Archaeology, Ethnology & Anthropology of Eurasia 45 (3) 2017   DOI: 10.17746/1563-0110.2017.45.3.048-055

Annotation:  New Stratigraphic Data on the Quaternary Sediments in the Peschanaya River Valley, Northwestern Alta A Comprehensive Study of Neolithic Stone Tools from Dwelling D on Suchu Island, the Lower Amur (1974 From Chauvet to Lascaux: 15,000 Years of Cave Art New Engravings from Abri Du Poisson (Dordogne, France) The Techniques of Modeling and Decorating Upper Paleolithic Anthropomorphic Figurines from Malta, Ea A Comparative Analysis of Paints on the Karakol Burial Slabs Petroglyphs from Northeast China: New Sites and Interpretations Paint on Deer Stones of Mongolia Old Turkic Stone Statues from Taldy-Suu, Kyrgyzstan Scythian Age Barrows with Burials on the Ground Surface in the Southern Ural Steppes: Features of th The Megaliths of Korea and Japan: An Analysis of Origins and Functions Traditional Tailoring Technology as an Ethnographic Source (the Case of Eastern Slavic Clothing in S Robusticity of Hand Phalanges: Relevance to the Origin of the Altai Neanderthals Human Teeth from Strashnaya Cave, the Altai Mountains, with Reference to the Dental Variation in Sto Prevalence of Caries Among Siberian Tatars of the Omsk Region in the 17th to Early 20th Centuries   

The Techniques of Modeling
and Decorating Upper Paleolithic Anthropomorphic Figurines
from Malta, Eastern Siberia

L.V. Lbova^{1, 2}, P.V. Volkov^{1, 2}, E.N. Bocharova², V.S. Kovalev², and N.A. Khaykunova³

¹Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography, Siberian Branch, Russian Academy of Sciences, Pr. Akademika Lavrentieva 17, Novosibirsk, 630090, Russia

²Novosibirsk State University, Pirogova 1, Novosibirsk, 630090, Russia

³State Historical Museum, Krasnaya pl. 1, Moscow, 109012, Russia

We present the results of a microscopic analysis of anthropomorphic figurines from Malta, southeastern Siberia. The bulk of the collection comprises “classical” specimens unearthed by M.M. Gerasimov in 1928–1958. Recent studies by G.I. Medvedev and others in Irkutsk focused on the chronology, microstratigraphy, and cultural subdivision of the deposits. The an alysis of the figurines excavated by Gerasimov has revealed the manufacturing sequence, as well as modeling and decoration techniques. The process included the primary processing of mammoth ivory, preparation of a blank with key elements being marked, final modeling, and decoration. At each stage, specific tools were used. Especial attention is paid to decorative elements: patterns, engraving, rendition of clothing and accessories, and painting. Tools included planing-knives, scrapers, cutters, burins, and reamers. The decoration process was subject to a certain canon, which concerned key elements of design, their combination, and choice of the decorated area. One of the most intriguing facts about the decoration of Malta figurines is that in certain instances, traces of several pigments such as scarlet, green, and blue were revealed.

Keywords: Siberia, Malta, Upper Paleolithic, anthropomorphic figurines, ivory processing, decoration.