Eurasian steppe and have been preserved intact
in the permafrost, or frozen ground for over 2,500 years. The tombs contain the remains of mummified
human bodies and sacrificed horses, as well as a range of everyday artefacts including saddles, furni-
ture and textiles.
However, these precious objects are now under threat from various factors, most notably global
warming, which is precipitating the meltdown of the permafrost that has guaranteed their preser-
vation over millennia. To meet such new challenges, the World Heritage Committee requested the
World Heritage Centre to develop a number of innovative strategies to assist States Parties to more
effectively deal with the consequences of climate change on cultural and natural sites. The outcomes
of the project on the frozen tombs of the Altai Mountains have been very useful in the process of elab-
orating such strategies.
It is my hope that the project for the preservation of the Frozen Tombs will inspire those countries
with territory in the Altai Mountain range to strengthen their efforts to safeguard the region’s
immense heritage. We are pleased to note that the Russian portion of the Altai Mountains was
inscribed as a natural site on the World Heritage List in 1998. UNESCO heartily encourages all of the
countries concerned to work together to ensure that the natural and the cultural value of the entire
Altai Mountain region is recognized internationally and protected accordingly.
Thus far, this project has served to focus wider international attention on the larger problems
confronting other natural and cultural heritage sites affected by global warming and climate change.
Indeed, this project has already enriched the international debate on this issue. I am confident that
this booklet, with its insightful articles on the Altai region by several eminent specialists, will stimulate
further reflection on matters related to conservation, sustainable development and climate change to
the benefit of heritage in other regions of the world.
I would like to express my gratitude to the UNESCO/Flanders Funds-in-Trust for its generous
contribution to this landmark project and to the publication of this booklet. My sincere thanks also go
to all of the contributing authors and institutions, which have graciously lent their time and expertise
to ensuring the quality of this booklet.
Koïchiro Matsuura
9
INTRODUCTION
Introduction
Junhi Han
World Heritage Centre, Culture, UNESCO
T he publication of this booklet marks the

end of the Preservation of the Frozen Tombs of
the Altai Mountains project, which was launched
their contents shed over what is still a little-
known period in the history of the peoples that
have occupied the Eurasian steppe.
Fig. 2 Comb with a
Scythians in Battle.
Gold; cast and chased.
in 2005 and carried out by the UNESCO World Over the last three years, the UNESCO proj- 12.6 x 10.2 cm Scythian
Heritage Centre with financial support from the ect that this publication records has been culture. Late 5th - early
UNESCO/Flanders Funds-in-Trust (Fig. 1). successfully raising awareness of the importance 4th century bc Solokha
Until quite recently, issues surrounding the of frozen tombs of the Altai Mountains at interna- Barrow.
frozen tombs of the Altai Mountains were known tional level. The aim of the present publication is Inv. no. Dn-1913.1/1
about by only a limited number of specialists, due both to record this project and to shed further © The State Hermitage
to difficulties of international access to regions of light not only on the uniqueness of the tombs as Museum, St. Petersburg.
the former Soviet Union. The frozen tombs and research material, but also on the mountain land-
material contained in them constitute invaluable scape, which shows how the nomadic peoples of
research material to shed light on the nomadic this region have interacted with their natural
peoples that inhabited the Eurasian Steppe in environment over the millennia.
the first millennium bce, as well as on their The first section of this booklet deals with
neighbouring civilizations, such as the Persian some of these issues, looking at historical, anthro-
Achemaenid Empire. pological, archaeological and art-historical
Excavations carried out on the Scythian bar- aspects of the Altai Mountains. The first article,
rows lying between the Ural and Altai mountain “The Scythians: Nomadic Horsemen of the
ranges in the 17th and 18th centuries ce, which Eurasian Steppe,” introduces the Scythians and
formed the basis of the collection put together what is known about them, taking readers from
by Peter the Great that is now in the State the coasts of the Black Sea to Tuva (the Republic
Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg (Fig. 2), of Tuva in the Russian Federation) on the south-
already yielded considerable information on the ern edges of Siberia. It was in this region that the
Scythians and on the other nomadic tribes that so-called “Scytho-Siberian style” of art is now
once inhabited this region. However, certain cus- believed to have originated, thanks to the recent
toms and cultural aspects of these peoples could research carried out on the kurgan, or burial
not have been confirmed had it not been for exca- mound, Arzhan-2 in Tuva by a joint German and
vations carried out in the frozen tombs of the Russian team (H. Parzinger, Deutsches Archäo-
v
Altai Mountains themselves. For this reason, logisches Institut (DAI) and K. Cugunov, State
these frozen tombs are invaluable for the light Hermitage Museum) (Fig. 3 and 4). By describing
11
Fig. 1 Archaeological the position of the Altai in the broad context of of the Altai, providing readers with a chronologi-
remains in the Golden Eurasia as a whole, the article serves as an intro- cal profile of the region. When travelling in the
Mountains of Altai: duction to those that follow dealing with specific Altai, it is easy to appreciate the many human
burial mounds themes. civilizations that have flourished there over the
(kurgans), Bronze-Age The second article, “The Frozen Scythian millennia: Bronze and Iron Age structures are
stelae and stone Burial Complexes of the Altai Mountains: scattered across the landscape in the form of
circles. Conservation and Survey Issues,” introduces two petroglyphs and deer-stones, as well as in the
© Gary Tepfer. of the most important valleys in the Altai shape of the burial mounds themselves. Later
Mountains, the Bashadar and Ukok Valleys, Turkic Period (ca. 500 to 900 ce) culture is repre-
which are parts of the UNESCO World Heritage sented by the presence of beautiful anthropomor-
Site, and suggests future challenges in carrying phic standing stones, or balbals (Fig. 5, 6 and 7).
out research on the frozen tombs that are located The article describes how the combination of
in them. archaeological remains in the Altai from different
The third article, “Culture and Landscape in periods in the last three millennia has given rise
the High Altai,” concerns the cultural landscape to a unique cultural landscape. This is, in part, a
Fig. 3 and 4 Hair Pins

from the Arzhan-2
kurgan, Tuva Republic,
Russian Federation.
© Deutsches
Archäologisches
Institut, DAI, Berlin.
12
INTRODUCTION
landscape that is human-made, created over mil- peoples on those further to the east and beyond Fig. 5 A balbal.
lennia by people who had a profound knowledge southern Siberia. Objects (Fig. 8) found in the © Gary Tepfer.
of the mountains. The objects that they have left kobuns, or burial mounds, belonging to the early
behind convey their builders’ sensitivity to the period of the Shilla Kingdom (ca. 57 bce to 668 Fig. 6 Stone balbals:
colours of nature and the textures of the stones ce) in ancient Korea show striking similarities often found near the
and other natural materials, shaping these to with those found in the frozen tombs of the Altai burial mounds, these
become the expressions of human culture. Mountains, as well as with objects discovered standing stones, or
Research carried out in the Altai Mountains in the Central Asia, for example at Tillia Tepe in balbals, vary in shape
and in neighbouring areas has indicated the what is today’s northern Afghanistan. Magnif- from rough,
kinds of interaction and mutual influence that icent treasures from this site were recently shown unpolished stone
once existed between the Altai and neighbouring to the public for the first time at an exhibition steles to skilfully
regions. It has also been suggested that organized by the Musée Guimet in Paris carved
trade routes existed across the region (Afghanistan, Rediscovered Treasures: anthropomorphic
long before the famous “Silk Objects from the National Museum stone figures. They are
Roads” came to life that once of Kabul) (Fig. 9). Objects thought to be
joined East and West across yielded from the Shilla memorial monuments
Eurasia. It is this aspect ko b u n s , c o n s i s t s o f t h e (Turkic period,
that the fourth article, items of weaponry, horse ca. 500-900 ce).
“Ancient Altai Culture equipment and gold, form © Gary Tepfer.
and its Relationship to indeed the “Scythian
Historical Asian Civili- triad” found in the east- Fig. 7 A balbal, Gorno-
zations,” concentrates ernmost parts of the Altaisk Museum,
on, providing a compar- Eurasian continent. This Republic of Altai.
ative analysis of objects raises the question of © UNESCO, J. Han.
from the Altai, from whether such similar
the Xinjiang and Gansu cultural phenomena
regions of China, and from could have coexisted
the ancient Persian Achae- without there at the
menid Empire. same time having
The last article in this sec- been connections
tion traces the influence of the between Central and
Pazyryk culture of the Altai Far East Asia.
13
P R E S E R V AT I O N O F T H E F R O Z E N T O M B S O F T H E A LTA I M O U N TA I N S
Fig. 8 Shilla Golden rating insights from existing international pro-

Crown from Kyungju, grammes, such as UNESCO’s Man and Biosphere
Shilla Kingdom, (MAB) and World Heritage programmes, as well
5th-6th century ce. Gilt as from other programmes linked to sustainable
Bronze, H: 59.5 cm; development. The challenge here is to arrive at
D. at base: 17 cm, an appropriate balance between the conservation
MA 1642. of the Altai Mountains and their existing eco-
National Museum of system and rich archaeological heritage, and
Korea © Thierry Ollivier / the development process, taking into account
Musée Guimet. the social and economic needs of the local popu-
lation. Finally, as a result of research on the
Fig. 9 Golden crown, frozen materials found in the tombs, a relatively
Afghanistan, Tillia new issue has emerged: how to conserve the
Tepe, Tomb VI, organic material that the tombs contain, includ-
1st century ce. ing human bodies. The last article, “Excavation
Gold, 45.0 x 13.0 cm. and Sampling Techniques in the Frozen Tombs of
MK 04.40.50. Kazakhstan,” deals with this subject.
National Museum of Despite the wealth of information con-
Afghanistan © Thierry tributed by the authors of these articles, this
Ollivier / Musée Guimet. booklet is nevertheless all too limited in scope
and detail when compared to the complexity of
By searching for the “missing links” that once the issues facing the frozen tombs and the Altai
connected Central Asia to the Korean peninsular, Mountains as a whole and the challenge of pro-
the author of this article attempts to show that a tecting them from various threats, including cli-
“Route of the Steppes” could have existed across mate change. However, it is our hope that it may
this part of Asia in ancient times, joining Central contribute to raising awareness of the fragile
Asia with Far East Asia along the southern edges environment in which the tombs are found and
of Siberia and through the Altai Mountains. the natural and man-made threats currently con-
Further study should now be carried out to fill in fronting them, as well as of the need not only to
this missing chapter in the history of the Eurasian protect these sites at an international level, but
continent, and this will have profound implica- also to recognize their great cultural value. In the
tions for our understanding of the interactions light of this, the larger objective of the booklet is
and extension of nomadic culture across the to draw the international community’s attention
Eurasian continent. to these crucial issues, in order that it may reflect
The booklet’s second section deals with the on them and mobilize international resources for
background and various technical aspects of the whatever future actions are deemed necessary.
UNESCO project, along with future challenges In closing, I should like to express my grati-
for research and conservation, including how to tude to the Flanders Government of Belgium, not
safeguard the research material contained in the only for its funding for the project, but also for
frozen tombs. The project has helped produce a the support it has provided throughout. I also
detailed inventory and map of the frozen tombs should like to extend my gratitude to the Ministry
in certain parts of the Altai by using the most of Information and Culture and to the National
modern mapping techniques developed with the Museum of Kabul (Islamic Republic of
aid of satellite images. Such geophysical tech- Afghanistan), to the Musée Guimet (France), to
niques have also been used to monitor the perma- the Museum for Pre- and Early History, Staatlich
frost in the Altai, and these are described in the Museen zu Berlin, and to Bordon Art Design
articles in section two. (Germany), and to the State Hermitage Museum
The third section of the booklet describes var- (Russian Federation), for their cooperation in the
ious challenges facing the Altai and the frozen publication of the booklet. Finally, I would like to
tombs. The first article, “The Altai: Heartland of express my personal thanks to all the authors of
Asia,” examines how the sustainable develop- the articles, who kindly accepted to contribute to
ment of the region might be pursued by incorpo- this publication in spite of their tight schedules.
14
Eurasian Steppe
© BORDON / SMB
BRONZE AGE P E R I O D O F
-1000 -900 -800 -7 0 0 -600
Ca. 750: Arzhan 1 Ca. 600: Arzhan 2
Chronology
16
The Altai Mountains
© BORDON / SMB
Locations of famous kurgans
F I R S T N O M A D S
-500 -400 -300 -200 -100 0 AD
Ca. 440-400: Tuekta 1 Ca. 314-311: Ulandryk 4

Ca. 300-282: Pazyryk 2
Ca. 299: Pazyryk 3
Ca. 295: Pazyryk 1
Ca. 294-293: Berel’ 11
Ca. 274: Ak-Alakha From various recent publications.
Ca. 264: Pazyryk 4
Ca. 250: Pazyryk 5
17
CHAPTER 1
SCYTH IANS I N TH E EU RASIAN STEPPE
AN D TH E PLACE OF TH E ALTAI MOU NTAI NS I N IT
18
C H A P T E R I • S C Y T H I A N S I N T H E E U R A S I A N S T E P P E A N D T H E P L A C E O F T H E A LTA I M O U N TA I N S I N I T
The Scythians: Nomadic Horsemen

of the Eurasian Steppe
Hermann Parzinger
President, Stiftung Preussischer Kulturbesitz, Germany
O ver the past 300 years, kurgans from the

Scythian age have been discovered between
the Yenisei River in the east and the middle
Fig. 1 Gilded figures
of stags from the
Filippovka princely
Danube in the west, drawing attention to the grave in the South
monumental burial mounds and highly deco- Urals.
rated golden objects of the Eurasian nomadic © The State Hermitage
horsemen that built them during the 1st millen- Museum, St. Petersburg.
nium bce. Originating in southern Siberia in the
late 9th and early 8th centuries bce, and extending
during the 7th century to Kazakhstan, the south-
ern Urals, Russia and through the Ukrainian
steppe to the Carpathian Basin, the Scythians
and related horse-dependent nomadic peoples
(the Sauromatae and Saka, etc.) were replaced
by other peoples (the Xiongnu, Wusun and
Sarmatians) around 200 bce before finally disap-
pearing from history.
The Ancient Greeks wrote about the extra-
ordinary customs of the Scythians, and the his-
torical tradition stated by Herodotus places their
origins in Central Asia, southern Siberia and the particularly for members of the ruling class,
northern borders of China and in areas where called basileis, or “kings”, by Herodotus. Several
our knowledge of them depends on archaeologi- of these large kurgans, or burial mounds, have
cal sources. been excavated since the 19th century, and they
Scythian life on the steppe depended on give an impression of the grandeur of the
mobility since pastures had to be periodically Scythian ruling class.
v
relocated to support the herds that represented The kurgan mounds of Certomlyk, Solokha,
wealth and prosperity, and therefore often Kozel, Kul’-Oba, Oguz, Tatjanina Mogila,
v
needed to be defended from other nomadic Ryzanovka and Tolstaja Mogila, among others,
groups. This led to the stratification and milita- have yielded bodies wearing grave-clothes deco-
rization of nomadic society, which further rated with sheets of gold. These ornaments are
increased the importance of the warrior horse- made of thin gold foil, and they often show
men. However, the many Scythian forts to the Scythian-style animal figures, as well as motifs
north of the Black Sea indicate settlement, of Greek origin. The same applies to the gold
craftsmanship and even agriculture. The town of used to make the quivers, dagger-handles and
Gelonus (probably today’s Belsk), for example, scabbards, the decorative plates of buckles, Left The highest
described as a large fortress by Herodotus, was sceptre-handles, and so on, all found in the peaks of the Altai
built completely out of wood and surrounded by tombs. Torcs, pectoral decorations and bracelets Mountains: Tavan
a 5km-long wall. While there is a need for further are also made of solid gold. All these objects have Bogd in the
research on Scythian settlements, much more is symbolic meaning, since they signify the status of Mongolian section
known about these people’s burial customs. the buried person. Plates made of precious of the Altai.
These had a special meaning for the Scythians, metals, bronze cauldrons, Greek chalices and © Gary Tepfer.
19
Fig. 2 Reconstruction
by D. Pozdnjakov of
the male body found
in princely grave 5 of
the Arzhan-2 kurgan.
Fig. 3 Reconstruction
by D. Pozdnjakov of
the female body
found in princely
grave 5 of the
Arzhan-2 kurgan.
wine-amphoras complete the inventory of objects times even cattle. All these were strangled or
found in such tombs. killed. Archaeological excavations carried out in
While Herodotus describes the Scythians’ many parts of the Eurasian steppe have borne out
burial rituals in detail, he barely mentions the Herodotus’s descriptions.
wealth of gold in the graves. Instead, he provides Monumental kurgans for the use of the ruling
a great deal of other material that helps us to class were also built by the eastern neighbours
understand the archaeological discoveries that of the Scythians, for example by the Matiani in
have been made in the Scythian zone to the north the Kuban area of the north-western Caucasus.
of the Black Sea, as well as in those territories In Kostromskaja and Kelermes (7th c. bce), the
located further to the east. Herodotus explains central grave pit of the kurgan was topped by a
that when a Scythian king died he was buried in a construction in the form of a wooden hut.
large, square tomb. The body’s intestines were The dead bodies of horses, still wearing their
removed before it was filled with scented herbs bridles, were arranged in the grave. In the hills
and embalmed in wax. The preserved Scythian of Uljap, the kurgans (4th c. bce) contain wooden
mummies found in the kurgans of the permafrost structures that house the graves, these contain-
zone of the Altai Mountains prove Herodotus’s ing gold, silver and bronze plates and Greek
account of Scythian burial customs. He adds that ceramics, but no traces of the dead body.
the Scythian king’s wife, cupbearer, servants, Perhaps these were “symbolic graves” (ceno-
horsemen and messengers would follow their taphs), built for Scythian-Matiani chiefs who
master to the tomb, along with horses and some- had been killed fighting elsewhere.
20
There are also complexes of this kind in the Fig. 4 Arzhan-1

Sarmatian region of the lower Volga Valley and in kurgan excavated by
the southern Urals. While these are mostly M. P. Grjaznov.
empty, gold artifacts have been found in them
that exhibit remarkable artistry. The princely
grave of Filippovka (4th c. bce), close to the
mouth of the Ilek River in the Urals, might be
mentioned, for example. Here, a long dromos, or
narrow entrance passageway, leads into a tent-
like wooden construction that forms the grave
chamber, this containing gold weapons, gold and
silver plates and other prestige objects made of
precious metals. (Fig. 1)
Although substantial differences exist in the
details of the construction of the kurgans and in
the configuration of the grave chamber, they
repeat the same basic principles, connecting them
to the monumental burial mounds of the north
Pontic steppe. Beneath the monumental stone
barrow, built with enormous effort, the under-
ground grave construction is found, and this sym-
bolizes the status of the deceased through the
many prestige objects made of gold and other
precious metals found in it, as well as the numer-
ous valuable imported items it contains. deposits, and mineral wealth of this sort might
However, our information about the peoples have led to Greek, Persian and Scythian interest
of the Central Asian steppe and their customs is in the region.
not as reliable as that about the north Pontic However, the history of this region during
Scythians. According to Herodotus, the Argippaei the 1st millennium bce is unknown, due to a lack
people are to be found at the foot of high moun- of written evidence. As a result, archaeological
tains after crossing a vast area of steppe north of discoveries have an important role to play in
the Caspian and Aral Seas. These people, he reconstructing the history of the ancient nomadic
writes, are typically bald from birth and have horsemen of southern Siberia. Many of the
snub noses and long chins, which could be seen characteristics of the Scythian culture of the
as evidence of a predominantly Mongolian-type northern Black Sea area can also be found here,
population in the region. While their costume, including the horse-based nomadic economy and
consisting of hooded-and-belted sleeved shirts, lifestyle, the use of animal style in artifacts and
long trousers and boots, was like that of the the construction of monumental kurgans, which
Scythians, the latter were not able to communi- express the social structure of a society with a
cate with the Argippaei without an interpreter, warrior elite.
leading to the conclusion that they belonged to a As is the case in the north Pontic region, the
different language group. (Fig. 2 and 3) Siberian-Kazakh kurgans have in many cases
Herodotus also says (Book IV, 27) that griffins been looted. East of the Ural Mountains, only
guarding gold are to be found further east. If by one golden hoard has been found, namely that
this he actually means a human tribe, then the discovered during the excavation of an undis-
term “griffin” could be understood as being a turbed grave in the Issyk kurgan in south-east
tribal symbol, because the griffin plays a promi- Kazakhstan (5th c. bce). Here, the head-dress,
nent role in Scythian-Siberian animal style. It is clothes and weaponry of the so-called “Golden
surely no coincidence that Herodotus indicates Man of Issyk” have been found, decorated with
the presence of griffins guarding gold in an area innumerable sheets of gold, together with
that seems to correspond to the Upper Ob and silver plates and other items. This region was in
the Altai Mountains. This region is rich in gold the south of the original steppe belt and in the
21
horses and their saddle blankets, head-dresses

and decorative straps, etc. As a result, it has been
possible to ascertain that the preserved bodies
were tattooed with animal motifs. These bodies
had also undergone a special embalming proce-
dure in which the intestines, brain, muscles and
other soft tissues were removed, the body stuffed
with organic material and then sewn up with
horsehair.
Many more of these so-called frozen kurgans
have been found on the Ukok Plateau (Ak-Alakha,
Verkh-Kaldzhin and Ulandryk), as well as in the
Kazakh (Berel’) and Mongolian parts of the Altai
Mountains (Olon-Kurin-Gol). These demonstrate
the lively mental world and complexity of the
early nomadic horsemen, owing to their extra-
ordinary state of preservation.
Other monumental Scythian burial mounds
Fig. 5 Steppe near settlement area of the Central Asian Saka people, in southern Siberia show that these originally
Salbyk in Khakassia in who ruled large parts of Central Asia from the contained golden hoards in the same way as did
southern Siberia. Aral Sea in the west to the foot of the Tien Shan north Pontic catacomb graves. Tuva, a region in
in the east and whose contacts reached into the heart of Asia between the western Sayan and
neighbouring parts of north-west China and the the Tannu Mountains, has a special significance
Persian Achaemenid Empire. here, since along the banks of the Uyuk, a tribu-
The excavated princely graves in southern tary of the Yenisei River, the princely necropolis
Siberia are similar to the Pazyryk Culture kurgans of Arzhan is located. This huge cemetery, con-
in the Altai Mountains (Pazyryk, Tuekta and taining hundreds of kurgans, offers a rare con-
Bashadar). Seepage and condensed water collects centration of monumental burial mounds. The
in the tombs beneath the massive burial mound, Arzhan-1 kurgan was excavated by M. P. Grjaznov
this then freezing to form ice that not only freezes in the 1970s, laying bare a complex wooden con-
the embalmed body in the tomb, but also all the struction that features a unique wheel-like burial
other organic materials, such as clothing, shoes, chamber covered by a flat stone platform (Fig. 4).
carpets, ceremonial wagons, wooden carvings, A doubled beam chamber in the centre contained
Fig. 6 Tagar Culture

kurgan near Salbyk in
Khakassia in southern
Siberia.
Photos: © DAI, Berlin.
22
the looted burial goods that originally belonged related Scythian-type culture, in which animal Fig. 8 Princely grave 5
to a princely couple. The many small gold objects style plays a central role, should be looked for in in the Arzhan-2
left behind by the grave-robbers show the wealth these areas of Siberia. (Fig. 5 and 6) kurgan.
that existed at the time, these graves containing The Arzhan-2 kurgan, a princely grave dating
weapons, ornaments, jewels and horse harnesses from the very late 7th century bce and excavated Fig. 9 Finds and male
dating back to the late 9th and 8th century bce. at the beginning of the present century, contains skeleton from princely
The Arzhan necropolis in Tuva has thus far over 5,600 golden objects and is the first undis- grave 5 of the
provided the oldest discoveries of Scythian-type turbed hoard of its kind found in Siberia. It is a Arzhan-2 kurgan.
remains. However, a few other materials found little later in date than the Arzhan-1 kurgan,
nearby (in the Minusinsk Basin and the Altai belonging to a later period of the early Scythian
region) can be considered along with these dis- age (7th-6th c. bce). Numerous masterpieces in the
coveries, these additional items providing the shape of artifacts employing animal style were
context and real significance of the discoveries found in it, together with other items of a quality
made at Arzhan, since researchers now agree that that had previously not been found in southern
the origins of the nomadic horsemen and their Siberia. As a result, the discovery of this kurgan
Fig. 7 Arzhan-2 kurgan

during excavation.
Photos: © DAI, Berlin.
23
contrary it represents just the tip of an iceberg.

The discovery tells us that we should expect the
discovery of further princely burials beyond the
Urals that contain hoards of gold, this realization
only coming after some 300 years of archaeolog-
ical activity in Siberia. However, this, after all, is
one of the most significant and most fascinating
characteristics of archaeology as a scientific
pursuit: the fact that archaeology is still yielding
substantial, and at the same time unexpected,
discoveries that not only add to or help to clarify
views of bygone periods of human history, but
also help to change them profoundly and over
the long term.
It was also lucky that the princely grave of the
Arzhan-2 kurgan came to light at the beginning of
the 21st century, since modern archaeology is
Fig. 10 Gold animal changed ideas about the death rituals employed better equipped than it was decades or centuries
figures from the by the elite of the Scythian nomadic horsemen in ago. Such new archaeological techniques and
head-dress of the the region. It is not only great wealth and facilities need to be employed in order to allow us
man’s body found in grandeur that distinguish this double grave of a further insights into the lives of the Scythian
princely grave 5 of the man and his wife, but also the way in which the nomadic horsemen, whose remains are found in
Arzhan-2 kurgan. couple’s burial seems to have been staged, the permafrost of the Altai Mountains and in the
© The State Hermitage employing rituals that were strictly performed unique frozen kurgans of Eurasia.
Museum, St. Petersburg. for members of the elite. (Fig. 7-8-9-10)
We are now sure that the Arzhan-2 kurgan is
not just an isolated example, but that on the Translated from German by David Tresilian
REFERENCES
Cugunov, K. V., Parzinger, H. and Lebedynsky, I. Les Saces. “Les Skythes” d’Asie, Rudenko, C. I. The Culture of the Population
v
A. Nagler. Der Goldschatz von Arzan. Ein VIIIe siècle av. J.-C. – IVe siècle apr. J.-C. (Paris, of the Central Altai in Scythian Times
Fürstengrab der Skythenzeit in der 2006). (Moscow & Leningrad, 1960).
südsibirischen Steppe (München, 2006).
Meliukova, A. I. The Steppes of the Wiesner, J. Die Kulturen der frühen
Grakov, B. N. Die Skythen (Berlin, 1980). European Part of the USSR in Scythian and Reiternomaden. Studienausgabe zur
v
Sarmatian Times (Moscow, 1989). Kulturgeschichte (Frankfurt a. M., 1973).
Grjaznov, M. P. Der Großkurgan von Arzan
in Tuva, Südsibirien. Materialien zur Moshkova, M. G. The Steppes of the Asian
Allgemeinen und Vergleichenden Part of USSR in Scythian and Sarmatian
Archäologie 23 (München, 1984). Times (Moscow, 1992).
Jettmar, K. Die frühen Steppenvölker Parzinger, H. Die Skythen (München, 2004).

(Baden-Baden, 1964).
Parzinger, H. Die frühen Völker Eurasiens.
Kossack, G. “Von den Anfängen des skytho- Vom Neolithikum bis zum Mittelalter
iranischen Tierstils.” Skythika. Bayerische (München, 2006).
Akademie der Wissenschaften,
Polosmak, N. V. Ukok Horsemen
Philosophisch-Historische Klasse,
(Novosibirsk, 2001).
Abhandlungen Neue Folge 98 (München,
1987): 24-86. Rudenko, C. I. The Culture of the Population
of the Altai Mountains in Scythian Times
(Moscow & Leningrad, 1953).
24
The Frozen Scythian Burial Complexes

of the Altai Mountains:
Conservation and Survey Issues
Vyacheslav I. Molodin
First Vice-Chairman of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences,
Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography, Russian Federation
T he Altai Mountains are extremely rich in

archaeological sites, among the oldest of
which are the sites of Karama and Ulalinka
that bear witness to a human presence on this ter-
ritory 800,000 years ago.1 Remains dating back
to the Palaeolithic, Neolithic, Bronze and Iron
Ages and the Early and High Middle Ages have
been discovered and surveyed in the Altai, 2
(Fig. 1) among the most important of them being
the Scythian frozen burial complexes of the so-
called Pazyryk Culture.
As a result of a unique set of circumstances –
the severe climatic conditions in the high moun-
tains on the one hand, and the specific architec-
ture of the burial sites on the other – these tombs
have been preserved in ice lenses, thanks to
which unique objects made of various organic at the time in China, India and Achaemenid Iran. Fig. 1 Tavan-Bogda Ulla
materials have been conserved, including items This makes the study of the Scythian remains of peak in the central part
made of wood, textiles, thick felt, horn and the greatest interest in the context of the Eurasian of the Altai Mountains.
leather. Some of these objects are masterpieces of subcontinent in general. For this reason, too, this © V. Molodin.
arts and crafts (Fig. 2). In some cases, the ice culture is interesting not only for the scientific
lenses have also preserved mummified human community, but also for anyone interested in the
bodies with intact tattoos and hair-dresses history of humanity as a whole.
(Fig. 3). All these findings have led to a compre- The frozen burial complexes of the Altai
hensive understanding of the burial practices of Mountains were first discovered in Berel and
this culture, as well as of the clothes, weapons Katanda by the Russian academician V.V. Radloff
and horse trappings that existed two-and-a-half in 1865. Further studies were undertaken by
thousand years ago, allowing for study at an M. P. Gryaznov (kurgan 1 of the Pazyryk necro-
almost ethnographic level. polis) and S. I. Rudenko (kurgans 2-5 of the
The elevated artistic style of almost all the Pazyryk necropolis, Bashadar), as well as by
everyday objects found, as well as that of those V. D. Kubarev (Yustyd, Ulandryk, the Sailugem
used in warfare, is testimony to the high level of burial complexes), N.V. Polosmak and V. I.
culture among the populations concerned, and Molodin (Ukok Plateau), Z. Samashev and
consequently also of the high level of their spiri- H.-P. Francfort (Berel necropolis), V. I. Molodin,
tual world. This allows the Pazyryk Culture to be H. Parzinger, D. Tseveendorj (the Olon-Kurin-Gol
ranked among the outstanding cultures of 6 and 10 necropolis).3 Considering that more than
Scythian Eurasia. There is also no doubt that this a thousand burial complexes of the Pazyryk
culture was closely linked at an ethnic and cul- Culture have been studied,4 the above-mentioned
tural level to the leading centres of civilization sample represents only a small number of them.
25
However, compared to other known archaeologi- information has been obtained, allowing for a
cal complexes, these ones are incredibly rich in significantly higher level of interpretation of the
terms of information, and they contain a unique sources to be attained.6 Among the most signifi-
variety of objects and remains of burial practices. cant recent findings is the fact that the popula-
The scientific and cultural value of these com- tions of the Pazyryk Culture were very closely
plexes has clearly enriched the world’s knowl- related to today’s Samodi populations (Selkups)
edge, bringing new understanding of the peoples in Western Siberia, as well as to the Kazakhs and
Fig. 2 Pazyryk Culture and cultures of this Asian region during the 6th – Uigurs, which was discovered through evolution-
hair decoration in the 3rd c. bce (Fig. 4). ary and genetic analysis. Through a technique
form of a carved The study of the Pazyryk sources of the Ukok involving calculations of genetic distance, a
wooden reindeer. Plateau has been conducted in a multi-discipli- philological-genetic tree was drawn up showing
Upper-Kaldjin-II nary way.5 As a result of investigations that have linkages in the mitochondrial gene pool of differ-
necropolis, excavated involved specialists in the domains of physics, ent ethnic groups in North Asia.7 A model of the
by V. I. Molodin. chemistry, biology, anthropology, genetics, ethnogenesis of the Pazyryk populations was
© V. Molodin. paleo-zoology, paleo-botany and geology, new developed, and this showed them to be of syn-
cretic, Iranian-Samodi origin.8
The comprehensive examination of Ukok
mummies has also been undertaken,9 with data
being collected concerning the preparation of
bodies for burial and the particular use of mer-
cury compounds.10 Study of the mummies’ hair
through carbon and nitrogen isotopic analysis
and synchrotron radiation has led to conclusions
about diet, which included fish as an important
component,11 and about possible causes of death,
for example through poisoning as a result of
inhaling copper vapour.12 Such studies have also
proved that gold was locally available and that
the Pazyryk populations had the means to make
gold foil or amalgam.13
One of the most important objectives of
archaeology is the dating of archaeological sites.
The fact that wood has been well preserved in
the frozen complexes means that dendro-chrono-
logical dating techniques can be used, which
offer major possibilities for the relative and
absolute dating of sites, being as precise as the
exact year. Based on the materials from the
Pazyryk sources of the Altai, a number of “float-
ing” or relative dendro-chronological scales have
been developed, the longest of which covers a
period of 415 years.14 The main results of multidis-
ciplinary studies have been reflected in a number
of monographs and dozens of articles.15
Today, the critical issue is the conservation
and study of the frozen tombs within the burial
complexes of the Pazyryk Culture in the Altai
Mountains, there being two main threats to their
conservation. First, there is global warming,
which is leading to the melting of the area’s gla-
ciers and of the ice lenses in the tombs. The thor-
ough analysis of meteorological data collected
26
Fig. 3 Pazyryk Culture

male mummy with
preserved hair and
shoulder tattoos.
Upper-Kaldjin-II
necropolis, excavated
by V. L. Molodin.
by the Kosh-Agach meteorological station for the Fig. 4 Detail of female

40-year period between 1958 and 1998 has shown mummy in situ.
a clear tendency towards the warming of the Ak-Alakha-3
climate, this being particularly evident during necropolis, excavated
the winters. This warming has multiple conse- by N. V. Polosmak.
quences, including the thawing of the perma-
frost.16 This causes damage to the frozen archaeo- Photos: © V. Molodin.
logical complexes, as has been demonstrated at
the Pazyryk kurgan of Upper Kaldjin-1.17
The second threat is anthropogenic. Active
human influence on the environment and on
cultural-heritage sites is linked to economic
activities, and these sometimes lead to the irre-
placeable loss of archaeological properties.
In order to mitigate this, a new law concerning
cultural-heritage properties in the Russian scientific and cultural information. This is partic-
Federation now regulates the study of archaeo- ularly important to bear in mind when focusing
logical sites situated in economic-development on the preservation and study of the frozen sites,
zones. Article 40 of this law stipulates that “under which are probably under the greatest threat
exceptional circumstances, the terms of conser- because of the above-mentioned factors.
vation of archaeological properties includes Thanks to the long history of surveys of the
emergency field archaeological activities under- Scythian archaeological sites in the Altai
taken within the procedures determined in Mountains, it has been possible to determine the
Article 45 of the present Federal Law”.18 This law zones where the most-valuable sites of the
and other measures aim to facilitate the study of Pazyryk Culture, including the frozen kurgans,
endangered sites that are deteriorating because are concentrated. Two large areas of concentra-
of anthropogenic and natural factors, including tion can be pointed to.
the frozen sites on the Ukok Plateau and in other First, there is the Karakol River Valley situ-
locations in the Altai Mountains. ated in the central part of the Russian Altai
High-quality field surveys of the archaeologi- Mountains in the part of the mountains that is
cal complexes are also necessary, as is a multidis- most convenient for human habitation. At the
ciplinary approach to the objects of such surveys. administrative level, this area is located in the
Of course, each archaeological property is unique, Ongudaï province of the Altai Republic (Russian
and each can in theory give exceptionally valuable Federation). The Valley is approximately 40km
27
permafrost. The methodology of such surveys
was developed by Russian geophysicists during
studies of Pazyryk Culture complexes in the
Mongolian Altai.21 After conducting surveys of
this sort, it should be possible to consider excava-
tions at one or two sites and the subsequent
conservation of any finds in museums. However,
in order to meet present scientific and method-
ological standards, costly activities of this sort
can only be carried out by large academic expe-
ditions. It is also important to note that any
such surveys should be preceded by awareness-
raising activities among the local Altai people.
Fig. 6 The Ukok long from the Karakol river-head to its conflu- The second area of concentration of archaeo-
Plateau beyond the ence with the Ursul River. The entire left bank of logical sites in general, and of Pazyryk sites in
Ak-Alakha River. the river features Pazyryk Culture burial sites particular, is the Ukok Plateau situated in the
© V. Molodin. from the village of Boochi to Kulada, and the south of the Russian Altai Mountains at the junc-
Valley contains a concentration of complexes ture of Russia, Mongolia, China and Kazakhstan
composed of huge kurgans made of piled stones (Fig. 6). In the early 1990s, the Institute of
several dozen metres in diameter. Kurgans of Archaeology and Ethnography of the Siberian
such dimensions can be found in other Altai Branch of the Russian Academy of Science exe-
areas, but only as rare and isolated specimens. cuted large-scale surveys in this region, resulting
Their dimensions are comparable to those of the in the mapping of more than 400 archaeological
widely known Pazyryk burial complex studied by sites situated on the Plateau.22 Two groups of
S. I. Rudenko and M. P. Gryaznov.19 archaeologists, led by Prof. N. Polosmak and aca-
These burial complexes most certainly demician V. I. Molodin, surveyed 22 complexes of
belonged to the highest rank of Pazyryk society the Pazyryk Culture, including seven monuments
(chiefs or kings). This assumption is confirmed by with permafrost (Fig. 7).23 Unlike the central part
the results of excavations at two large kurgans of of the Altai Mountains, this section represents the
the Bashadar necropolis (Fig. 5) situated in the periphery of the Pazyryk Culture, and findings
Valley near the village of Kudala and studied in made in it do not include burial complexes of the
the past by Professor S. I. Rudenko.20 All these elite of Pazyryk society. The largest kurgans, exca-
kurgans have traces of looting from ancient times, vated by N.V. Polosmak (first, the Kuturguntas
but it is certain that some of them contain ice kurgan), 24 belonged to the middle level of
lenses, which have preserved a variety of objects. Pazyryk society at best.
This, at least, is what happened at the Bashadar However, thanks to the specific situation of
and Pazyryk kurgans. In addition, it is important the Plateau, including its difficulty of access and
to note that all the large kurgans of the Pazyryk severe weather conditions, a significant number
Culture that probably belonged to the highest of the archaeological sites have remained in their
rank of Pazyryk society (including the kurgans of primordial state. It is also more likely that the ice
the Pazyryk and Bashadar complexes) were sur- lenses they contain will survive global warming,
veyed in the first half of the last century according given the severe climatic conditions on the
to field methods that were accurate at the time Plateau. It should also be noted that pilot activi-
but that have now become outdated. The use of ties have been undertaken on the Ukok Plateau,
geophysical methods, as well as a comprehensive with the aim of developing methods of geophysi-
study of the over-burial monuments, would cer- cal monitoring for the identification of frozen
tainly provide further very valuable scientific zones in the Pazyryk kurgans.25 These methods
information. were subsequently successfully applied in the
There is a need to document and map these survey carried out under the Russia-Germany-
sites, as well as to delimit them physically from Mongolia project, which aimed to identify and
economic activities and to monitor them geo- excavate frozen tombs in the Mongolian Altai.26
physically, in order to determine anomalies in the These considerations all go to show that the
28
Plateau is a very promising area for carrying out project with the expertise of the University
multidisciplinary surveys of frozen burial com- of Ghent in Belgium and the Gorno-Altaisk
plexes. Thanks to improvements in geophysical University (Russian Federation) in the Kosh-
methods, it is possible that monitoring of the Agach region of the Altai Republic. A significant
Plateau could help identify complexes with frozen portion of the results of these activities has been
areas, as well as determine the level of threat they published and put into scientific circulation.28
are exposed to, with a view to conducting salvage Evidently, the creation of an archaeological
excavations of these unique monuments. map of the Altai Mountains should be the main
However, a major issue in the conservation of aim of the authorities responsible for the preser-
the archaeological heritage is the lack of an vation of the cultural heritage, as well as of the
inventory of the archaeological monuments of scientific communities of all the countries having
the Altai Mountains in the Russian Federation, as territory in this mountainous region. When this
well as of those in Kazakhstan, Mongolia and work has been done, other issues can be consid-
China. In fact, surveys have only been undertaken ered in a practical rather than in a theoretical
in some selected areas. Data are scattered spirit, such as documenting and preserving the
through various, often difficult-to-access publi- extremely rich scientific and cultural heritage
cations, and they remain partial, often collected concentrated in this region. This includes the
without topographical references or reliable links frozen burial complexes of the Pazyryk Culture
to a coordinates system. that are situated on the territories of different
A good example of a modern archaeological states, as well as the larger variety of other scien-
map of the region is the inventory of the archaeo- tific and cultural-heritage sites that equally
logical monuments of the Ukok Plateau prepared require studying and preservation.
by scholars at the Institute of Archaeology and
Ethnography of the Siberian Branch of the Translated from Russian by Lise Sellem
Russian Academy of Science.27 This map includes
more than 400 properties from various times and
cultures, linked on a reliable topographic basis Fig. 5 A giant Pazyryk
and accompanied by an account of the cultural Culture kurgan in the
and historical processes that have taken place in Karakol Valley.
this region of Asia, from the early human popula-
tions in the region (in the Upper Palaeolithic) to
the ethnographic situation that exists today.
A second good example of surveys aiming to
produce an archaeological map of a large region
are the activities undertaken within the UNESCO
Fig. 7 Excavation of
the Pazyryk Culture
Upper-Kaldjin-II
necropolis.
Photos: © V. Molodin.
29
REFERENCES
1. Derevianko, A. P., et al. The Karama 11. O’Connell, T. “Determination of the 20. Rudenko, S. I. The Culture of the
Early Palaeolithic Site in the Altai. Pazyryk’s Diet through Carbon and Population of the Central Altai in
(Novosibirsk, 2005), pp. 69-70. Nitrogen Isotope Analysis.” The Scythian Times. (Moscow & Leningrad,
Phenomenon of the Altai Mummies. 1960), p. 359.
2. History of the Altai Republic.
(Novosibirsk, 2000), pp. 234-236.
(Gorno-Altaisk, 2002), p. 360. 21. Epov, M. I. et al. “A Geophysical Survey of
12. Polosmak, N.V. and V. D. Trunova. “Hair the Archaeological Sites in North-West
3. Molodin, V. I. Surveys of the Frozen
from the Pazyryk Tombs (X-Ray Mongolia in 2005.” Issues of
Kurgans of the Altai Mountains:
Fluorescence Analysis including Archaeology, Ethnography and
Historical Notes. (Moscow, 2005),
Synchrotron Radiation,” Archaeology, Anthropology in Siberia and Contiguous
pp. 5-27; Molodin, V. I., et al.
Ethnology and Anthropology of Eurasia Regions (Novosibirsk), Vol. 11, 2005,
“Multidisciplinary Surveys of the
No.1, 2004, pp. 73-80. Part 1, pp. 503-506.
Russian-German-Mongolian Expedition
in the Mongolian Altai.” Issues of 13. Scherbakov, Y. G. and N. V. Rosliakova. 22. Molodin V. I. et al. Archaeological Sites
Archaeology, Ethnography and “Composition of Gold and Bronze on the Ukok Plateau (Altai Mountains).
Anthropology in Siberia and Contiguous Objects: Sources and Metal Work.” (Novosibirsk, 2004), p. 255.
Regions (Novosibirsk), Vol. 12, 2006, The Phenomenon of the Altai Mummies.
23. Polosmak, N.V. and V. I. Molodin.
Part 1, pp. 428-433. (Novosibirsk, 2000), pp. 179-187.
“Pazyryk Cultural Sites on the Ukok
4. Tishkin, A. A. and P. K. Dashkovskiy. The 14. Sliusarenko, I.Y. “Dendro-chronological Plateau.” Archaeology, Ethnology and
Social Structure and World Conception Analysis of Wood from Pazyryk Culture Anthropology of Eurasia No. 4, 2000,
System of the Populations of the Altai in Sites in the Altai Mountains.” pp. 66-87.
Scythian Times. (Barnaul, 2003), p. 10. Archaeology, Ethnology and
24. Polosmak, N.V. Vultures: Guardians of
Anthropology of Eurasia No.4, 2000,
5. Molodin, V. I. “Archaeology: The Results Gold (the Ak-Alahin Kurgans).
pp. 122-130.
and Future of Multidisciplinary (Novosibirsk, 1994), p. 125.
Studies.” Bulletin of the Russian 15. The Phenomenon of the Altai Mummies.
25. Epov, M. I. et al. “In Quest of Ice (Results
Academy of Science (Moscow), Vol. 71, (Novosibirsk, 2000); Polosmak, N.V.
of Geophysical Surveys of the Kurgan
2001, No. 9, pp. 788-796. The Ukok Horsemen. (Novosibirsk, 2001),
Necropolises on the Ukok Plateau).”
p. 336; Molodin, V. I. et al. Archaeological
6. Molodin, V. I. “Siberian Archaeology in Issues of Archaeology, Ethnography and
Sites on the Ukok Plateau (Altai
the Palaeo-Metal Age: the Results and Anthropology in Siberia and Contiguous
Mountains). (Novosibirsk, 2004).
Future of Multidisciplinary Studies.” Regions (Novosibirsk), Vol. 9, 2003, Part 1,
Historical Sciences on the Eve of the 21st 16. Yas’kov, M. I. “Linkages between pp. 528-534.
Century. (Novosibirsk, 2001), pp. 84-102. Observed Tendencies to Climatic
26. Epov, M. I. et al. “Electrical Survey
Warming in the Chuya Basin and
7. Molodin, V. I., et al. “Multidisciplinary Mapping of the ‘Frozen’ Pazyryk
Increases in Desertification Processes.”
Analysis of Pazyryk Culture Populations Kurgans of the Altai.” Issues of
Mountains and Mountain People of the
(Archaeology, Anthropology and Archaeology, Ethnography and
Altai and of Other Countries in Central
Genetics).” Scythians and Sarmats from Anthropology in Siberia and Contiguous
Eurasia. (Gorno-Altaisk, 2000), pp. 41-43.
the 7th to 3rd Centuries bce: Palaeo- Regions (Novosibirsk), Vol. 12, 2006,
Ecology, Anthropology and Archaeology. 17. Molodin, V. I. “Frozen Burial Complexes Part 1, pp. 510-515.
(Moscow, 2000), pp. 59-66. in Siberia and Global Warming: Possible
27. Molodin, V. I. et al. Archaeological Sites
Consequences.” Ancient Cultures of
8. Molodin, V. I. “Ethnogenesis, Ethnic on the Ukok Plateau. (Novosibirsk,
Central Asia. (St. Petersburg, 1998),
History and Historical Destiny of the 2004).
pp. 156-158.
Pazyryk Culture Populations in the Altai
28. Bourgeois, J. et al. The Ancient Nomads
Mountains.” Projects of the Siberian 18. Russian Federation Federal Law on
of the Altai Mountains. (Brussels, 2000);
Branch of the Russian Academy of “Cultural Heritage Properties (Historical
Gheyle, W. et al. “L’Utilisation de
Science (Novosibirsk), Vol. 1, 2003, and Cultural Monuments) of the
l’exemple de l’Altai.” Paper originally
pp. 148-178. Peoples of the Russian Federation.”
given at the conference Aerial
Rossiyskaia Gazeta No. 116-117,
9. The Phenomenon of the Altai Mummies. Photography and Archaeology 2003.
June 2002.
(Novosibirsk, 2000), pp. 200-212. University of Ghent, Belgium,
19. Rudenko, S. I. The Culture of the 8-12 December, 2003.
10. Polosmak N.V. “Mummification and
Population of the Altai Mountains in
Embalming by the Pazyryk.” The
Scythian Times. (Moscow & Leningrad,
Phenomenon of the Altai Mummies.
1953), p. 403; Gryaznov, M. P. The First
(Novosibirsk, 2000), pp. 120-124.
Pazyryk Kurgan. (Leningrad, 1950), p. 90.
30
Culture and Landscape in the High Altai

Esther Jacobson-Tepfer
University of Oregon, USA
T he glaciated peaks known as Tavan Bogd

(the Five Masters) punctuate the juncture of
Mongolia, Russia and China. They also define the
spatial centre of a rich cultural tradition going
back at least to the upper Paleolithic period and
marked, at least in part, by a striking intercon-
nection between archaeological monuments
and the larger landscape. This tradition is best
known through the burials preserved in the high
mountainous areas of Tuva, the Russian Altai,
eastern Kazakhstan and western Mongolia and
associated with an emerging nomadic tradition
within the Altai-Sayan uplands during the first
millennium (9th – 3rd c.) bce.
Yet despite the fame surrounding their cul-
tural remains, the early Altai-Sayan nomads
should be understood as only one segment of a are consequently more heavily forested and the Fig. 1 Turkic burial and
long cultural chain centred in the high Altai but steppe regions greener. What we now find is not, larch forests in the
extending east, north, west and south from the however, what has always existed: the present Valley of Elt Gol,
high river valleys and ridges into surrounding environmental character of the Altai region, with Bayan Ölgiy aimag,
mountain steppe. An examination of that longer its variations on all international sides of the Mongolia.
tradition, extending over thousands of years, ridge, has existed for approximately 3,000 years. © Gary Tepfer.
allows us to understand the particular intercon- Earlier, during the middle Holocene, much of
nection of archaeology and landscape within the this region was covered with forests of pine,
Altai mountain region. larch, and spruce, but by the Bronze Age (2nd mil-
At present, the landscape centred on Tavan lennium bce), forests were retreating in the
Bogd is marked by high, rocky ridges crested by Mongolian Altai and in the Russian Altai’s Kosh
snowfields and glaciers. Valleys are deep and Agach region abutting Mongolia on the northwest.
their sidewalls precipitous. These features reflect Within the present mountainous steppe and
the ancient advance and retreat of glaciers that forest steppe zone, agriculture other than that
left behind scraped and polished bedrock along involving the gathering of wild grasses has prob-
upper slopes and high plains strewn with boul- ably never existed on a measurable scale.
ders. The rocky aspect of the Altai is most pro- Hunting, fishing and gathering must have sup-
nounced within Mongolia. In that part of the Altai ported human communities down through the
uplift, rivers flowing down from the snow and middle Holocene. With the onset of the late
glacier-draped mountains create ribbons of green Holocene (c. 4000 cal. yrs bp), characterized by a
meandering through an otherwise harshly dry drier and cooler environment and by the gradual
environment. Only along the border between the replacement of forests by grassland, herding
Mongolian and Chinese Altai does one find larch began to supplement these economic activities.
forests and occasional lush mountain meadows By the end of the 3rd millennium bce – that period
(Fig. 1). coinciding with the emergence of the Bronze
By contrast, the Russian, Chinese and Kazakh Age – climate change had resulted in an environ-
Altai receive more moisture than falls on the ment far more hospitable to semi-nomadic,
Mongolian side of the Altai ridge. These regions horse-dependent pastoralism.
31
Fig. 2 Petroglyph has supported it. This is particularly evident in

showing elk and the Mongolian Altai.
aurochs. Late There are no recognized surface monuments
Pleistocene or Early from the late Paleolithic period, but a few concen-
Holocene, Aral Tolgoi, trations of rock-pecked images offer glimpses into
Bayan Ölgiy aimag, the culture of Stone Age peoples. The concentra-
Mongolia. tion of such rock art at Aral Tolgoi and the com-
plex of Tsagaan Salaa / Baga Oigor – both within
the Mongolian Altai – reflect a concern with large
animals such as mammoth, aurochs (wild cattle)
and horses represented in a static, profile style
(Fig. 2).
These images are echoed in the small Kalgut
site on the Ukok Plateau – close, as the crow flies,
to the Mongolian complexes. In these complexes,
in that of the Upper Tsagaan Gol under the
eastern slopes of Tavan Bogd, and scattered
throughout other sites in the high Mongolian
Altai, rock-pecked imagery of the late Stone Age
(early-middle Holocene) continued to reflect the
cultural and economic significance of large game
animals (elk, aurochs, horses, and bear) and a
general lack of interest in the representation of
human activities. This changed, however, during
the Bronze Age (2nd millennium bce). Imagery
from that period, recorded in the Mongolian and
Russian Altai, suggests an increasing density of
Fig. 3 Petroglyph human communities based on animal husbandry
hunting scene. Bronze and a growing interest in self-representation.
Age, Tsagaan Salaa I, Hunting remained an important theme in Bronze
Bayan Ölgiy aimag, Age rock art (Fig. 3), but it was supplemented by
Mongolia. scenes of the herding of large animals, people
driving wheeled vehicles, families caravanning
Fig. 4 Petroglyph (Fig. 4), and even by scenes of raids and conflict.
caravan scene. Late “Hero hunters” and hunters facing off large ani-
Bronze Age, Upper mals suggest the emergence of an heroic epic tra-
Tsagaan Gol complex, dition. Similarly expressive of cultural texture is
Bayan Ölgiy aimag, the sheer variety of distinctive and expressive
Mongolia. styles of representation.
These conditions and economic way of life The wealth of cultural expression reflected in
Photos: © Gary Tepfer. have persisted up to the near present. Within the Bronze Age rock art is evident, also, in surface
Russian Altai, economic development during the monuments tentatively assigned to that period.
Soviet period significantly altered the traditional Massive standing stones aligned within stone
pastoral way of life; until recently, the effects of frames from north to south are among the most
modernization were far less apparent within the striking of these monuments (Fig. 5). No less
more remote Mongolian Altai. Now, however, impressive are the so-called khirigsuur (“kherek-
global climate change is causing a rapid melting sur”) characterized by stone mounds surrounded
of the Altai glaciers, permafrost, and snowfields by circular or squared “walls” embellished by
and a radical loss of surface water. These changes radii to the north, south, east and west, and by
together with stresses created by the ramifica- small stone circles (Fig. 6).
tions of our global economy threaten the tradi- These structures and a great variety of others
tional way of life and the steppe environment that enlarging on the themes of circle, mound and
32
Fig. 5 Massive Bronze

Age standing stones.
Valley of Khovd Gol,
Bayan Ölgiy aimag,
Mongolia.
Fig. 6 Bronze Age

khirigsuur seen from
north-northwest.
Khara Zharyk, Bayan
Ölgiy aimag,
Mongolia.
vertical axis indicate the development of a rich stone. Obviously, local builders of these monu-
ritual life within the Bronze Age. It is still uncer- ments would have wished to use the stones close
tain whether any or all of the mounded structures at hand; but in many cases it is no less certain that
were intended as burials, or whether they were they deliberately imported stones contrasting in
erected first for ritual purposes but later became colouration and marked by unusual textures: for
de facto burial sites. Another surface structure example, to crown a khirigsuur, or to mark the
that vividly picks out the shape and internal “entrances” into the khirigsuur or its four corners.
divisions of an actual dwelling points in the direc- Although we look at these surface structures in
tion of virtual burials – that is, of structures that terms of the typologies of archaeology, a more
commemorated a person’s death and “gave” that careful consideration would indicate that they
person a dwelling in the next world. The actual also convey a keen sense of style and the beauty
placement of the bodies for which those of material; that they are, in other words, indica-
dwellings were intended remains a mystery. tive of an expressive culture.
Surface structures from the Bronze Age When we come down to the age of the early
reflect a keen awareness of the surrounding land- nomads represented so vividly by finds from
scape, of directionality and of aspect. The power- Arzhan, Pazyryk, Ukok, Berel and the upper
ful forms of standing stones and their placement Oigor drainage in Mongolia, we find that images
at passes, against cliffs, overlooking the flow of and structures present variations on earlier
rivers or at the opening of small valleys into large themes. The rock art of that period is still organ- Fig. 7 Late Bronze-
ones suggest a preoccupation with the integration ized primarily around hunts and individual ani- Early Iron Age hunter
of the cardinal directions and particular places mals, but the execution is frequently more styl- and wild goats. Baga
in the landscape. Within the Mongolian Altai, one ized (Fig. 7) and conventionalized than one finds Oigor IV, Bayan Ölgiy
repeatedly finds that the placement of khirigsuur in the Bronze Age. The women and horse-drawn aimag, Mongolia.
may correspond to impressive views out to east- carts seen regularly within earlier rock art virtu-
flowing rivers, to snow-crested ridges (Fig. 6), or ally disappear while riders appear more often. Photos: © Gary Tepfer.
to distant mountains considered to be sacred. At
the same time, the khirigsuur reaffirm the expan-
sive openness of high plains and their radii and
“entrances” reflect a concern for directionality.
The khirigsuur become, in effect, diagrams
relating cosmos and quadrant, not unlike man-
dala. A particular form of massive mound, some-
times with a marked collar or rim, appears regu-
larly on terraces facing out to rivers or to high
mountains. “Dwellings” are characterized by
“entrances” on the west marked by low stones;
the greater significance of the east is indicated by
larger standing stones of an unusual texture or
colouration. Indeed, in all cases one senses a
meticulous sensibility to the colour and texture of
33
are much clearer. They indicate that the ritual

preoccupations that seem to have shaped the
more ancient archaeology of the Altai reached
their final expressive form with the archaeology
of the Turks. Rock-pecked or engraved images
indicate a preoccupation with riding, hunting
and combat, as well as a great delight in the
apparel and weaponry of the mounted rider.
In addition to a burial ritual remarkably
similar to that of the Early Iron Age nomads, the
Turks built framed memorial enclosures aligned
to the cardinal directions and displaying, also, an
acute interest in contrasts of stone colouration
and texture. In some cases these enclosures would
include within their frames or on their east side
tall stones of a vaguely anthropomorphic
reference. That these simple stones were intended
to refer to human figures is indicated by the many
Turkic figures that take their place on the east side
of the commemoration structure. Within the
Fig. 8 Turkic period In the case of surface structures, we continue to Russian Altai, most of these figures have been
memorial enclosure, find new variations on old typological themes, as removed from their original settings. Within the
image stone and well as a ritual preoccupation with the cardinal Mongolian Altai, however, most can still be found
balbal seen from the directions. Burial mounds are organized in lines in situ and obeying a specific formula: the figures
west. Valley of the running roughly from north to south, while small always appear to be male warriors, and with their
Sogoo Gol, Bayan standing stones (balbal) are often set in straight right hand they hold a cup or vessel before their
Ölgiy aimag, lines running out from the east side of the chest, while with their left hand they grasp a belt
Mongolia. mounds. In many cases, the eastmost of these or a hanging sword. Embellished by earrings,
© Gary Tepfer. stones are marked by two specific elements: small beards and fine mustaches, these figures
unusual colouration and texture and a carving look steadfastly to the east. In almost all cases
that suggests a human form facing to the east. their view was once extended to the east by a long
This shaped aspect recalls the particular kind row of small standing stones (balbal) (Fig. 8).
of stone known as “deer stone,” which appeared In effect, the great period of Altai archaeol-
in a number of forms across north Mongolia, ogy ends with the Turkic period. Even with that,
Tuva, the Altai Republic and into northern however, the cultures that left vivid traces across
China during the late Bronze and early Iron Ages. the high Altai region created a steady tradition
Within the Mongolian Altai, there are at least lasting many thousands of years. Stone monu-
five “deer stones” embellished with a human face ments and rock-pecked and engraved images
and one known case in the Chuya steppe. Like the cover the high Altai like a fine cultural web. Yet,
simple standing stones, the shaped “deer stones”, despite its solidity, that stone is vulnerable to
and the balbal, these stones with human faces impacts brought into the Altai region by climate
reaffirm the significance of the direction east. change and a globalized economy. With the melt-
This and the general concern for directionality ing of the permafrost, burials are sinking and
coincide with all the indications of the actual their preserved contents are deteriorating.
early nomadic burial ritual. Standing stones and Turkic images are literally
Monuments of the Hunnu (Xiongnu) period disappearing into the earth. The influx of tourists
(late first millennium bce – 5th c. ce) have been into the high mountain regions has also resulted
only occasionally attested in the high Altai in the degradation and theft of unguarded mate-
region, and we are not certain which rock art, rials. In these several respects, the integrity of
if any, may be associated with that period the Altai’s ancient cultural heritage is now seri-
of nomadic culture. Materials relating to the ously threatened.
Turkic period (c. early 6th – late 8th c. ce and later)
34
Ancient Altai Culture and its Relationship

to Historical Asian Civilizations
Henri-Paul Francfort
Directeur de recherche
Centre national de la recherche scientifique (CNRS), France
T he Altai is located within the very large

and high mountains of the Eurasian conti-
nent. However, the Altai never functioned as a
show connections with the steppe cultures to the
north and west, as well as with north-western
and central China and, in the west, with Persia
complete barrier, and it was never either a no- and Greece. The exceptional function of the Altai,
man’s land or a totally inhospitable environment. working as a kind of cultural hub, would have
The ancient Altai cultures began during the remained completely unknown had it not been
glacial and post-glacial age, as has been demon- for the finds made in the frozen burial sites.
strated by discoveries of archaeological remains On the steppe side, the ancient Altai nomads
and examples of rock art in the region. However, shared many aspects of their way of life and
the focus here is on the period of the Iron Age, material culture with their neighbours, as is
called the Age of the Ancient Nomads. This latter revealed through their burial customs. It is clear
period, dating from c. 1,000 to 200 bce, is named that ordinary people were not interred, or at least
the “Pazyryk Culture” after its most brilliant were not interred in large burial sites. Members Fig. 1 Reconstruction
phase that extended from c. 450 to 250 bce of the elite, on the other hand, were buried in of a steppe-style
according to the latest research, and it is this large mounds, or kurgans, along with their horned horse’s head
short but extremely important period that will be belongings, horses and sometimes attendants. discovered during
discussed. This practice, along with other elements, is com- excavation of the
The Pazyryk Culture was contemporary with mon to kurgans found from the Yellow River to Berel’ 11 kurgan.
the fall of the Achaemenid Empire in 329 bce, the Black Sea, and it can be seen, for instance, in © Mission
conquered by the Greeks up to Bactria, and it was the so-called “Scythian triad” of weaponry, Archéologique Française
contemporary, too, with many important events horsemanship and steppe art. Common items of en Asie Centrale (CNRS-
then taking place in China with the advent of the dress include tunics, trousers and high pointed MAE) H.-P. Francfort.
Warring States period. Discovered as a result of
the excavations of kurgans since the 1920s, the
Pazyryk Culture was characterized by the replace-
ment of the old hunting mode of subsistence by
mounted pastoral nomadism. Pastoralists inhab-
ited the wide meadows and valleys of the Altai
during late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, and
they have lived in the Altai ever since. Pastoral
nomadism is a way of life that permits large
demographic expansion in a landscape where
agriculture is not possible and where predation –
hunting and gathering – is not very productive.
However, one must also take into considera-
tion the important fact that all ancient nomadic
societies in the Old World were in contact with
agricultural sedentary societies, kingdoms and
empires, and this is precisely what occurred dur-
ing the Age of the Ancient Nomads. The splendid
discoveries made in the frozen tombs of the Altai
35
Fig. 2 Bronze nail from
the sarcophagus lid of
the Berel’ 11 kurgan
showing steppe-style
crested griffin.
Fig. 3 Typical steppe-

style gilded wooden
horse pendant in the
shape of an elk with
lobed antlers from
the Berel’ 11 kurgan,
a motif transmitted
as far as China.
Photos: © Mission
Archéologique Française
en Asie Centrale (CNRS-
MAE) H.-P. Francfort. hoods, these also being depicted in Achaemenid typical motif of the Pazyryk Culture is the crested
reliefs and in finds made in Ak-Alakha and at the griffin, which originates in the images of birds
Issyk burial site in Kazakhstan. of prey that are so numerous in all steppe art
The climatic conditions of the Altai have (Fig. 2). The elk with lobed antlers is another typ-
caused the freezing of organic materials in the ical image, this one also being adopted by other
large and deep burials of the tombs, thereby cultures in north-western China (Fig. 3). These
preserving a rich and colourful picture of observations confirm how deeply rooted Altai
Scythian life and of the Scythians’ long-distance nomadic culture was in common steppe tradition,
relationships. The nomadic steppe tradition of even as it developed its own individuality.
Altai art can be seen in the wooden, leather and Steppe art is a local tradition, and the discov-
textile artifacts found in the tombs, as well as in eries made at Arzhan-1 and Arzhan-2 (Tuva),
the mummies themselves and in their dress, together with the recent Chilikty finds from
headgear and tattoos. Four iconographic motifs Kazakhstan, confirm that during its early phase
particularly illustrate this tradition and the from the early 1st millennium bce (the Arzhan-
specific character of Altai artistic expression. Maiemir phase, according to Gryaznov) to the
These four motifs are the horned horse, the flying 6th to 5th centuries this was a purely local art
“beaked” deer, the crested griffin and the elk concentrated in the Altai. However, during the
with lobed antlers. 5th and 4th centuries bce changes took place that
The horned horse is an ancient, composite led to enhanced exchanges with other cultural
image consisting of a horse with horns or antlers, and artistic traditions. These exchanges seem to
and it is found among ancient rock-art images have increased further over subsequent centuries
dating from the late Bronze Age, including those owing to Achaemenid, Greek and Chinese expan-
found in the Altai. The bodies of real horses were sion in the steppes, as well as to the mobility of
found in the Scythian burial sites, these wearing the nomads themselves.
masks with elaborate deer or elk antlers or ibex Nomadic cultures developed during the same
horns (Fig.1). The motif of the flying “beaked” period on the Chinese side of the Altai and in
deer is also an ancient image of the steppe, origi- north-western China, Xinjiang, Gansu, Qinghai
nating in rock-art and stele engravings, the beak- and Inner Mongolia. It seems clear that icono-
like feature being meant either as the beak of a graphic motifs found among such cultures were
bird or as a sharp stylization of the animal’s inspired by the art of the Altai nomads. The elk
muzzle. Curiously, this motif is not used on arti- head with lobed antlers, for example, found in
facts, but is found used in the tattoos on the bod- Ningxia, was definitely derived from the Altai, as
ies of some Pazyryk individuals, where it features was the typical association of a palmetto with two
what is clearly the beak of a bird of prey. Another flanking raptor heads, though, as we shall see,
36
the latter feature ultimately originates in featuring phoenix-type embroidery used by Fig. 4 Wooden belt
Achaemenid art. Other, more specific motifs the Pazyryk Culture has been found in Alagou in plaque from the
include the one termed the “cloud” in China, the Tian Shan, this also dating from the early Berel’ 11 kurgan
which has been found at Jiaohe and Goubei in 3rd century bce. showing a tiger
Xinjiang, along with the motif of a bird’s scaly On the Middle Eastern side, the adoption and attacking a deer and
feathers. Both motifs first appeared at Tuekta-1 transformation of Achaemenid and Greek motifs typical steppe-style
(400-440 bce) in the Altai during an early phase by the Pazyryk Culture is striking. Main finds reversed hind-
of the Pazyryk Culture. come from the Pazyryk-1 and 2 (295-300 bce), quarters, a motif
A further typically Altai motif, the “reversed Berel’ 11 (293-294 bce), Ak-Alakha-3 kurgan 1 transmitted as far
hindquarters” of animals (Fig. 4), was also (274 bce) and Pazyryk-5 (250 bce) kurgans. as China.
adopted by Chinese artists. This has been found Whether or not related to the conquest of Asia by
from Xinjiang (at Alagou, 3 rd – 2 nd c. bce) to Alexander the Great, this reflects the fact that Fig. 5 Wooden horse
Xigoupan in Inner Mongolia (2nd century bce), the main Achaemenid influence occurred after pendant in the shape
but its most ancient occurrence is in tattoos of the fall of the Persian Empire to Greek forces in of an Achaemenian
the Pazyryk Culture (c. 300 bce). This motif was 329 bce. However, Greek influence is not always lotus bud from the
used in otherwise purely Chinese pieces, such easy to trace, and it is not certain whether it came Berel’ 11 kurgan.
as in a toilet box belonging to Princess Dou Wan via the Empire’s eastern provinces (Bactria) or
(d. 113 – 104 bce) from Macheng (Hebei) and in via the steppes from the Graeco-Scythian Fig. 6 Gilded wooden
the painted coffin of the Marquise of Dai (dated provinces of the Black Sea. horse pendant from
to shortly after 168 bce) from Mawangdui, Achaemenid influence appears in the non- the Berel’ 11 kurgan
Changsha (Hunan). The motif disappears from figurative ornaments used on horse trappings, in the shape of an
Chinese art during the 1st century bce. More gen- such as the rosette, palmettos, lotus, scroll band, Achaemenian hairy
erally, it has also been observed that the steppe waves, egg or tongue band. A few of these pat- lion, here transformed
cultures transmitted other artistic elements to terns first appeared in trappings found at into a mouflon in the
Chinese tradition, such as conventions for land- Bashadar-2 and Tuekta-1, where local steppe dec- beak of a griffin.
scape representation and the image of a chariot in orative ornamental shapes (dot-comma or eye-
profile. In many cases, such transmission involves beak, beads) largely dominate. However, from Photos: © Mission
both the transmission of the ancient steppe tradi- the time of the Pazyryk-1, Berel’ and Ukok kurgans Archéologique Française
tion and that of motifs from the Middle East (as is to that of Pazyryk-5, a selection of patterns was en Asie Centrale (CNRS-
discussed below). made by the Altai artists that did not change MAE) H.-P. Francfort.
Chinese crafts were also appreciated by mem- much over time, and the bead-and-reel motif, for
bers of the Altai elite, with Chou and Mashan example, was never widely adopted. Palmetto or
silks having been found in Pazyryk-5 (c. 250 bce), lotus patterns can be seen on the bridles of six
together with a bronze mirror. Chinese Chou silk horses from Pazyryk-1, along with one from
37
heads turned back, lion heads with hairy manes

(Fig. 5), or the heads of wild sheep with chevrons
on their horns (Fig. 6), as well as the faces of
bearded men (the so-called Bes Mask).
Possibly imported belt plaques depict lion
and ibex in Pazyryk-2. From the same kurgan, an
image of a horned lion is used to decorate a
wooden torque. In the fifth kurgan, imported
textiles and a famous carpet come from the
Persian Empire, all possibly manufactured in
Bactria. It should also be noted that the lotus
motif was used in Bactria in the Hellenistic
(3rd – 2nd c. bce) temple of Aï Khanoum in Afghan-
istan. Some of the motifs found in these kurgans
seem to be of Greek or Greco-Persian origin,
including basic compositions like a satyr head
with a palmetto-looking hair-dress (kurgan 1),
the scalloped mane of a griffin (kurgan 1) and a
long-necked acanthus with a griffin (kurgan 1).
The joint excavation of the Berel’-11 kurgan in
Kazakhstan (Fig. 7) by the Margulan Institute in
Fig. 7 The Berel’ 11 Pazyryk-5, one from Pazyryk-2 and one from Ak- Kazakhstan, the CNRS in France, and the Centro
kurgan. Alakha-1 kurgan 1. The bridles of four horses from Studi Ricerche Ligabue(CRSL) in Italy has added
Ak-Alakha-3 kurgan 1 and two from Berel’-11 also new elements to this picture in the shape of a
Fig. 11 Wooden coffin feature this motif. Achaemenid-looking patterns Persepolitan griffin, a horned lion, a palmetto
ornament from the also appear on various items of furniture, dress and bird, a head en face and body in profile, as
Berel’ 11 kurgan in the and ornaments. well as images of lions and of a sphinx.
shape of an At the time of the Pazyryk-1 and 2 kurgans, If we look at a typical Achaemenid Persepoli-
Achaemenian sphinx horse trappings and felt decorations begin to tan wooden griffin with leather horns and wings,
transformed in steppe display Persian-inspired figurative motifs, used to decorate the head of a horse (Fig. 8), it
style. whether natural or mythical. These include ani- will be seen that this has been inspired by Persia,
mal elements, such as geese or swans with their including its mane, ears, open beak and protrud-
Photos: © Mission ing eyes. The intermediary find was not found in
Archéologique Française Bactria, but instead was found at Chorasmia in
en Asie Centrale (CNRS- the shape of the Persepolitan griffin head mould
MAE) H.-P. Francfort. from Kalaly-Gyr.
A second example is the horned lion (Fig. 9).
Here, we can trace the animal back to a Persepolis
bas relief, where it is shown in a fight with the
hero king, and from there to many representa-
tions on vessels such as rhytons, the handles of
amphorae and on an Oxus Treasury aigrette. The
animal’s mane, horns, paws and scorpion tail are
recognizably the same, and it appears in various
forms in Pazyryk Culture, recalling the torque in
the Siberian collection in the Hermitage Museum
and a gigantic torque from Xinjiang. This image of
a horned lion can be traced as far as Xinjiang,
where it was used to decorate the legs of Scythian
bronze cauldrons or offering tables. In Berel’,
however, the image is used in reduced form on
wooden horse pendants, shown, on some pieces,
38
heads en face and the bodies in profile. Scholars Fig. 9 Wooden horse
who have studied the scene have drawn parallels pendant from the
with the art of north-west China in the Berel’ 11 kurgan in
Aluchaideng plaque tigers. However, if we simply the shape of
look at the Persepolis Apadana relief, or at the Achaemenian horned
Treasury of the Siphnians in Delphi in Greece, lions transformed in
lions with heads en face and bodies in profile steppe style, a motif
attacking a bull or a Greek hoplite can also be transmitted as far as
found. These date from the 6th – 5th centuries bce China.
and are therefore definitely earlier than the Altai
and Chinese pieces. Fig. 8 Wooden horse-
Wooden horse pendants decorated with head ornament in the
images of horned lions heads en face and bodies shape of a Persepolis-
in profile have also been found in Pazyryk-5, and style Achaemenian
these show clearly visible horns and scorpion griffin from the
tails. A similar stylistic transformation occurred Berel’ 11 kurgan.
at Berel’-11, where images of horned lions re-
stylized in the manner of steppe art have been Photos: © Mission
found both en face and in profile. The paws, Archéologique Française
horns, eyebrows, and muffle with a typical en Asie Centrale (CNRS-
Persian drop pattern (Fig. 10) are clearly recog- MAE) H.-P. Francfort.
as recumbent on a four-petal lyre-palmetto nizable. The heads of such compositions are
between the heads of long-necked birds of prey. sometimes selected for ornaments, and lion
This palmetto and bird motif probably also heads of this sort, sometimes transformed into
originates in the Persian Empire, as can be seen generic feline heads, are widespread in Asia.
from its use on a silver bowl from Armenia and A tattoo recently found on the chest of the
on a Persepolis stone tray. However, here again buried man in the same Pazyryk-5 barrow has
it can be traced to China, being used in the been thought to show an image of a tiger. Yet, the
Sino-Siberian art of the C. T. Loo Collection. absence of stripes on the body of the animal and
Excavations of a burial at Chenyangchuan in the contrast with the enormous mass of the mane
Ningxia have also brought to light a similar
bronze ornament.
Such patterns were selected out of the
Persian ornamentation used in monumental or
minor arts, such as textiles, court tableware and
seals, and introduced into local material sup-
ports, artistic schemes and original compositions.
Sometimes the patterns were reconstructed
following the rules of local stylistic conventions,
and their meaning was therefore more or less
ornamental, rather than symbolic as it had been
in the original use of such patterns in the Near
Eastern arts.
One good example of this decomposition and
re-composition of Achaemenid art in the Pazyryk
Culture is found in the predation theme, where a
beast of prey attacks an herbivorous animal with
the head en face and body in profile. Recently, a
tattoo was found on the hands of the female body
found in Pazyryk-5, depicting two tigers and a
leopard attacking a deer and an elk. In this image
the rendering of the big cats by the artist puts the
39
and the eye depicted in profile in Near Eastern Justyd XII), and are seen on the dresses, artifacts
manner suggests instead that this is an image of a and furniture, as well as on the trappings of the
lion. Here, the adaptation of an Achaemenid horses discovered in the burial pits near the
motif into steppe art can again be seen, this time funerary chambers. Most Achaemenid art in the
in the form of the body art practiced by the Altai Altai came from a process of selection of themes,
peoples. In the Berel’-11 kurgan, the image of a motifs or stylistic elements by the ruling class and
Persian lion with head and eye in profile and a artists. The source of this process lay in the use of
curling hairy mane, known from Iran and the objects (not monumental and courtly art, but
Pazyryk, has been transformed into a composi- horse trappings for a nomadic way of life), in the
tion in which a bird of prey grasps the head of a materials and techniques at hand (metal, wood,
wild sheep in its beak. Nevertheless, the composi- gold and tin worked by cutting, casting, hammer-
tion retains the canonical proportions of the ing, etc.), and in the meaning of the images
Achaemenid original, as well as a row of beads (ornamental of mythological).
and curling mane. A transformed form of the The Achaemenid elements are very often
Achaemenid sphinx was also found in Berel’-11 reworked or reshaped according to the stylistic
(Fig.11). requirements of the local nomadic taste of the
Achaemenid-looking artifacts, whether steppe, following old artistic traditions. However,
imported or by inspiration, only appear in elite the importance of Achaemenid art far into the
burials (except for one piece from kurgan 22 of steppes and late into the 3rd century until 250 bce
should not be underestimated. It appears at
the end of the 4th century, having been almost
completely absent from Central Asia
before this date, as can be seen
from artifacts found in Arzhan-
2 (c. 600 bce), Tuekta-1 (c. 440)
and Chilikty. Simi-larly, the main
period of exchange with the Chinese
cultural area came after the 5th century.
The role of the Altai as a cultural hub in
spite of its apparent isolation was determined
by the prosperity of its pastoral population and
Fig. 10 Wooden horse possibly also by that population’s control of
pendant from the mineral resources like gold and tin. The mobility
Berel’ 11 kurgan in the and speed of its nomadic population during
shape of an the ancient Iron Age, and its contacts with the
Achaemenian horned expanding agrarian empires, created very origi-
lion transformed in nal circumstances. But without the knowledge
steppe style. acquired from studying the modest non-elite
© Mission Archéologique burials, and from the preserved finds made in
Française en Asie the aristocratic frozen burials, nothing of this
Centrale (CNRS-MAE) history would have come down to us. This is why
H.-P. Francfort. the conservation and study of this unique expres-
sion of the world’s cultural heritage is such a vital
task for the international community of scholars
and for UNESCO and why it is a vital task, above
all, for the governments and populations of the
region, particularly now that this heritage is
endangered by global warming and the thawing
of the permafrost.
40
The Silk Roads and the Road of the Steppes:

Eurasia and the Scythian World
Pierre Cambon
Conservateur en chef
Musée Guimet, France
F ollowing the major foreign archaeological

expeditions – Russian, British, German,
French and Japanese – that took place in Chinese
Iranian world during the 12th century ce under
Genghis Khan and his successors, which realized
beyond his wildest dreams Alexander the Great’s
Tukestan (today’s Xinjiang) between 1900 and ambition of uniting East and West within a single
1914 against a background of imperial rivalries, empire.
the idea of the Silk Roads as one of the major Yet, if the “Silk Roads” in the sense in which
routes of exchange between the western world, this term is often understood today means
whether Indian or Iranian, Roman or Mediter- Chinese Tukestan or contemporary Xinjiang, in
ranean, and the Far East or North East Asia, to other words, a frontier zone on the edge of
which China appeared to be the gateway, empires, it nevertheless also denotes a sedentary
appeared. This idea culminated in the Silk Roads world that has its own history. The world of the
programme launched by UNESCO in the 1990s oases and the caravans is not that of the steppes
and in the “Sérinde” exhibition held at the Grand and the nomads, the latter being left out of written Fig. 1 Pendants known
Palais in Paris in 1995. history. For many centuries, only indirect echoes as “The King and the
Avoiding the Taklamakan depression, two of this latter world reached us in the accounts left Dragons”,
main routes joined Kashgar in the West with by ancient Greek authors or in Chinese annals, as Afghanistan, Tillia
Dunhuang in the borderlands of China in the well as in the later works of Arab travelers. tepe, Tomb II, 1st cent.
East. The older of these routes and the furthest This world of movement recedes before us Gold, turquoise,
south passed through Khotan and ran south and is often compared to the sea or to an ocean garnet and lapis-
through the foothills of the Himalayas, while the whose boundaries are f luid and changing. lazuli, 12.5 x 6.5 cm,
younger went through Aksou, the Quca oasis and Alexander the Great stopped at the boundaries of MK 04.40.109.
the Turfan oasis before reaching China. This was the sedentary world in Afghanistan and did not National Museum of
above all a caravan route of the type evoked by seek to push beyond the Oxus, following the Afghanistan © Thierry
Ibn Battuta in his travels, and is was also the Achaemenid example in this respect. However, Ollivier / Musée Guimet.
route followed by Chinese pilgrims traveling to
India in search of religious texts. It was this latter
route that led to the expansion of Buddhism,
which spread alongside the merchants and the
first translators coming from Central Asia, Swat,
or Afghanistan and that pivotal region that Aurel
Stein called “Serindia” to produce a unique
Buddhist form of art in the oases, whose style,
codes and iconography influenced traditional
Chinese Asia.
This region was conquered during the Han
period by Chinese armies, lost during the period
of the Six Dynasties and re-conquered under the
Tang. It gave rise in the years that followed to the
growth of ephemeral empires such as that of the
Western Turks before the period of the Mongol
invasions that overwhelmed China and the
Fig. 5 The Tree of Life, the Scythians challenged him to come after them,
Afghanistan, Tillia- and Quintus Curtius reports the threats that the
Tepe. MK 04.40.400. Scythian ambassador contemptuously directed
National Museum of towards the young “Greek” conqueror.1 Would
Afghanistan © Thierry you like to have us as your friends or your
Ollivier / Musée Guimet. enemies? If the former, our neutrality can be
depended upon. If the latter, you run a consider-
Fig. 2 Golden crown, able risk because our territory runs from the Oxus
Afghanistan, Tillia- to the Bosphorus and borders ancient Macedonia.
Tepe, Tomb VI, Bactria, “Bear in mind that we hold the keys to Asia and to
Northern Europe, and we can act as sentrymen guarding both
Afghanistan, empires.” The text is clear, and it shows that the
1st century ce. author was perfectly aware that beside the seden-
Gold, 45 x 13 cm. tary world there existed the world of the steppes
MK 04.40.50. and the nomads, which had its own coherence, its
National Museum of own routes and its own forms of communication
Afghanistan © Thierry and circulation.
Ollivier / Musée Guimet. Russian expansionism from the 18th century
onwards had also suggested the existence of this
Fig. 3 Graphic of world, and the Greco-Scythian art of the borders of
the Shilla golden the Black Sea and the Cheronnese was displayed
crown from Kyungju, in the collection of Peter the Great, now in the
Shilla Kingdom, Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg.2 This collec-
5th-6th century ce, tion was put together during the push eastwards
Gilt Bronze, carried out by the Russian Empire beyond the
H: 59.5 cm; Caucasus, and it was enriched by finds discovered
D. at base: 17 cm. during the first excavations of the kurgans carried
MA 1642. out in Ukraine and in southern Russia.3 It bore wit-
National Museum of ness to a hitherto unsuspected art in which gold
Korea © Thierry Ollivier / seemed to be omnipresent and where the work
Musée Guimet. was done with an extraordinary finesse, allying an
animal style, often drawing on realism, with Greek
influence from the banks of the Bosphorus.
While more oriental pieces from the Russian
“Far East” in the same collection seemed more
conceptual and obviously abstract in form, the
Cheronnese pieces showed a perfect symbiosis of
naturalism, dynamically handled themes, and the
influence of Hellenic models. When compared to
pieces from the Ordos and from Mongolia, which
have more rigid, deliberately stylized lines, the
Scythian art from the kurgans of southern Russia
appears to be characterized by an overflowing of
scenes and motifs in which animal art is mixed
with elements from everyday life, fantasy and leg-
endary creatures, and in which the outline of the
thing seen is mixed with lines that play with
curves and movement. This art uses an abun-
dance of vivid colours, and it is characterized by a
“barbarian” luxury in which semi-precious
stones, turquoise from eastern Iran and garnets
from Rajasthan are brought into play together.
42
This symphony of colours is displayed in the

group of six tombs of Tillia Tepe, not far from
Shebergan and the Afghan frontier. Finds made in
these tombs show the same type of decoration in
which realism blends with a decorative system of
forms and lines. Yet, this “Scythian Gold”, found
on Bactrian territory, displays local influences in
the materials used (lapis-lazuli from Badakhshan,
for example), and it also displays a blending of
realism with a system of motifs: the general
atmosphere is one in which Hellenism is mixed
with Asian motifs, such as the lord of the animals
dominating the dragons (Fig. 1). There is a wide-
spread use of a motif in the form of a heart that
dates from the 3rd millennium bce onwards and
that has been found in excavations carried out at
Gonur in what today is Turkmenistan. The
Scythians controlled the routes used to transport
gold, and this gold came from the Altai.4 It was
here, according to Herodotus, that this precious
metal was mined under the symbolic protection
of griffins – fantastic creatures of the Iranian-
Greek world whose hybrid form distantly evokes
that of dragons.
Tillia Tepe contained a golden crown whose
extremely stylized floral form suggests a tree on
which two birds are represented perched on the
highest branches, their heads raised and turned
upwards towards the sky. This motif is repeated in in terms of geography. Distance seems to present Fig. 4 Shilla Golden
identical fashion on the four palmettes, with the a logical difficulty, all the more so since the Shilla Diadem, Shilla
exception of the middle one, whose swirling dec- kingdom was the most technically backward and Kingdom,
oration seems to refer to the theme of the wheel. the most restricted to the south-east of the Three 5th century ce.
While Victor Sarianidi has sought analogues for Kingdoms that divided the Korean Peninsula at National Museum of
this in the West (the Issyk kurgan in Kazakhstan the time, as well as the one that was most firmly Korea © Thierry Ollivier /
near the Kargalinka River),5 he could not help but closed to Chinese inf luence for the longest Musée Guimet.
find a link with the Korean crowns of the Three period. It was not converted to Buddhism until
Kingdoms period (1st to 7th c. ce), echoes of which 524, in other words nearly two centuries after the
can be found beyond the straits on the island of Paekche and the Koguryo, and only a few years
Kyushu, leading him to suggest a Bactrian influ- before the Japanese archipelago.
ence on the crowns found in Korea. “Their rela- For Li Ogg, the relationship cannot be ration-
tionship to [the crown] of Tillia Tepe is so obvious,” ally proven, and resemblance is not proof. For this
he writes, “that it demonstrates the strong influ- author, in order to prove Korean influence the
ence that Bactria must have had towards the East.”6 correct path does not lead through Central Asia
(Fig. 2 and 3) but rather through Siberia, and this should be
Since Sarianidi’s discovery, this comparison explored instead of looking for a hypothetical
has been drawn in Japan as well, and from there Scythian route via the Silk Roads. “It seems impos-
in Korea itself,7 even if it is one that seems to pose sible,” he writes, “to trace a route of transmission
insoluble difficulties, first in terms of the different going from Central Asia to Korea.”9 Drawing upon
time periods – Tillia Tepe is conventionally dated German studies that for the first time connected
to the 1st century on the basis of coinage from the Korean crowns with their Chaman equivalents
Tiberias, while the Shilla tombs are dated in found in Siberia in the work of Hentze carried out
phases from the 4th to 6th centuries ce8 – and then in 1933,10 Ogg emphasizes the importance of the
43
writes, “and the striking similarity in basic idea to

the Shaman diadems of the Yenisei region of Siberia
must be emphasized.”11
Nevertheless, the debate is still open, all the
more so as the Shilla tombs have been linked with
those of the Altai in their design, configuration
and the techniques used for burials, and Pak
Young-sook emphasizes the unsettling connec-
tions between Shilla jewelry and that of the
Scythian world.12 Differences certainly exist – the
wooden coffin is placed on the floor in Korea
under a pile of stones covered by an earth mound,
for example, while in Pazyryk the coffin lies in a
pit that is dug out – but the general atmosphere of
a nomadic people and a world of horsemen is the
same. The same themes are found from Tillia
Tepe to Kyongiu, with the tree and the bird motif
and the form of the crowns being similar, as is the
general use of motifs often based on floral forms.
The same techniques are also used, including the
use of leaves of very fine gold with openwork dec-
oration and round spangles that move with every
movement (Fig. 4 and 5), as well as the use of
granulation that enhances the design of pearls
and motifs and a way of using inset stones or glass
that creates lively contrasts (Fig. 6 and 7). This
constitutes a whole world of forms that are sel-
dom found in China and that are linked to
Fig. 6 Golden nomadic migrations.
Necklace, The fact that the Korean Peninsula was aware
Afghanistan, of the atmosphere of the steppe is eloquently
Tillia Tepe, Tomb II, shown by the use of dragon decoration on a belt
1st century ce. Gold, buckle from Lolang, its granulation technique
ivory colored in black, being specific to the steppe even if the piece is
pearls diameter 1.8, thought to have come from a Chinese garrison
2.0, 2.4 cm. set up by the Han on Korean territory, at least if
MK 04.40.111. “classical” historiography is to be believed. (This,
National Museum of however, has been questioned by Pyongyang
Afghanistan © Thierry archaeologists, who consider it to be part of one
Ollivier / Musée Guimet. of the first Korean kingdoms before the emer-
gence of Koguryo.) It is curious that an identical
Fig. 7 Golden earrings buckle has also been found at Karashahr in
from Pubuch-ong, Chinese Tukestan (Fig. 8 and 9).
Pomun-dong,Kyongju, In fact, the debate has for a long time been
Shilla Kingdom, Nordic route rather than a connection towards unconsciously biased since naturally China
5th-6th century ce, the West. This is confirmed by research in the seemed to be a necessary route towards north-
Length 9.7 cm. same direction that draws attention to parallel east Asia, and the Scythians were largely per-
National Museum of beliefs and themes, such as those of the bird as the ceived as being a western people, something that
Korea © Thierry Ollivier / messenger of the soul, or the stag and the tree of is probably due to the ancient historians, without
Musée Guimet. life, which the Shilla crowns seem directly to echo of course forgetting the discoveries made on the
in stylized form. “The Shilla crowns display a coasts of the Black Sea. Perspectives changed a
strongly shamanistic character,” Kim Won-yong little when recent research carried out in Siberia
44
revealed typically Scythian tombs from a date a

lot earlier than had previously been imagined
only a few kilometres from the Chinese frontier
and Mongolia. Soon after the fall of the Berlin
Wall, archaeological digs were stepped up in the
Altai, being multiplied and internationalized with
the opening up of Russia to joint research. While
Japanese history begins in the Kobun period and
the history of Korea remains shrouded in mystery
before the beginning of the present era, German-
Russian excavations have discovered Arzhan 2 in
the Tuva Republic, which is a tomb near west
Saian that has remained intact and has been
precisely dated to the 7th century bce.13
This discovery, overturning what had previ-
ously been thought, emphasizes the existence of
a world of the steppe that was much more organ-
ized than had previously been supposed. This
was a world that had its own codes and was
autonomous with regard to China and was much
more fluid than might have been expected. Its
centre of gravity was in Asia. Arzhan 2 is located
far to the north, and its easterly situation, half
way between Afghanistan and Korea, suggests a
route of the steppes that went round China to the
north, bearing out Baltrusaïtis’s ideas regarding
exchanges that took place in the medieval period
across Eurasia during the nomadic migrations.
While the Turkic and Mongol worlds mixed
together at the edges of the empires in Chinese
Turkestan, the Scythians moved further to the
north, and probably further to the east, than
might have been thought from an early period
onwards. A connection with north Asia is there-
fore not so absurd, above all if one remembers
that Korean is considered to be an Uralo-Altaic
language, in other words one that comes from
the region between the Urals and the Altai.
Other worlds exist beyond that of the
Scythians, and the echo of these is to be found in
the legendary traditions referred to by the ancient
authors: “beyond the Issedones,” reports
Herodotus, “live the one-eyed people, the
Arimaspians. Beyond the Arimaspians are griffins
that stand guard over gold, and beyond them are work “On the Peoples”: “beyond the Scythians live Fig. 8 and 9 Golden
the Hyperboreans who extend all the way to the the Issedones; and beyond these are the Buckle from Seogan-
sea.” 14 While Scythia extended from the Arimaspians; beyond the Arimaspians are the ri, Tomb IX, South
Bosphorus to the Altai, further to the north and Rhipean Mountains on which the Borean wind Pyongan Province, 1st-
east it was also in contact with mysterious blows (the north wind) and on which snow never 2nd century ce, length
regions, domains of cold and night, situated at falls, and beyond these mountains live the 9.4 cm. National Museum
the edges of the world. This idea was developed Hyperboreans who extend to the other sea.”15 of Korea © Thierry
in almost identical fashion by Damastes in his Ollivier / Musée Guimet.
45
To return to the subject more generally, Nothing is known, on the other hand, of what
nothing should be excluded in advance: since the took place in the south before the emergence
Scythians occupied a territory that extended from of the Shilla kingdom around 57 bce.17 But, as
the Danube to the Yenisei River, and since, going Kwon Young-pil has remarked,18 the flying horse
in the opposite direction, the origins of Korea lie painted on the saddle of Ch’onmach’ong from
in Siberia, it would be logical to imagine that Kyongju is not unlike the stylistic treatment given
contacts existed on the Altai side, and Pak Young- to animal art found among the Scythians, with its
sook rightly raises this issue. Can it not be imag- decoration of crescents or stylized blades that
ined that a branch of these nomadic peoples recall semi-precious stones set into a background
that once occupied Eurasia could have pushed of gold. This is a distant echo, perhaps, of popula-
its migratory movements further to the east and tion movements the epicentre of which seems to
to the Korean Peninsula? Before the Three have been in the Altai, which itself served as the
Kingdoms period, three ethnic groups existed in heart of the continent. It is as if Korea had been
northern Korea in the 3rd century bce, the Ye, the the ultimate destination of the route of the steppe
Maek and the Choson.16 The first two of these and the final destination of this nomadic world
groups are thought of as having come from Baikal that once occupied Eurasia.19
through China or Mongolia, while the last is still “Would it be too far-fetched,” asks Pak Young-
of unknown origin, even if it was the first group to sook, “to assume that these nomads and horse-rid-
have used iron and created the first state attested ers dwelling in the vast Eurasian steppes did move
to in Korean history, Ko-Choson, before disap- eastwards, settling in various places, and finally
pearing as a result first of Chinese pressure and reached the Korean peninsula, at the far end of the
later of that of the Yemaek. steppes?”
Translated from French by David Tresilian
REFERENCES
1. Quintus Curtius. Life of Alexander. goods and comparative studies with 16. Li Ogg. La Corée, des origines à nos jours.
Book VII, Chapter VIII. Chinese objects.” (Art and Archaeology (Paris, 1988).
of Ancient Korea (Seoul, 1986), p. 175).
2. L’Or des Scythes. Galeries Nationales du 17. See the pages describing the kingdom
Grand Palais. (Paris, 1975). 9. Hentze, Carl. “Schamanenkronen zur in the catalogue of the National
Han-Zeit in Korea.” Ostasiatische Museum in Seoul, National Museum
3. Schiltz, Véronique. Histoires de
Zeitschrift N. F. 9, Berlin & Leipzig, 1933, of Korea (Seoul, 2005), pp. 67-75. The
kourganes, la redécouverte de l’or des
pp. 156-163. parallel with the traditions of the North
Scythes. (Paris, 1991).
and Siberia and particularly with those
10. Li Ogg. La mythologie coréenne et son
4. Lombard, M. Monnaie et Histoire, of the Altai is explicitly emphasized.
expression artistique. (Paris, 1995), p. 85.
d’Alexandre à Mahomet. (Paris, 1971).
18. Kwon Young-pil. The Art of the Silk
11. Kim Won-yong. Art and Archaeology of
5. The Grand Exhibition of Silk Road Road, from Central Asia to Korea. (Seoul,
Ancient Korea. (Seoul, 1986), p. 350.
Civilizations: The Oasis and Steppe 1997).
Routes. (Nara, 1988), Fig. 134, p. 126. 12. Pak Young-sook. “The Origins of Silla
19. The contacts and routes are attested
Metalwork.” Orientations, Vol. 19, No. 9,
6. Sarianidi, Victor. L’Or de la Bactriane. to in concrete fashion by the golden
September 1988.
(Leningrad, 1985), p. 49. dagger incrusted with agate and jade
13. Chugunov, K, Parzinger, H & A. that was found near the tomb of King
7. Kang Duk Hee. “Gold Crowns of Mich’u in Kyongju and dates to the
Nagler. “Arzhan 2 : La tombe d’un
Shibarghan in Afghanistan and of the 6th century. This appears to be a replica
prince scythe en Sibérie du Sud,
Three Kingdoms Period of Korea.” Korea of the daggers produced in Kazakhstan.
Rapport préliminaire des fouilles
Journal, Vol. 23, No. 6, June 1983. See also the Roman-type glass found
russo-allemandes de 2000-2002.”
8. “Shilla tombs,” writes Kim Won-yong, Arts Asiatiques, Vol. 59, Paris, 2004. in the Kyongju tombs.
“do not produce dated objects and the 20. Pak Young-sook, op. cit., p. 47.
14. Herodotus. Histories. Book IV, Chapter 13.
dating of them is also difficult like the
dating of the two neighbouring states. 15. Cited by G. M. Bongard-Levin and E. A.
For the dating of Shilla tombs we must Grantovskij. De la Scythie à l’Inde.
rely on typological analyses of burial (Paris, 1981), p. 32.
46
Left Group picture
A Glimpse at the Project taken at the Ghent
Conference,
output 1: Thorough inventory of the frozen tombs and other archaeological remains 4-6 December 2006,
output 2: Production of topographical and morphological maps of the frozen tombs Belgium.
Field campaign 2005: the Dzhazator Valley, Altai Republic, Russian Federation © UNESCO / Ghent
Field campaign 2006: Bukhtarma Valley and Berel’, Kazakhstan University.
Use of CORONA satellite images to pinpoint the tombs
Top Conference in
output 3: Establishment of an international network and sharing of knowledge and experience Gorno-Altaisk,
UNESCO Workshop Preservation of the Frozen Tombs of the Altai Mountains: Strategies and members on
Perspectives, 28-31 March 2006, Gorno-Altaisk, Altai Republic, Russian Federation excursion in the
International Conference on Scythian Archaeology and the Archaeology of the Altai Mountains, Karakol Valley visiting
4-6 December 2006, Ghent, Belgium the Bashadar kurgan,
March 2006.
output 4: Capacity building for Russia and Kazakhstan through training © UNESCO / GASU.
Training in mapping technique trough satellite images, 19 February-25 March 2007,
Ghent University, Belgium Bottom Conference in
Gorno-Altaisk, March
output 5: Raising awareness on endangered frozen tombs and global climate change 2006.
Exhibition The Frozen Tombs of the Altai Mountains, December 2006, Ghent University, © UNESCO / GASU.
Belgium
The Frozen Tombs of the Altai Mountains, Catalogue of the Ghent exhibition, UNESCO World
Heritage Centre and University of Ghent. (Ghent, 2006).
Exhibition Preservation of the Frozen Tombs of the Altai Mountains, April 2008, UNESCO, Paris,
France.
Preservation of the Frozen Tombs of the Altai Mountain, Promotional brochure of the project,
UNESCO Publications. (Paris, 2008).
Various articles in the World Heritage Review and other periodic journals
47
CHAPTER 2
U N ESCO PROJ ECT PRESERVATION
OF FROZEN TOMBS OF TH E ALTAI MOU NTAI NS
48
C H A P T E R I I • U N E S C O P R O J E C T P R E S E R VAT I O N O F F R O Z E N T O M B S O F T H E A LTA I M O U N TA I N S
Background to UNESCO Preservation of the

Frozen Tombs of the Altai Mountains Project
and Perspectives for Transboundary Protection
through the World Heritage Convention
Junhi Han
World Heritage Centre, Culture, UNESCO
Background to UNESCO Preservation of the

Frozen Tombs of the Altai Mountains Project
The towering, jagged Altai Mountains stretch

some 2,100 km across China, Mongolia, Russia
and Kazakhstan, the Russian section of this
mountain range having been inscribed as a
natural site on the World Heritage List in 1998.
The area inscribed includes Altaisky Zapovednik
and a buffer zone around Lake Teletskoye, as
well as Katunsky Zapovednik and a buffer zone tion today. The first is the description left by the Fig. 1. The highest
around Mount Belukha. It also includes the Ukok Ancient Greek historian Herodotus, who devoted peaks of the Altai
Quiet Zone on the Ukok Plateau. the fourth book of his Histories to the Scythians. Mountains: Tavan
The region represents the most complete The second is the archaeological sites, namely Bogd in the
sequence of altitudinal vegetation zones in central the Scythian burial mounds, or kurgans, that still Mongolian section
Siberia, ranging from steppe to forest-steppe and dot the landscape and the artefacts that these of the Altai.
mixed forest and sub-alpine vegetation to alpine contain (Fig. 2).
vegetation. It is also an important habitat for Often very well conserved, the kurgans found Fig. 2. Kurgans lying
endangered animal species, such as the snow leop- in the Altai Mountains are of the utmost impor- north to south in the
ard. However, although the Altai Mountains were tance as a source of information on ancient Mongolian section of
inscribed for their outstanding natural value on Scythian civilization. The local climate, together the Altai.
the World Heritage List, their cultural value should with the particular way the kurgans were con-
also by no means be underestimated (Fig. 1). structed, created ideal conditions for their preser- Photos: © Gary Tepfer.
This is so because the Altai Mountains bear vation. When rain seeped into the tombs it froze
unique witness to the ancient Scythian culture and never thawed. As a result, all the materials
that flourished in the Eurasian steppe during the buried in the tombs – metal objects, gold and pot-
1 st millennium bce. The Scythians and other tery, and organic materials such as wood, leather,
contemporary tribes in the Eurasian Steppe textiles and even the mummified bodies of
developed a distinct nomadic way of life that humans and sacrificed horses along with their
was homogenous throughout the Eurasian gears such as harness and saddles – have been Left Terminal: Griffin
steppe from the Black Sea area to the Mongolian preserved intact over the millennia. To this day, Holding a Stag’s Head
plains, and they interacted with neighbouring the only frozen tombs discovered anywhere in the in its Beak. Wood and
civilizations in China, India, Iran, Mesopotamia world are those found in the Altai Mountains. leather; carved.
and Greece. Many 19th-century scholars were sceptical H. 23 cm Pazyryk
As the Scythians left little built heritage of the description of the Scythians given by Culture. 5th century bc.
behind them and no written records, there are Herodotus, in spite of numerous archaeological Inv.no. 1684/169.
only two sources of information that can provide discoveries showing that as a witness he was © The State Hermitage
us with information about this nomadic civiliza- conscientious and trustworthy. Now the organic Museum, St. Petersburg.
49
Fig. 3. Pile Carpet.

Wool; knot technique.
183 x 200 cm.
Pazyryk Culture.
5th-4th century bce.
Inv.no.1687/93.
material yielded by the frozen tombs of the Altai Research on the tombs has also revealed pre-
has confirmed Herodotus’ accounts of Scythian viously unknown connections between different
culture. Occupation, dress, weapons, as well as regions during the second half of the 1st millen-
customs such as the embalmment of the corpses nium bce. Clothes discovered during a research
of chieftains, burial with a concubine, purifying project led by a Sino-French team (Institut du
after burial, and scalping of slain enemies are patrimoine et de l’archéologie du Xinjiang,
confirmed by study of the artefacts from the A. Idrissi/CNRS-Ministry of Foreign Affairs,
frozen tombs in the Altai Mountains. This infor- Debaine-Francfort) in the Taklamakan desert
mation could not have been determined by the (Djoumboulak-Koum), for example, show strik-
research made on the Scythian kurgans in the ing similarities to those found in frozen tombs
Black Sea region alone. from the Pazyryk Culture (6th to 3rd centuries bce)
Artefacts found during the excavation of the in the Altai Mountains, thus showing the connec-
frozen tombs, in particular the organic materials, tions that already existed between these regions,
have shed light not only on the Scythians them- and between East and West, long before this route
selves, but also on the other civilizations with became better known as the “Silk Roads”.
which they were in contact. The ancient Persian The first discovery of frozen tombs in the
and Chinese textiles found in the frozen tombs of Altai dates back to 1865 by the German-Russian
the Pazyryk period, for example, are older than academician V.V. Radloff in Berel and Katanda.
any surviving examples of such textiles to be However, modern scientific research on the
found in Persia or China (Fig. 3 and 4). Scythian tombs only started with S. Rudenko’s
50
excavation of a series of large and small burial

mounds, which took place between 1945 and 1949
in Pazyryk and Tuekta. The discovery of frozen
materials in the Pazyryk tombs provided a good
understanding of how the ice had formed within
the tombs, and these early tombs yielded not only
organic material such as carpets and wooden
objects, but also perfectly preserved embalmed
human bodies. Research on the contents of the
frozen funerary chambers considerably broad-
ened knowledge of nomadic culture of the Altai,
which these mid-century scholars dubbed
“Pazyryk Culture” (Fig. 5 and 6).
However, it was only in the 1990s that multi-
disciplinary research using modern techniques
began. Between 1990 and 1995, the Institute of
Archaeology and Ethnography of the Siberian
Branch of the Russian Academy of Science in
Novosibirisk carried out excavations of kurgans on
the Ukok Plateau in the Altai Mountains, including
excavations at kurgan of Ak-Alakha 3 (N.
Polosmak) and one of the kurgans in the Verkh-
Kaldzhin necropolis (V. Molodin). The former kur-
gan, excavated in 1993, was the first barrow found
that contained solely a woman, a beautifully tat-
tooed corpse later known as the “Ice Maiden”. She
was wearing some of the oldest items of female
attire ever discovered from a nomadic society. In
particular, her blouse, made of imported wild silk,
provided evidence of long-distance trade of
Pazyryk people of the Altai with India.
The French CNRS, led by H.-P. Francfort,
and the Margulan Institute of Kazakhstan, led by Ethnography of the Siberian Branch of the Fig. 4 Carpet (Detail).
Z. Samashev, in collaboration with the Italian Russian Academy of Science, led by V. Molodin, Felt; applique.
Ligabue Research Centre, then excavated a rich and the Institute of Archaeology of the Mongolian 640 x 450 cm.
frozen burial ground known as Berel’ 11 (4th-3rd Academy of Science, led by D. Zeveendorzh. This Pazyryk Culture.
centuries bce) between 1998 and 2000. This exca- research took place in Bayan Olgy in the southern 5th-4th century bce.
vation yielded two partially decomposed mummi- part of the Altai Mountains to the northwest of 1687/94.
fied bodies, along with 13 fully-harnessed horses Mongolia. Kurgan Olon Kurin Gol 10 discovered © The State Hermitage
that had apparently been sacrificed, thus provid- during these excavations was of particular scien- Museum, St. Petersburg.
ing much material for anthropological and paleo- tific interest, since it contained an intact burial
pathological research as well as for research on chamber containing a mummified blond warrior
DNA. Examination of the organic matter found in who was fully dressed and equipped with a
the horses’ stomachs, for example, revealed much complete set of weapons (Fig. 7).
about the history of the flora of the region, and Through dendro-chronological study of the
even indicated in which season the tombs had wood used for the burial chamber, the findings
been constructed. were identified as belonging to the Pazyryk
The most recent research carried out on the Culture (early 3rd century bce). The research thus
Altai frozen tombs took place between 2004 provided valuable information regarding the
and 2006 and was jointly conducted by the extent of this ancient culture, which up until then
German Archaeological Institute (DAI), led by had only been known in the northern part of the
H. Parzinger, the Institute of Archaeology and Altai. It also considerably enlarged knowledge of
51
Fig. 5. Applique: the relations between the different nomadic Perspectives for Transboundary Protection
Cockerels. Leather; peoples that existed at that time, in particular through the World Heritage Convention
carved. 12 x 17 cm. between southern Siberia and other regions.
Pazyryk Culture. Today, however, the permafrost of the Altai Alerted by these developments, archaeologists,
5th century bce. Mountains is endangered by climate change, and climatologists, geographers and geocryologists
Inv.no.1295/43. the frozen tombs are particularly threatened. drew UNESCO’s attention to this urgent issue
Mountain permafrost, its average temperature and requested its assistance. Subsequently, a
Fig. 6. Applique: usually remaining within one or two degrees of project, the Preservation of the Frozen Tombs of the
Figure of an Elk. freezing point, is very sensitive to climate change, Altai Mountains, was set up under the UNESCO/
Leather; carved. and temperature records made over the past Flanders Funds-in-Trust in 2005.
26.5 x 30 cm. 30 years in Mongolian mountain regions have This project proposed the drawing up of an
Pazyryk Culture. shown a 0.1 °C per decade rise in permafrost tem- inventory of the kurgans in the Altai Mountains
5th century bce. peratures in the Khentei and Khangai regions and and the production of accurate maps, made using
Inv.no.1684/283. a 0.2 °C per decade rise in the Kovsgol region. advanced satellite imaging techniques (Fig. 8).
Research has also shown that the glaciers in the A second step would then be to identify and
Photos: © The State Altai Mountains have been melting for decades. locate the frozen tombs, and this has now become
Hermitage Museum, Rough estimates indicating that these glaciers possible thanks to sophisticated geophysical and
St. Petersburg. have lost up to 27 % of their mass over the last 100 geocryological survey techniques, which, when
years, with average retreat rates now standing at combined with satellite imagery, can produce
between 9 and 20 m per year. Further degradation accurate maps of the permafrost zone. A third
of the glaciers is almost certain, and it is closely step would be to monitor the permafrost layer, in
linked to the melting of the region’s permafrost. order to determine the rate of thawing of the
A significant reduction in the amount of per- frozen tombs. UNESCO’s World Heritage Centre,
mafrost found in the Altai Mountains, or even its working under the above-mentioned project, has
disappearance, is thus predicted for the middle of initiated such a monitoring programme to dis-
this century. The most significant impact will be cover how quickly the permafrost zone is thawing
near the lower boundary of the alpine perma- in the Russian part of the Altai, and results from
frost, where the frozen ground is very sensitive to this programme will be published in the project’s
climate change. Many frozen tombs are situated final technical report in 2008.
within this area of discontinuous permafrost, and Yet, climate change is a global phenomenon,
they are therefore highly vulnerable to thawing. and it is obvious that efforts to prevent the frozen
This will lead to the loss of invaluable material tombs from thawing can only preserve a very lim-
that could shed light on the important nomadic ited number of them at best. Further excavation
cultures that flourished in the region during the work therefore also needs to be considered, in
1st millennium bce. order to save as much of the research material
52
still in the tombs as possible. Clearly, any excava- Fig. 7 Overview of

tions should be carried out in such a way as to a grave, kurgan-1,
respect the local populations of the Altai. Olon Kurin Gol 10,
The current UNESCO project is at present lim- early 3rd century bce.
ited to the first of the steps outlined above, in © Deutsches
addition to the World Heritage Centre’s on-going Archäologisches
permafrost monitoring programme. It is there- Institut, DAI, Berlin.
fore hoped that the international academic and
scientific community will also take steps to help
ensure that the invaluable material contained in
the Altai tombs can be preserved or at least docu-
mented for posterity. Cooperation between the
four countries whose territories extend across the
Altai – China, Kazakhstan, Mongolia and the
Russian Federation – is also essential, as is coop-
eration among the many scientific research insti-
tutes located in Eurasia, in order for this to come
about and to obtain the most efficient working
methods and best synergy.
It is also desirable for an archaeological park
to be established in the areas in which frozen kur-
gans are concentrated, such as in the Bashadar, Indeed, the World Heritage Committee, con-
Tuekta and Berel’ Valleys to quote only a few, in scious that the World Heritage List should be a
order to ensure their proper management and representative list of the heritage of humanity as
preservation. Such a park would serve as an a whole, requested ICOMOS first in 1994 and then
open-air museum for educational purposes, again in 2000 to “proceed with an analysis of the
while also contributing to the sustainable devel- sites inscribed on the World Heritage List and the
opment of the communities in the area. It would Tentative List on a regional and chronological,
also facilitate the monitoring of the frozen tombs geographical and thematic basis,” and to draw up
located within the park’s boundaries, helping to an action plan to fill any gaps in it. This request
prevent the loss of undocumented material. The was seen as a way of including representatives of
four countries whose territories extend across the the diverse cultural heritage of humanity as a
Altai could also consider setting up further trans- whole on the List, and the ICOMOS analysis
boundary protection mechanisms for the frozen showed that certain cultures and civilizations
tombs and the other archaeological heritage were either at present not represented on the List,
making up the Mountains’ unique landscape or were seriously under-represented, nomadic
through inclusion of the sites on the World cultures among them.
Heritage List.
Fig. 8. Stereoscopic
Corona KH-4B
satellite images of
Berel’, Kazakhstan.
© UNESCO / University
of Ghent.
53
contact with the nomadic cultures around them,
and each evolved by interacting with the other. As
a result, in order to grasp an accurate picture of
such sedentary civilizations, it is also important to
have a sense of the nomadic cultures outside
them. The nomadic culture represented by the
frozen tombs of the Pazyryk Culture in the Altai
Mountain, for example, marvellously preserved
traces of Persian civilization even decades after
the end of the Persian Empire. It is also well
acknowledged that the art of the Western and
Eastern Zhou dynasties played an important role
Kurgans, Mogoitin Over past millennia, many cultures have in the emergence of the so-called Scytho-Siberian
Gol, Mongolian Altai. spread out over and influenced vast geographical animal style of art that flourished across Eurasia
© Gary Tepfer. regions, cutting across boundaries as they did so. Steppes during the 1st millennium bce.
Empires such as the Chinese, Persian, and Further research on the ancient nomadic
Roman, to cite only some of the best known, have cultures of the Eurasian steppe should be carried
exerted enormous influence over the rest of the out both by national and by international aca-
world and have given common cultural refer- demic institutions, and it should be encouraged
ences to vast areas, even as these common refer- by the international community. The aim of such
ences were also modified by local cultural fea- research would be not only to shed light on what
tures. Yet, cultures are not the exclusive product is still a little-known period of human history
of such empires. Indeed, these empires’ distinc- (that of the 1st millennia bce), but also to investi-
tive cultural patterns, created by elite groups, gate its possible inclusion as World Heritage
always existed in contrast with or in parallel to mixed sites. This would be in line with the World
patterns that evolved independently of the Heritage Committee’s Global Strategy of includ-
empires’ sedentary elites, and these co-existing ing non-represented or under-represented cul-
cultures often stood in symbiotic relationship tures on the World Heritage List, since nomadic
with each other, while sharing common historical cultures once flourished in the Eurasian Steppe
timelines. during the 1st millennium bce have little presence
It is clear, for example, that the sedentary civ- on the List despite the important roles they have
ilizations and empires of the past often came into played in the general history of humanity.
REFERENCES
v
Cugunov, K., Parzinger, H. and A. Nagler. Marchenko, Sergei S., Gorbunov, Aldar P., Rudenko, Sergei, I. Frozen Tombs of Siberia:
“The Golden Grave from Arzhan.” and Vlad E. Ramanovsky. “Changes in the Pazyryk Burials of Iron Age Horsemen.
Minerva 13 (1), 2001: 39-42. Climate and Permafrost and their Impact (trans. M.W. Thompson) Berkeley & Los
v on the Frozen Tombs in the Mountains of Angeles: University of California Press, 1970.
Cugunov, K., Parzinger, H. and A. Nagler.
Central Asia.” UNESCO International (First published as Kultura Naseleniya,
“Arzhan 2 : la tombe d’un prince scythe en
Workshop on the Frozen Tombs of the Altai Gornogo Altaya Skifoskoe Vremya. Moscow
Sibérie du Sud. Rapport préliminaire des
Mountains: Strategies and Perspectives & Leningrad: Academy of Science, 1953).
fouilles russo-allemandes de 2000-2002.”
Gorno-Altaisk, Altai Republic, Russian
Arts Asiatiques 59, 2004: 5-29. UNESCO.“Global Strategy for a
Federation, 2005.
Representative, Balanced and Credible
Francfort, Henri-Paul, and Zainulla
Polosmak, Natalia, and Charles O’ Rear. World Heritage List.” UNESCO doc. WHC-
Samashev. “Scythian Steeds.” Archaeology
“A Mummy Unearthed from the Pastures 04/28/COM/INF.13A.
May/June, 2002.
of Heaven.” National Geographic Oct. 1994:
pp. 82-103.
54
UNESCO-Sponsored Field Campaigns

in the Russian and Kazakh Altai
Jean Bourgeois and Wouter Gheyle
Department of Archaeology,
University of Ghent, Belgium
G rave robbers and fortune hunters have

been the traditional enemies of the frozen
tombs of the Altai, but today a new threat, climate
change, hangs over them. This is causing the per-
mafrost in this part of Siberia to thaw, destroying
the hitherto well-preserved remains found in the
frozen tombs.
The Earth’s climate has changed continuously
throughout history, from the Ice Ages, when ice
covered significant portions of the planet’s sur-
face, to the interglacial periods, when the ice
retreated to the poles or melted entirely. During decade) of the Mongolian Altai, while being Fig. 1 3D view on the
the last 2,000 years, the climate has been rela- less detectable on the adjacent plains. Temper- valley of Yustyd, based
tively stable, with two minor deviations: the ature data from the Mongolian mountain regions on the CORONA
“Medieval Warm Period” (900-1300 ce) and the for the last 30 years show a rise in permafrost image.
“Little Ice Age” (1500-1850 ce). Records from land temperatures by 0.1°C per decade in the Khentei © University of Ghent.
and maritime stations indicate that the Earth’s and Khangai and 0.2 ° C per decade in the
global mean surface temperature warmed by Hovsgol regions.
between 0.4 and 0.8 ºC during the 20th century, While the frozen tombs of the Altai are likely
indicating a near level trend in temperatures from to disappear if global warming continues, it
1880 to about 1910, a rise to 1945, a slight decline would be unforgivable not to try to protect the
to about 1975, and a rise to the present. Warming remaining tombs, which constitute the irreplace-
is now occurring over most of the globe and is able remains of the ancient nomadic cultures
consistent with the global retreat of mountain of the Eurasian steppe. The UNESCO project,
glaciers, the reduction in the extent of snow- Preservation of the Frozen Tombs of the Altai
cover, the earlier melting of ice on rivers and lakes Mountains, described in this booklet and carried
in spring, and increases in sea-surface tempera- out in cooperation with the University of Ghent,
tures and ocean heat content. Belgium, and financed through the UNESCO/
The Earth’s surface is currently warming at a Flanders Funds-in-Trust, aimed to assist in the
rate of about 0.17 ºC a decade, or 1.8 ºC a century, conservation of the frozen tombs of the Altai
and the top 10 warmest years have all occurred Mountains, particularly by carrying out accurate
since 1990. Climatic change has also been mapping of two research areas in the Russian and
reported from many regions of Central Asia. Air Kazakh sections of the Altai, mapping the loca-
temperature in the Altai Mountains increased at a tions of the tombs and drawing up a thorough
higher rate than the global mean during the 20th inventory of them.
century, for example, and in the western The first thing that needed to be done in
Mongolian sector of the Altai Mountains the rise order to make protection possible was the draw-
in mean annual air temperature has been 0.3 °C ing up of a detailed inventory of the burial
per decade over the last 50 years. Winter warming mounds. Accurate and detailed maps are essen-
is now strongly pronounced in the high mountain tial, but they are not at present available. Taking
areas and inter-mountain valleys (0.6 °C per into account the huge area of the research zone,
55
Fig. 2 Map of the

middle part of the
Yustyd Valley, showing
archaeological sites
and 10m contour
lines, based on the
Corona satellite
images.
© University of Ghent.
the high costs of topographic measurements and possible to generate precise orthophotos, height
the absence of complete coverage by aerial photo- models, contour lines and detailed topographic
graphs, this part of the work was executed with maps from them (Fig. 2). Part of the University
the help of satellite images, such as those taken by of Ghent’s fieldwork, therefore, was devoted
the CORONA satellite. This satellite took detailed to gathering useable GCPs. Using a Global
images of various areas including the Altai Positioning System (GPS) receiver, geographers
Mountains during the 1960s and 1970s. Over Dr. Rudi Goossens and Dr. Alain De Wulf from
800,000 high-resolution black-and-white nega- the Geography Department of the University of
tives of the Earth’s surface were taken, and part of Ghent located visible points in the CORONA
this formerly secret archive is now available to images, such as crossroads, old farm houses and
researchers. The images are well suited for sharp outcrops, etc. With the maps made as a
archaeological research due to their very high result of this used as background for the archaeo-
resolution and low price, as well as to the fact that logical inventory survey, a campaign was
they document landscapes as they were 40 years launched to document the archaeological
ago, these having in many cases now been drasti- heritage and to pinpoint the locations of the
cally changed or destroyed by urbanization, Scythian tombs.
industry or large-scale agriculture. Archaeological sites and structures were first
However, the greatest advantage of the located using GPS receivers accurate to a few
CORONA images is the fact that the satellite orig- decimetres. These structures were described on a
inally took two stereoscopic images. By combin- standard information card, measured and pho-
ing these in the right way, a 3D view of the land- tographed. A tentative date for each structure
scape can be obtained (Fig. 1). By inserting the was assigned, based on the structure’s morphol-
geographical coordinates of certain points ogy, the relevant literature and comparisons with
(Ground Control Points, or GCPs) into the digi- other sites. A description of the geographical con-
tized images using the correct software it is even text, and especially of indications of permafrost
56
occurrence (periglacial phenomena such as of the spread of frozen ground in Dzhazator to Fig. 3 Kurgan in the
pingos and solifluxion, etc.), was recorded. All be gained. A map was then made showing areas Dzhazator Valley in
the sites were then added to the Altari Data- where permafrost was most likely to be situated the Russian Altai.
base (the Altai Archaeological Inventory), which (Fig. 3). © University of Ghent /
is linked to the cartographic material produced The oldest structures recorded date back to UNESCO.
through a GIS (Geographic Information System). the 3rd millennium bce, 12 sites possibly dating to
The first fieldwork season took place in July this very early period. These are all burial monu-
and August 2005 and was carried out jointly by ments, consisting of a round or oval setting of
the University of Ghent and the Gorno-Altaisk large stones with a central grave. They are mostly
State University. The team consisted of 20 rectangular and are generally dated to the
Russian, Belgian, Dutch and French archaeolo- Afanassievo period. Only nine other structures
gists and geographers, among them six students were attributed to the Bronze Age (3rd-2nd millen-
and volunteers. The chosen area was the nium bce): two kereksurs – large structures that
Dzhazator High Valley in the southern part of the consist of a large-ish high central mound enclosed
Russian Altai, just north of the famous Ukok by a circular or quadrangular bank – and seven
Plateau. Over a six-week period, more than large stelae, or isolated standing stones. More
50 km of the Valley was mapped and over 1,600 than a thousand structures dating to the Iron Age
archaeological structures documented. The main (roughly 1 st millennium bce) were recorded,
focus of the campaign was the higher parts of the including burial mounds, balbals, or small stand-
Valley at an altitude of about 2,000 to 2,600 m. ing stones, stone circles and small stone plat-
Aside from the archaeological research and the forms. The Scythian kurgans varied from between
necessary GPS measurements, several soundings five and 15 m in diameter, and are characterized
were made in search of permafrost. These sound- by a central depression due to the collapse of the
ings were taken in order to make temperature burial chamber and/or robbing. In almost all
measurements of the subsoil, allowing an idea cases, the sites are surrounded by balbals and
57
SKETCH MAP 1: Bukhtarma Valley – Survey 2006
stone circles in the east, or by small concentra- over 200 m long. In some cases, the ogradki
tions of stones (stone platforms) in the west. seemed to be isolated, while in others they
The Turkic period was also well represented, appeared to be arranged in clusters of three to
some exceptional monuments from this period five. There were also some special types of
being recorded. In total, 112 ogradki, or enclo- ogradki in the valley, these featuring rectangular
Fig. 4 Team working sures with accompanying rows of balbals, were ditches and banks, or nicely sculptured standing
on the 2006 recorded, these having up to 90 standing stones stones. The stones, statues in the form of human
excavations in Berel’, in a straight line to the east that was sometimes figurines, are commemorative monuments.
Kazakhstan. The second fieldwork season took place in
© University of Ghent / July and August 2006 and was carried out by the
UNESCO. University of Ghent, the Almaty Margulan
Institute of Archaeology and the Gorno-Altaisk
State University. Work this time focussed on the
Kazakh Altai, and three different valleys were
surveyed, all in the district where the well-
known archaeological site of Berel’ is situated. A
team of about 20 archaeologists and geographers
worked in the upper part of the Kara-Kaba Valley,
the upper part of the Bukhtarma Valley, and in
the Berel’ area, as well as along the Bukhtarma
River (Fig. 4).
58
SKETCH MAP 2: Bukhtarma Valley – Survey 2006
In the Bukhtarma Valley (Fig. 5) several large

burial places were located and documented
dating from the Scythian period to more recent
times. In total, 1,005 archaeological structures
were recorded at 56 sites (this average of 18 mon-
uments per site is rather high, distorted by the
fact that site KK-102 had 400 individual struc-
tures) as shown on sketch maps 1 and 2. The
Scythian period was again well represented, with
240 individual monuments. 93 monuments were
dated to the Turkic period, and 126 to the Hunno-
Sarmatian period (Hunno-Sarmatian burials are
very uncommon in the Kazakh part of the Altai
Mountains, making this was an interesting find).
The third research area was the Berel’ necro- Fig. 6 Installation of
polis, located on the third terrace of the data loggers in the
Bukhtarma Valley 1,100 m above sea level. This Ulandryk Valley in the
site is well known, due to the recent discoveries Altai Republic, Russian
of frozen tombs made here by the Margulan Federation.
Institute of Archaeology in Almaty. In total, 72 © University of Ghent /
structures were recorded on the river terrace, at UNESCO.
59
Fig. 5 The Bukhtarma 10 different archaeological sites. Most of these, team to study permafrost conditions in the Yustyd
Valley in Kazakhstan, 60 in total, were Scythian. 10 Turkic structures area (Ulandryk Valley), and data loggers were
area of the 2006 were also recorded, together with a further two installed at different depths in several places in
excavations. of unknown date. the Valley (Fig. 6). As these instruments measure
© University of Ghent / Research during the fieldwork also focused temperatures throughout the year, they can pro-
UNESCO. on the use of geomorphological and geocryo- vide insight into the depth of thawing during the
logical techniques to study the condition and evo- summer in and around Scythian burial mounds
lution of the permafrost in and around the burial located at different altitudes and in different
mounds. In 2005, a team of geographers from the areas of the landscape.
University of Ghent made measurements of soil Such research, some completed and much
and subsoil temperatures through soundings and still underway, will help to reveal which tombs
test pits, plotting these against Aster and Landsat are the most endangered by climate change and
satellite images. The idea behind this fieldwork to suggest the technical solutions needed to
was to combine the Aster Digital Elevation Model preserve the frozen ground under the burial
and Landsat thermal band to pinpoint areas mounds.
where permafrost was probable. In total, 28
investigations were carried out in different geo-
graphical contexts spread out over the Tarkhata
and Dzhazator Valleys. In 10 cases, permafrost
was discovered at depths of 45 to 215cm. In 2006,
S. Marchenko of Alaska University joined the
60
Climate Change and its Impact on the Frozen

Tombs of the Altai Mountains
Sergei Marchenko
University of Alaska Fairbanks, USA
P ermafrost has received much attention over

recent years because surface temperatures
are rising in most areas of the Earth where per-
glaciation (c. 18,000 years BP) is still generally
stable. However, in some regions, such as in
Central Siberia, the Tien Shan, the Tibetan
mafrost is found, causing widespread thawing Plateau and the Altai Mountains, this Late
and degradation. The thawing of the permafrost Pleistocene permafrost is now only a few tens of
that is already taking place at the lower altitu- degrees from thawing.
dinal limits of the permafrost distribution in the Air temperatures in the mountains of Central
mountains of Central Asia could in future give Asia increased at a higher rate than the global
rise to dramatic changes in ecosystems and in mean during the 20th century.3 Geothermal obser-
infrastructural performance. Numerous periods vations carried out from 1974 onwards, and from
of warming and cooling took place in the moun- 1990 to 2006, indicate that the permafrost has
tains of Central Asia during the Late Holocene been warming in the Tien Shan Mountains over
period (approximately the last 3,000 years), the last 30 years. Increases in permafrost tempera-
and ground temperatures and the extent of the tures in the northern Tien Shan over the period
permafrost in the Altai, Tien Shan and Pamir 1974-2004 vary from 0.3°C to 0.6°C. Borehole
Mountains and on the Tibetan Plateau have temperature data has shown that the thickness of
repeatedly fluctuated over recent millennia, the active layer increased during the last 30 years
brought about by planetary changes in the cli- from between 3.2 and 3.4 m in the 1970s, to a
mate. Altitudinal oscillations in the average maximum of 5.2 m in 1992 and 5.0 m in 2001 and
annual air temperature 0° C isotherm saw a range 2004. The thickness of the average active layer for
of about 300 m over this period.1 all measured sites increased by 23% over the thick-
Traces of former permafrost and the results ness recorded in the early 1970s. As a result of deep
of numerical simulation have shown that perma- ground thawing, a residual thaw layer between
frost formation occurred and then completely 4 and 8 m deep has appeared at different sites.4
disappeared at the altitudinal lower boundary Temperature data for the last 30 years from
of the alpine permafrost distribution in some Mongolian mountain regions show a rise in per-
regions of Central Asia at least three times over mafrost temperatures of 0.1° C per decade in the
the last 1,000 years.2 At the altitudinal lower limit Khentei and Khangai and 0.2° C per decade in the
of alpine permafrost distribution, ground tem- Hovsgol mountain regions.5 Latitudinal perma-
peratures are now close to 0° C, and at some sites frost in north-eastern China is less sensitive to
permafrost degradation has already started. As a recent climatic changes. At the same time, the
result of deep ground thawing, a residual thaw mountain permafrost and the permafrost on the
layer between the seasonally frozen layer and the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau is much more sensitive
permafrost table at different sites has appeared to climatic warming.6 Over the last 15 years per-
over the last 10-15 years. mafrost temperatures 20m deep on the Qinghai-
Analysis of the measured active layer and of Tibetan Plateau have increased by 0.2–0.3 °C.7
permafrost temperatures coupled with numerical During the 20th century, significant permafrost
thermal modeling (permafrost temperature degradation has occurred within most permafrost
reanalysis) has shown that most of the recently regions in China.
thawed permafrost was formed during the Little Changes in the climate and in the cryosphere
Ice Age. Older Siberian permafrost that has con- have had a direct impact on the thermal state of
tinuously existed since the last Late Pleistocene the frozen tombs (kurgans) in the Altai and in
61
Kurgan-01
2300 m asl, T = -0,43 °C
Kurgan-02
2200 m asl, T = -0,22 °C
Kurgan-03
2300 m asl, T = -0,17 °C
Coarse Debris
2100 m asl, T = -4,24 °C
10° C
5° C
0° C
-5° C
-10° C
-15° C
-20° C
Jul-06 Sep-06 Nov-06 Jan-07 Mar-07 May-07 Jul-07
Fig. 1 Temperatures in other mountain regions of Central Asia. Both by about 200 m since the end of the Little Ice Age
the Ulandryk Valley. geothermal observations and results from per- (c. 1850). During the same period, the area of
© S. Marchenko. mafrost modeling have indicated significant permafrost distribution in some mountain
changes in the temperatures and extent of the regions of Central Asia has decreased by approx-
permafrost during the 20th century in Central imately 15 %.9
Asia.8 The most significant impacts on the ther- During summer 2006, within the UNESCO
mal state of the permafrost have been observed project, a joint team from the University of Ghent
near the altitudinal lower boundary of the (Departments of Archaeology and Geography),
mountain permafrost distribution, a region the Gorno-Altaisk State University (GASU) and
where the frozen ground is very sensitive to the University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF) installed
changes in surface energy balance. data loggers to measure year-round ground tem-
In the high mountain regions, further near- peratures in the Ulandryk Valley (Kosh-Agatch
surface permafrost degradation will probably region, Altai Republic, Russian Federation). The
accompany a transformation in environmental sensors were installed within an altitudinal range
conditions and may lead to slope instability and of 3,300–3,100 m above sea level (asl), and the
permafrost-related hazards such as landslides, temperature data were successfully collected in
thermokarst and mudflows, as well as to the 2007. Figure 1 shows the annual temperatures at
disappearance of the frozen cores of the Scythian a depth of 0.7 m inside the burial mounds and
tombs. Modeling of alpine permafrost dynamics within natural coarse debris at different altitudes.
shows that the altitudinal lower boundary of As can be seen from Figure 1, the coldest
the permafrost distribution has shifted upwards mean annual ground temperature (magt) at a
62
depth of 0.7 m (–4.24 °C) was recorded in coarse significant. The geothermal observations and
debris without fine-grained soils where the free modeling carried out indicate that, for the moun-
convection of air occurs. Ground temperature tains of Central Asia, favourable conditions for
inside the Scythian tomb (kurgan-03) at the same permafrost occurrence and preservation exist in
elevation was only –0.17 °C below zero. Both sites coarse blocky material where mean annual tem-
are located at the lower altitudinal limit (2100 m peratures are typically 3–5 °C colder than the
asl) of the geothermal investigations carried out mean annual air temperature (maat) and in sur-
in this Valley. The highest site investigated (kur- rounding fine-grained soils.10 In such deposits,
gan-01: Fig. 1), situated at 2,300 m asl, showed a the ice-rich permafrost may still be stable even
magt of –0.43 °C, because only conductive heat when the maat exceeds 0° C. Frozen tombs
transfer takes place in blocky material of this sort located near the altitudinal lower boundary of
mixed with fine-grained soils. the permafrost distribution are most vulnerable
The thawing and freezing of the soil is to climatic warming, as are tombs with a coarse
affected by many factors, with air temperature, debris layer less than 1.5–2 m thick and less than
vegetation, snow accumulation, soil moisture 18–22 m in diameter, or if blocky materials are
and ground structure being among the most mixed with soil.11
REFERENCES
1. Marchenko, S. and Gorbunov, A. P. Highway.” Proceedings of the 6th Changes of Permafrost in the Tien Shan
“Permafrost Changes in the Northern International Conference on Permafrost. Mountains since the Little Ice Age” Eos
Tien Shan during the Holocene.” (South China University of Technology Trans. AGU, 87(52) (2006), Fall Meet.
Permafrost and Periglacial Processes 8 Press, 1993) 2, 1010-1013; Jin, H. J., Cheng, Suppl., C51B-0426.
(1997): 427-435. G. D. and Zhu, Y. L. “Chinese Geocryology
10. Harris, S. A. “Lower Mean Annual
at the Turn of the Twentieth Century.”
2. Marchenko, S. and Gorbunov, A. P. Ground Temperature beneath a Block
Permafrost and Periglacial Processes 11
“Permafrost Changes in the Northern Stream in the Kunlun Pass, Qinghai
(2000): 23-33.
Tien Shan during the Holocene.” Province, China.” Proceedings of the
Permafrost and Periglacial Processes 8 8. Fukui, K., Fujii, Y., Ageta, Y. and K. Asahi. 5th Chinese Permafrost Conference.
(1997): 427-435. “Changes in the Lower Limit of Lanzhou (1996): 227-237; Harris, S. A.
Mountain Permafrost between 1973 and Pedersen, D. E. “Thermal Regimes
3. McCarthy, J.J. et al. Climate Change
and 2004 in the Khumbu Himal, the beneath Coarse Blocky Materials.”
2001: Impacts, Adaptation, and
Nepal Himalayas.” Global and Planetary Permafrost and Periglacial Processes 9
Vulnerability. (Cambridge: Cambridge
Change 55 (2007): 251-256; Marchenko, (1998): 107-120; Gorbunov, A. P.,
University Press, 2001), p. 1032.
S., Gorbunov, A. and V. Romanovsky. Marchenko, S. and Seversky, E.
4. Marchenko, S., Gorbunov, A. and “Permafrost Warming in the Tien Shan “The Thermal Environment of Blocky
V. Romanovsky. “Permafrost Warming Mountains, Central Asia.” Global and Materials in the Mountains of Central
in the Tien Shan Mountains, Central Planetary Change 56 (2007): 311-327; Asia.” Permafrost and Periglacial
Asia.” Global and Planetary Change 56 Sharkhuu, N. “Recent Changes in the Processes 15 (2004): 95–98.
(2007): 311-327. Permafrost of Mongolia.” Proceedings
11. Marchenko, S., Gorbunov, A. and V.
of the 8th International Conference on
5. Sharkhuu, N. “Recent Changes in the Romanovsky. “Changes in Climate and
Permafrost. (Balkema, Lisse, 2003) 2:
Permafrost of Mongolia.” Proceedings Permafrost and Impact on Frozen
1029-1034; Jin, H., Li, S., Cheng, G.,
of the 8th International Conference on Tombs in the Mountains of Central
Shaoling, W. and Li, X. “Permafrost
Permafrost. (Balkema, Lisse, 2003) 2, Asia.” The Frozen Tombs of the Altai
and Climatic Change in China.”Global
1029-1034. Mountains: Strategies and Perspectives.
and Planetary Change 26(4) (4) (2000):
UNESCO Workshop, Gorno-Altaisk, 28-31
6. Jin, H., Li, S., Cheng, G., Shaoling, W. and 387-404.
March 2006. 283-299.
Li, X. “Permafrost and Climatic Change 9. Marchenko, S., Gorbunov, A. and V.
in China.”Global and Planetary Change Romanovsky. “Permafrost Warming in
26(4) (2000): 387-404. the Tien Shan Mountains, Central Asia.”
7. Cheng, G. D., Huang, X. M. and Global and Planetary Change 56 (2007):
Kang, X. C. “Recent Permafrost 311-327; Marchenko, S. and
Degradation along the Qinghai-Tibet Romanovsky, V. “Temporal and Spatial
63
CHAPTER 3
CHALLENGE FOR CONSERVATION
AN D DEVELOPMENT
64
C H A P T E R I I I • C H A L L E N G E F O R C O N S E R VAT I O N A N D D E V E L O P M E N T
The Altai: Heartland of Asia

Yuri P. Badenkov
Institute of Geography, Russian Academy of Science, Russian Federation
T he outstanding Austrian geologist Edward

Suess (1831-1914) once called the Altai the
“ancient crown of Asia”, but for the modern world
development projects that are currently under-
way, such as the construction of a transport corri-
dor and gas pipeline between China and the
the Altai’s central part, the Ukok Plateau in partic- Russian Federation across the Ukok Plateau, as
ular, is better known as the meeting place of four well as increasing tourism in the area that
states: the Russian Federation, China, Kazakhstan requires the development of hotel infrastructure
and Mongolia. These countries’ frontier areas are and supporting communications and services.
economically underdeveloped and peripheral The long-term social, economic and cultural
mountain regions, and they are therefore only effects of such developments on the region are
marginally affected by human activities, having not clear, and, what is more, they have not yet
no large-scale industry or big cities, for example, been investigated. Even if the effects of these
and the local populations are made up of diverse developments are not yet fully known, the risk of
ethnic groups that maintain rural life patterns. profound changes in life patterns and local
Due to the Altai’s geographical position, economies is obvious, including geopolitical and
mountain relief and severe climatic conditions, demographic effects.
the rich biological diversity of the region is still The second major threat to the Altai is envi-
intact, as are its many diverse landscapes. ronmental in the shape of on-going climate
UNESCO, in recognition of this, has awarded the change. Studies have revealed warming trends,
title of World Natural Heritage Site to a group of the inevitable result of which will be the deterio-
five sites in the region, and the Altai’s cultural ration of the permafrost, with associated impacts
heritage is of no lesser significance. Indeed, this on construction, changes in environmental condi-
region, though small in area, is at the crossroads tions, including animal habitats, vegetation cycles,
of four of the world’s major religions – Buddhism, etc., and the need for adjustments to industrial
Shamanism, Islam and Christianity – and this her- and agricultural patterns in the region. These
itage too must be protected and preserved. Today, threats constitute major challenges for scientists
the time has come to implement a sustainable and politicians, who have been calling for an eval-
regional development agenda for the preserva- uation to be carried out of the scope and nature of
tion of this region’s outstanding biological, land- the risks to the Altai and for preventive actions to
scape and cultural heritage. be carried out to ensure the conservation and
Of special relevance here is the Scythian civi- development of the region in the face of such nat-
lization that dates back 2,500 years and whose ural, economic and geopolitical uncertainties.
remains, frozen in permafrost burial mounds, are Actions that could help to preserve the Altai’s
found in all four countries having territory in the natural and cultural heritage, while also being in
Altai. Judging by the abundance of these mounds, line with sustainable development strategies that
civilization flourished in this region during the adequately respond to the existing risks, include
prehistoric period, despite the harsh climatic con- the framing of an international treaty, first
ditions, and archaeological research conducted proposed in 1998 and to be called The Altai Left Terminal: Stag on
over several decades has shown that the region Convention, which would guarantee the sustain- a Ball. Wood and
was never isolated from the rest of Asia. able development of the Altai and the conserva- leather; carved.
However, today in the current period of glob- tion of its natural and cultural heritage and would H. 12 cm. Pazyryk
alization and climate change, the cross-border be signed by the Russian Federation, China, Culture. 5th century bc
Altai region is under threat both from human Kazakhstan and Mongolia. 1 Other activities Inv. no. 1684/153.
pressures and from environmental factors. include the establishment of a cross-border Altai © The State Hermitage
Human pressures include the major infrastructure Biosphere Reserve on the basis of proposals put Museum, St. Petersburg.
65
forward at the 1998 Urumchi International sustainable regional development and the
Conference on Sustainable Development and sub- conservation of the Altai’s natural and cultural
sequently developed in various publications and heritage. One such project is the UNDP-GEF
project activities; the inscription of Scythian (Global Environment Facility) sponsored “Biodi-
archaeological sites in the region as UNESCO versity Conservation in the Russian Portion of the
World Heritage Sites; and the setting up of field Altai-Sayan Ecoregion,” which is now underway.3
archaeological heritage sites in the Altai. A further driver has been the launch, in 2006,
Many of these things have been called for of a branch of the Russian Federation’s National
before, and some of them were proposed as long Commission for UNESCO in the Altai Republic,
as a decade ago at the Urumchi Conference in order to develop UNESCO projects in the
referred to above. However, in some cases they region. UNESCO’s strong interest in, and support
have not yet moved much beyond declarations.2 for, initiatives for heritage development and con-
Regional cooperation is now both as desirable as servation in the Altai through the Organization’s
ever and more realistic, and the time has come for “Man and the Biosphere” and “World Heritage”
the implementation of these declarations. programmes is also very encouraging and has
Political and institutional drivers for regional led thus far to the organization of two inter-
cooperation include the activities of the Altai: Our national workshops, the first in Gorno-Altaisk
Common Homeland International Coordination in 2005 and the second in Ghent in 2006, among
Council, which brings together the executive and other activities.
legislative authorities of the Altai frontier areas of Taken together, these strong regional drivers
the four countries concerned, and the wealth of and the needs they are designed to meet show
knowledge and experience gained through that the time has now come to implement
national and international projects in the area of regional cooperation programmes in the Altai.
REFERENCES
1. Badenkov, Y. et al. “The Altai Convention: A Tool

for the Sustainable Development of Mountain
Areas in Russia, China, Kazakhstan and
Mongolia.” Strategic Considerations on the
Development of Central Asia. Mahesh Banskota
et al (eds.) (Council for the Sustainable
Development of Central Asia / ICIMOD, 1999),
pp. 115-116.
2. For example, see “The Altai Declaration” in

Banskota, Mahesh et al (eds.). Strategic
Considerations on the Development of Central
Asia. (Council for the Sustainable Development
of Central Asia / ICIMOD, 1999), pp. 127-129.
3. See http://www.altai-sayan.org
66
Excavation and Sampling Techniques

in the Frozen Tombs of Kazakhstan
Jorge Vasquez
Régisseur des expositions
Musée du quai Branly, France
I n 1998 and 1999, the Mission archéologique

française en Asie centrale (MAFAC), in coopera-
tion with the Kazakh Archaeological Institute and
Fig. 1 Two pairs of
wooden horns in the
shape of ibex horns
the Italian Liguabé Foundation, carried out two found during
excavations of a so-called “frozen tomb” at the excavation of the
site of Berel’ in Kazakhstan, and I was invited to Berel’ 11 kurgan.
participate as a specialist restorer by Henri-Paul
Francfort, director of the excavations.
The notion of a “frozen tomb” involves the
burying of bodies and various objects in soil that
is permanently frozen – permafrost – thus guar-
anteeing the sometimes exceptionally well-
preserved organic remains that can be found in
such tombs. This type of soil is characteristic of
polar regions and of high-altitude zones. There
are many so-called frozen sites in the mountain-
ous region of the Altai in southern Siberia, includ-
ing the site of Pazyryk, first excavated in 1929,
and that of Ukok, excavated in 1992. Other sites
have also been recently discovered by German and southern Siberia, and more than 20 of the
and by joint French and Mongolian teams. burial mounds it contains have been recorded.
The conservation of bodies and organic arti- The Berel’ necropolis is the most southerly of the
facts is a complex process, and it is one that is mounds that have been found, and it features as
closely linked to the type of grave, the depth of such on maps of Siberian frozen tombs. All the Fig. 2 A refrigerated
the burial, the cycles of thawing and freezing that burial mounds, or kurgans, at Berel’ belong to the lorry used at the site
have taken place, the sediment type and the eastern Scythian culture (Saka) and to the to store the excavated
amount of water held in the soil. Publications Pazyryk period that lasted some 50 years during remains.
available on frozen sites of this sort seldom the 5th century bce (between 420 and 350 bce,
explain the excavation methods used, restricting according to dendro-chronological analysis). The
themselves to explaining that warm water was first and largest kurgan in this necropolis was
used to thaw the materials found. At Berel’, excavated by a Russian specialist in Turkic civi-
guidelines for excavation and sampling of the lization in 1865, and it was excavated again by a
archeological remains were drawn up, in order to St. Petersburg team in 1958. This kurgan had been
preserve the “cold chain”, slow down deteriora- looted, and nothing now remains of the organic
tion and not put future scientific analysis of the materials and fragments of ornaments that it
objects found at risk. contained. However, notes taken by the archaeol-
The Berel’ necropolis is located in a large, ogists at the time record the remains of 16 horses Photos: © Mission
high valley 1,200 metres above sea level in the in the tomb, as well as of a funerary chamber. Archéologique Française
Kazakh part of the Altai Mountains on the border In 1997, MAFAC decided to excavate the en Asie Centrale (CNRS-
between China and Russia. This valley has long smaller burial mound No. 11 at the Berel’ site, MAE) J. Vasquez.
been used as a pass between Chinese Turkestan thinking that it might contain objects similar to
67
Fig. 3 General view of

the horses found
during excavation of
the Berel’11 kurgan.
© Mission Archéo-
logique Française en
Asie Centrale (CNRS-
MAE) J. Vasquez.
those found in the other kurgans. Surveys carried trappings and organic remains, including bones,
out with the assistance of a geo-cryologist indi- pieces of skin and hair. Since winter was drawing
cated that temperatures close to 0° C existed at a on, and a number of outstanding objects had
depth of 1.5 m beneath the kurgan. already been found, MAFAC decided to continue
Excavation of the mound was carried out in excavation of the site during the following spring.
two phases, the first in autumn 1998 and the sec- The mound was back-filled in order to guarantee
ond in spring 1999. Because of the monumental low temperatures during the winter, this helping
shape of the burial mound – a massive stone to preserve the objects.
structure some 23 m in diameter and 2 m high Excavations resumed in May-June 1999,
with traces of a looting shaft on the top – it was when temperatures were around 15° C and thus
decided to drive excavation shafts into the mound warmer than during the fall, average ground tem-
in order to locate the funerary chamber and reach peratures now being between 4 and 7° C. The
the cold layers as quickly as possible and prevent excavations continued until the site had been
thawing from taking place. The burial pit, located fully excavated.
almost in the centre of the kurgan, measured 5 m The aim of removing samples of artifacts
by 5 m and had been filled up with stones that had from an archaeological site is to be able to guar-
fallen into it during previous looting. Excavation antee the proper preservation of the objects and
of the tomb was delayed because of the mess of not to compromise future scientific analysis by
wooden beams the chamber contained, caused the use of chemical products. A special feature
by the wrecking of the funerary chamber. During of the Berel’ site was that the remains had been
our work at the kurgan, the ground, ordinarily preserved by their burial in frozen ground, and,
about 0° C, warmed rapidly, temperatures reach- in order that this “cold chain” should not be
ing 4 to 5 °C in the afternoons. broken – which would have spoiled the informa-
The first objects were found around four tion the bodies contained (including information
metres below ground level three days before the on parasites and skin tattoos) – a refrigerated
end of the excavations: two wooden horns in the lorry was brought to the site to store the recov-
shape of ibex horns (Fig. 1) covered with gold ered remains (Fig. 2).
and silver leaf were found above the heads of the Two methods were used to remove the sam-
horses’ bodies found lying on their sides against ples, according to the materials. The bodies of
the tomb’s northern wall. The horses were wear- human beings and horses were removed in sec-
ing all their trappings. On the southern side, tions and stored in the refrigerated lorry. No
clearance of the burial chamber revealed that it chemical product was used, in order to avoid con-
had been covered with alternating pieces of birch tamination that could vitiate future biological
bark and branches. The walls were made of broad analysis, such as DNA testing. Other objects were
wooden planks, assembled using mortis joints. removed individually, and then humidified and
Many wooden objects were found in the shaft stored in a cold environment. In order to protect
that had been driven into the tomb by looters, the organic material from the sun during the
these being mixed with broken pieces of horse excavation, a light wooden structure covered
68
with a tarpaulin was erected above the burial Fig. 4 Cutting the
mound. Survival blankets were also used to pre- excavated remains
serve the temperature of the organic remains dur- into sections.
ing excavation.
The bodies of the horses were found on two
levels, each level containing six bodies. Each
horse was covered by a layer of birch leaves. The
upper bark layer was removed in order to get an
overview of the horses’ position (Fig. 3), reveal-
ing that they were in a precarious state of preser-
vation. For the first level, the objects placed on
the horses were removed, and the bodies were
cut into sections with a chainsaw. An archaeo-
zoologist, Sébastien Lepetz of the French Centre
national de la recherche scientifique (CNRS), Fig. 5 Horse trappings
indicated where the cuts should be made, these were laid across each
going round the horses’ saddles and trappings other and tangled up
(Fig. 4). This was difficult work as the horses together.
were often lying on top of each other, their bodies
being tangled up together (Fig. 5). Photos: © Mission
In order to remove a block of material, an Archéologique Française
area or section was first identified and cleared en Asie Centrale (CNRS-
of any other materials around it. It was then MAE) J. Vasquez.
wrapped in cling film and bubble wrap, and gen-
tly removed from the soil using Styron support
trays. Once the block had been separated from
the soil, it was made more rigid with cling film
and placed in the refrigerated lorry. All cuts made
to the material were recorded with a digital cam-
era as the blocks were taken out. Nevertheless,
the bodies found on the first level quickly began
to decompose, which meant that the harnesses
had to be left in place.
During the removal of sections of material
from the second level on which the remains of the
horses were found, the pieces of bark were
removed as the work progressed and other objects cleared of the surrounding materials by a geneti-
were left in place. This way of proceeding helped cist- anthropologist, Eric Crubézy, and taken out
to slow down the decomposition of the bodies, in sections.
though it had the disadvantage of making it All fabric or wooden objects were excavated
impossible to get an overview of the horses in situ. using Styron support trays. The objects were then
In the funerary chamber, the most-looted systematically cleaned on site using water vapour,
part of the whole, the organic materials were this allowing for greater “readability” of the
poorly preserved since the sarcophagus had been remains in question, when, that is, they were not
opened by the looters to contact with the air and too damaged (Figs. 6 & 7). After the identifica-
heat. As a result, the human bodies had been tion, recording and measurement of the objects,
almost completely destroyed, and only two drawings were made of them and pictures taken.
human bodies in the form of skeletons, together They were then wrapped in cling film and stored
with some organic material, were found. These in the refrigerated lorry. The wooden architec-
bodies had not been buried at the same time, and tural elements, bark and pieces of stone sarcoph-
the first had been moved by looters. The man’s agus were removed by hand and then humidified
head-dress was intact. These corpses were before being wrapped in cling film and stored in
69
Fig. 6 & Fig. 7

Horse trappings after
cleaning on site to
allow ease of
interpretation.
Photos: © Mission
Archéologique Française
en Asie Centrale (CNRS-
MAE) J. Vasquez.
the refrigerated lorry. All the remains were taken

to Almaty and stored at -14 °C.
During winter 2000, all the materials
removed from the site were investigated by a
multi-disciplinary laboratory team. This allowed
all the objects to be investigated under better con-
ditions, leading to a better understanding of their
substance and the analysis of the trappings.
Investigation of the bodies indicated that they
had been treated after death, for example by
threads sewn into the skin, and various anatomi-
cal, biological and genetic tests were carried out.
The removal of samples of archeological
remains from the Berel’ necropolis led to the
recovery of many organic and composite objects
of every kind. Apart from the decorated horse
trappings, several saddles were also found, as well
as the sarcophagus and the architectural elements
of the tomb. For this kind of site, a so-called
“frozen tomb”, the procedure of removing sam-
ples of the remains and then cleaning them for
readability in situ allowed the archeological team
to identify the objects as the work progressed and
to accumulate a lot of archeological information
at the site, while at the same time ensuring the
conservation of the excavated artifacts.
Nevertheless, the organic remains removed
from the Berel’ site will need freeze-drying treat-
ment in order to ensure their long-term preserva-
tion. This should only be done in a laboratory
that has the necessary equipment and trained
staff.
Translated from French by Laura Frank
70
Herodotus
[4.71] “… Here, when the king dies, they dig a grave, which is square in shape, and of great
size. When it is ready, they take the king’s corpse, and, having opened the belly, and
cleaned out the inside, fill the cavity with a preparation of chopped cypress, frankincense,
parsley-seed, and anise-seed, after which they sew up the opening, enclose the body in
wax, and, placing it on a waggon, carry it about through all the different tribes. On this
procession each tribe, when it receives the corpse, imitates the example which is first set
by the Royal Scythians; every man chops off a piece of his ear, crops his hair close, and
makes a cut all round his arm, lacerates his forehead and his nose, and thrusts an arrow
through his left hand. Then they who have the care of the corpse carry it with them to
another of the tribes which are under the Scythian rule, followed by those whom they first
visited. On completing the circuit of all the tribes under their sway, they find themselves
in the country of the Gerrhi, who are the most remote of all, and so they come to the
tombs of the kings. There the body of the dead king is laid in the grave prepared for it,
stretched upon a mattress; spears are fixed in the ground on either side of the corpse, and
beams stretched across above it to form a roof, which is covered with a thatching of osier
twigs. In the open space around the body of the king they bury one of his concubines, first
killing her by strangling, and also his cup-bearer, his cook, his groom, his lacquey, his mes-
senger, some of his horses, firstlings of all his other possessions, and some golden cups; for
they use neither silver nor brass. After this they set to work, and raise a vast mound above
the grave, all of them vying with each other and seeking to make it as tall as possible.”
Herodotus (484 - 425 ce) describing the funeral practices of the Scythians in Historiae, Book IV.
71
RECOMMENDATIONS
72
R E C O M M E N D AT I O N S
recommendations made at the unesco international workshop
“The Frozen Tombs of the Altai Mountains:

Strategies and Perspectives”
Organized by: UNESCO, World Heritage Centre,
in technical co-operation with Ghent University
Hosted by: Gorno-Altaisk University, Altai Republic, Russian Federation
28–31 March 2006
Preamble
Participants in the International workshop on the Preservation of the Frozen Tombs of the Altai
Mountains: Strategies and Perspectives”, held in Gorno-Altaisk, 28-31 March 2006, namely
50 archaeologists and geologists, from Belgium, China, France, Kazakhstan, Mongolia, Russian
Federation, the United States, and the representatives from UNESCO and UNESCO World
Heritage Centre,
Noting that the Russian part of the Altai, namely Altaisky Zapovednik and a buffer zone around
Lake Teletskoye; Katunsky Zapovednik and a buffer zone around Mount Belukha; and the Ukok
Quiet Zone on the Ukok Plateau, was inscribed on the World Heritage List as a natural site;
Further noting that the Katunsky Zapovednik also figures in the list of the UNESCO Man and
Biosphere Reserves;
Recognizing the importance and unique value of the archaeological and cultural remains, includ-
ing the frozen tombs, scattered in the Altai Mountains, which cover a significant contiguous part
of China, Mongolia, Kazakhstan and the Russian Federation, belong to the past shared between
these countries, and in which truly international cultures developed, attested by contacts with
major civilizations of the ancient world, including China, Persia, Greece and others, and which
therefore constitute a common legacy for humanity;
Bearing in mind the fact that the global warming phenomenon is threatening the permafrost
which allowed preservation of the tombs and their relics for several millennia;
Calling attention to the fact that the destruction of the frozen tombs as well as the valuable
Left Plaque: Panther
relics located inside would lead to a great loss of significant knowledge about one of the once
Curved Round. Gold;
flourishing civilizations in the history of humanity; cast, chased.
10.9 x 9.3 cm. Sakae
Appreciating the efforts made by UNESCO, in close co-operation with Ghent University, Belgium Culture. 7th - 6th
and thanks to the UNESCO/Flanders Funds-in-Trust, to take initiatives to preserve the frozen century bc.
Inv. no. SI -1727.1/88.
tombs;
73
Recommend, in the spirit of the resolution adopted by the workshop “Synergy of Natural and
Cultural Diversity as Basis for Sustainable Development of the Altai Mountainous Region”, held
at UNESCO in Paris, on October 11, 2005, attended by Government of Russian Federation as well
as of the Altai Republic,
that the authorities of the Russian Federation and of the Altai Republic,
take all measures to preserve the World Heritage Value of the Altai Mountains and ensure that
all the activities on the World Heritage Site be undertaken in accordance with the World Heritage
Convention;
start a co-operative process with neighbouring States Parties such as China, Mongolia and
Kazakhstan, to consider a possible transboundary expansion, as recommended by the World
Heritage Committee;
make efforts to submit the request for the inclusion of the Ukok Plateau on the World Heritage List
by extending the nomination of “Golden Mountains of Altai” into a mixed (natural and
cultural) site;
that the other concerned countries, such as China, Mongolia, and Kazakhstan;
take necessary steps to submit the site of the Altai Mountains on their respective territories for
inscription on the World Heritage List and to the UNESCO MAB Reserves List for a better preser-
vation of the Altai Mountain in its integrity;
that the concerned authorities, academics, scholars, institutes and universities;
urgently take all the necessary measures to safeguard and preserve the frozen tombs in
the Altai Mountains, endangered by thawing due to global warming. To this end, the following
technical recommendations were made:
the establishment of an accurate map and a thorough inventory of all archaeological monu-
ments, as a first step, accompanied by detailed information related to their location, and
description, since the frozen tombs should be considered as part of the unique cultural
landscape of the Altai Mountains. This will be the basis of long-term efforts for preservation
of the frozen tombs endangered by thawing. It is of utmost importance that surveys focus upon
all archaeological remains present in the area. During the selection of areas and monuments
to be protected, all elements of the cultural and archaeological landscape should be taken
into account;
the identification of a compatible methodology for mapping the Altai Mountains. Integration of
maps is most important, and should take into account the norms and particular circumstances
of each country. A discussion between archaeologists and other specialists should be organised,
as there is a crucial need to determine the most appropriate scale of these maps;
74
R E C O M M E N D AT I O N S
the organisation of activities and the initiation of projects in order to develop models to
understand better environmental conditions in the Altai Mountains in the field of geology,
geo-cryology and climatology in the past (paleo-environment) and into the future;
the monitoring of the frozen burial sites. Given their deteriorating condition, all appropriate
technologies should be used. Therefore the participants urge for the organization of a discus-
sion between archaeologists and other specialists to determine the best methods to be used.
carry out all activities related to survey and excavation on the frozen tombs according to the
highest professional and ethical standards, including dialogue with and respect and consideration
for, indigenous people, as well as respect for environmental integrity;
undertake all the activities such as excavation, preservation, conservation and development
in accordance with UNESCO recommendation on “International Principles Applicable to
Archaeological Excavations” and International ICOMOS’s relevant charters;
make efforts to launch a global strategy for preservation of the frozen tombs and cultural
heritage of the Altai Mountains in a long-term perspective;
that UNESCO World Heritage Centre
support the initiative for launching a global strategy for the preservation of cultural heritage
in the Altai Mountains, including the frozen tombs, which constitutes a unique cultural landscape
in the Eurasian continent.
Plaque with Bulls.

Bronze; cast.
13 x 6.5 cm.
Tagar Culture.
2nd - 1st century bc.
Inv. no. 1126/212.
The participants of the workshop wish to express their gratitude to the UNESCO World Heritage
Centre for the organisation of the Workshop and for the support of this initiative.
75
Afterword
Ivan Belekov
Chairman of the Parliament of the Altai Republic, Russian Federation
Chairman of the branch of the National Commission
of the Russian Federation for UNESCO in the Altai Republic
T he Altai Republic of the Russian Federation was honoured when the Russian part of the
Golden Mountains of the Altai was inscribed on the World Heritage List as a natural site in 1998.
The Altai Mountains represent an invaluable expression of the region’s natural and cultural heritage.
Left Bridle Plaque:
Ibex. Wood, leather;
carved. 10.4x8.9 cm
Recently, however, their preservation has come under threat. The UNESCO project, Preservation of Pazyryk Culture.
the Frozen Tombs of the Altai Mountains, has led to international awareness being raised of their 5th–4th century bc.
cultural value as well as of the present threats to them, such as climate change, the thawing of the 1685/151.
permafrost and various related development matters. The approach to the preservation of the © The State Hermitage
cultural heritage employed by the UNESCO project and the technical work carried out under it have Museum, St. Petersburg.
helped to increase public understanding of the value of the Mountains and the need to preserve the
unique cultural landscape of the Altai. This is especially important because for many centuries natu-
ral and cultural diversity has been considered a single whole by the Altai nation.
I would therefore like both to thank the UNESCO World Heritage Centre for its work and to
express my renewed support for it. During an international workshop on the Synergy of Natural and
Cultural Diversity as the Basis for the Sustainable Development of the Altai Mountainous Region, held on
11 October 2005 at UNESCO Headquarters in Paris in the presence of the Organization’s Assistant
Director-General for Culture, recommendations were made that stressed the cultural value of the
Altai Mountains. They also highlighted the Government of the Altai Republic’s wish that the cultural
value of the Golden Mountains of the Altai should be recognized by their inscription as a mixed site
on the World Heritage List. Indeed, the kurgans and the artifacts that have been found in them con-
stitute invaluable testimony of the cultures and civilizations that once flourished on the Asian
steppe, and they are of the utmost importance not only for understanding the history of this region,
but also that of the world as a whole.
It is my fervent hope that UNESCO will continue its invaluable efforts, which are aimed at
preserving this rich landscape and protecting both the natural and cultural value of the Altai
Mountains for succeeding generations.
Ivan Belekov
77
Front cover Terminal: Frontispiece Plaque Title page Pazyryk Last page Plaque
Stag on a Ball. from a Horse Harness, Culture horse-harness Shaped Like an Eagle
Leather, wood; carved. with an Eagle. Wood; decoration in the form Gold; stamped.
H. 11.5 cm. Pazyryk carved. 3,6 x 4,6 cm. of a carved wooden 1.7 x 2 cm.
Culture. 5th century bc. Pazyryk Culture. vulture. Ak-Alakha-1 Pazyryk Culture.
Inv. no. 1684/154. 6th century bc. necropolis, excavated 6th century bc.
© The State Hermitage Inv. no. 2179/131. by N. V. Polosmak. Inv. no. 2824/1.
Museum, St. Petersburg. © The State Hermitage © V. Molodin © The State Hermitage
Museum, St. Petersburg. Museum, St. Petersburg.
78
Acknowledgements
project officer Junhi Han
concept Junhi Han
coordination Laura Frank
editing David Tresilian
translation Lise Sellem
David Tresilian
graphic design Jean-Luc Thierry
printed by Ateliers Industria, Paris
maps pp. 16-17 Bordon Art Direction and Design;

Museum for Pre- and Early History, The State Museums of Berlin
photos, special thanks to:
The State Hermitage Museum, St. Petersburg, Russian Federation

Musée Guimet, France
The Ministry of Information and Culture and the Kabul Museum, Islamic Republic of Afghanistan
The Staatliche Museen zu Berlin, Germany
Doris Bordon
Gary Tepfer
This publication was made possible

thanks to the UNESCO/Flanders Funds-in-Trust
for the Preservation of the Frozen Tombs
of the Altai Mountains
All rights reserved.
No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form
without the permission of the copyright owners. Published by the United Nations Educational, Scientific
and Cultural Organization UNESCO, March 2008.
79

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P R E S E RVAT I O N

OF TH E FROZEN TOMBS OF TH E ALTAI MOU NTAI NS

The views expressed in the articles contained in

Maps and Chronology 16 –17

C H A P T E R I SCYTH IANS I N TH E EU RASIAN STEPPE AN D TH E PL ACE OF TH E ALTAI MOU NTAI NS I N IT

The Scythians: Nomadic Horsemen of the Eurasian Steppe H. Parzinger 19

Culture and Landscape in the High Altai E. Jacobson-Tepfer 31

C H A P T E R I I U N ESCO PROJ ECT PRESERVATION OF FROZEN TOMBS OF TH E ALTAI MOU NTAI NS

C HAPTER I I I CHALLENGE FOR CONSERVATION AN D DEVELOPMENT

The Altai: Heartland of Asia Y.P. Badenkov 65

Excavation and Sampling Techniques in the Frozen Tombs of Kazakhstan J. Vasquez 67

Recommendations of the Gorno-Altaisk UNESCO Workshop, March 2006. 73

Afterword Ivan Belekov 77

T he publication of this booklet marks the

Fig. 3 and 4 Hair Pins

Fig. 8 Shilla Golden rating insights from existing international pro-

-1000 -900 -800 -7 0 0 -600

Ca. 750: Arzhan 1 Ca. 600: Arzhan 2

Locations of famous kurgans

-500 -400 -300 -200 -100 0 AD

Ca. 440-400: Tuekta 1 Ca. 314-311: Ulandryk 4

The Scythians: Nomadic Horsemen

O ver the past 300 years, kurgans from the

There are also complexes of this kind in the Fig. 4 Arzhan-1

horses and their saddle blankets, head-dresses

Fig. 6 Tagar Culture

Photos: © DAI, Berlin.

Fig. 7 Arzhan-2 kurgan

Photos: © DAI, Berlin.

contrary it represents just the tip of an iceberg.

Jettmar, K. Die frühen Steppenvölker Parzinger, H. Die Skythen (München, 2004).

The Frozen Scythian Burial Complexes

T he Altai Mountains are extremely rich in

Fig. 3 Pazyryk Culture

by the Kosh-Agach meteorological station for the Fig. 4 Detail of female

Culture and Landscape in the High Altai

T he glaciated peaks known as Tavan Bogd

Fig. 2 Petroglyph has supported it. This is particularly evident in

Fig. 5 Massive Bronze

Fig. 6 Bronze Age

are much clearer. They indicate that the ritual

Ancient Altai Culture and its Relationship

T he Altai is located within the very large

Fig. 3 Typical steppe-

heads turned back, lion heads with hairy manes

The Silk Roads and the Road of the Steppes:

F ollowing the major foreign archaeological

This symphony of colours is displayed in the

writes, “and the striking similarity in basic idea to

revealed typically Scythian tombs from a date a

Background to UNESCO Preservation of the

Background to UNESCO Preservation of the

The towering, jagged Altai Mountains stretch

Fig. 3. Pile Carpet.

excavation of a series of large and small burial

still in the tombs as possible. Clearly, any excava- Fig. 7 Overview of

UNESCO-Sponsored Field Campaigns

G rave robbers and fortune hunters have

Fig. 2 Map of the