Archaeology, Ethnology & Anthropology of Eurasia 40 (4) 2012

Annotation:  The Paleolithic of Dzungaria (Xinjiang, Northwest China) Based on Materials from the Luotuoshi Site Excavations at the Bairaki Lower Paleolithic Site, Trans-Dniesteria, in 2011 Upper Paleolithic Rock Crystal Artifacts from the Southeastern Shore of Lake Bolshiye Allaki, the So The Use of Animal Hair in Ceramic Manufacturing at the Tytkesken-2 Neolithic Site, Western Siberia Kyordyughen Site, Ymyiakhtakh Culture, Yakutia: An Interpretation of Burial Rite An Analysis of Mitochondrial DNA from the Pakhomovskaya Population of the Late Bronze Age, Western S Kozlov Mys-2 Burial Ground and Issues of Chronology for the Early to Late Iron Age Transition in the New Early Iron Age Statue from Sary-Arka “Horse-Headed” Staffs and the Cult of the Horse Head in Northwestern Asia in the 2nd Millennium BC Ceramics of the Ulakhan-Segelennyakh Culture, Early Bronze Age, Yakutia Scythian Burial Mound of the 4th Century BC at Kremenevka, Northeastern Azov Region A Carnelian Cabochon from Tashara-Karier-2, the Upper Ob Basin: Technological Issues Soils of an Early Medieval (4th–6th Centuries) Settlement in the Middle Tobol Region and their Paleo Folklore Parallels Between Siberia and South Asia and the Mythology of the Eurasian Steppes   

Kyordyughen Site, Ymyiakhtakh Culture, Yakutia: An Interpretation of Burial Rite

A.D. Stepanov, Ya.V. Kuzmin, G.W.L. Hodgins, and A.J.T. Jull.

A series of radiocarbon dates for the Late Neolithic burial at Kyordyughen, Yakutia, support its association with the Ymyiakhtakh culture. The article proposes a new interpretation of the burial rite in the context of the site. Possible reasons for the disruption of the burial are presented. The presence of the dismembered remains of another body may indicate the practice of human sacrifi ce. The emergence of warriors as a social group is discussed, and the question is raised as to whether such a group might have been present in the Late Neolithic societies of northeast Asia on the basis of evidence favoring social differentiation with regard to military status.

Keywords: Yakutia, Neolithic, Kyordyughen burial, Ymyiakhtakh culture, warriors, armor, human sacrifice.