New Bone Overlay with a Dragon Image Discovered at Madzhar Fortified Settlement
Journal Title: Поволжская Археология - Year 2018, Vol 2, Issue 24
Abstract
Systematic studies are conducted at Madzhar settlement by the “Kaffa” expedition of the Institute of Archaeology named after A.Kh. Khalikov of the Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Tatarstan within the framework of the State Program of the Republic of Tatarstan “Preservation of the National Identity of the Tatar People (2014–2019)”. Madzhar fortified settlement represents the remains of the Golden Horde town of Madzhar located near the contemporary town of Budennovsk in Stavropol Krai. The work is dedicated to the discovery of a bone article at the fortified settlement in question. A carved bone overlay with a dragon image was discovered at the archaeological excavations of 2016. The bone overlay was found during cleaning of the pavement of a medieval town street. A paved street was discovered in a Golden Horde town for the first time in history. The studied area of the pavement consisted of 174 fragments of locally manufactured defective bricks, 115 sandstones and 127 broken brick fragments. The period of operation of the town street and, correspondingly, the time of loss of the bone overlay correspond to the reign of Djanibek Khan, and has been dated on the basis of 12 coins. The carved overlay was made of thick horn. A four-leaved medallion with a rectangular pointed upper edge dimensioned 72×72 mm, which resembles a lotus bud, features a carved image of a dragon. The symbolics of the dragon image was thoroughly studied. Suggestions are made in relation to the possible location of manufacture of such products and the use of similar articles in the territory of the Mongol Empire.
Authors and Affiliations
Yuri D. Obukhov, Sergei Bocharov
Keywords
Related Articles
- EP ID EP336536
- DOI 10.24852/pa2018.2.24.125.133
- Views 127
- Downloads 0
Early Iron Age and Medieval Sites in the Southern Ural Region: Context of Sources (Forest and Forest-Steppe)
The author examines the geography of settlements of the early Iron Age finale (Glyadenovo culture) - early medieval period (second half of the I Millennium BC: Mazuninо/Bahmutino, Lomovatovo, Nevolino, Polom/Cheptza, Kus...
International Theoretical and Practical Workshop on Application of Paleo-Ecological Methods in Archaeology (Bolgar, 9–19 August 2016)
International Theoretical and Practical Workshop on Application of Paleo-Ecological Methods in Archaeology took place in Bolgar International Center for Archaeological Studies from 9 to 19 August 2016. The workshop was o...
Cast Iron Dishware from Juketau: preliminary interdisciplinary research results
The work deals with the results of interdisciplinary research of cast iron dishware from the town of Juketau – one of the large towns of Volga Bolgaria which continued to exist in the period of the Ulus of Jochi (the Gol...
Anniversary of the Institute of Archaeology of the Russian Academy of Sciences: Moscow Section of the Russian / State Academy for the History of Material Culture
The paper is dedicated to the initial period of establishment of the Institute of Archaeology of the Russian Academy of Sciences associated with the activity of the Moscow section of the Russian / State Academy for the H...
Highly-Artistic Embroidery in the Decor of Horse Equipment from the Elite Burial in Kazakh Altay
The paper presents the results of an in-depth study in terms of cultural studies and art history of the unique finding, which was considered in the previous paper – the fragment of a saddle coat with embroidery. The auth...