Artefacts of non-utilitarian purpose in buried treasure of stone artefacts of Ural and Siberia

Abstract

In the article author analyses stone artefacts of non-utilitarian purpose in buried treasures on the territory of Ural and Siberia. These are artefacts which were not connected with economic activities of ancient man, such as works of art, decorations, fossils, crystals, stones with anthropomorphous and zoomorphic shapes, and also artefacts made from rare and spectacular minerals. On the whole territory of Ural and Siberia such artefacts were found only in 5 buried treasures from 35 known ones. Two from them were found in Ural, one — in Middle Asia, one — in Western Siberia, and one — in Far East. Their number also is low: one artefact in each of four buried treasures and three — in buried treasures from Kazakhstan. All artefacts, except two standard disc-pinnacles, are strictly individual in type and production technique: "iron", figure flint, sculpture in Moon shape, sculpture of fish, decoration. Comparison of Ural-Siberian buried treasures with 130 ones from Eastern Europe showed that artefact of non-utilitarian purpose ("iron" with casting form on its lower part) was discovered only in one buried treasure. The exceptions are 40 "ritual" buried treasures of Volosovskaya culture. Almost all buried treasures of Ural and Siberia were found on periphery of archeological sites. It gives us an opportunity to define them like cultic markers and guardians on the border of developed and undeveloped space. Rarity of artefacts of non-utilitarian purposes in buried treasures of Stone Age shows that their semantic had deeper and more individual sense than we can understand in current time. "Ritual" buried treasures of Volosovskaya culture, unlike all other buried treasures, often had artefacts of non-utilitarian purpose except stone and bone artefacts, such as different decorations and sculptures. These buried treasures are always connected with burials. They were found at the same area where burials were situated. Like burials they were covered with red ocher. There is an opinion that they are the evidence of special funerary ritual. That is why scientists call them ritual burials. This is the distinction of these buried treasures from other known buried treasures with stone artefacts. That is why they claim special analysis.