Archaeology, Ethnology & Anthropology of Eurasia 50 (1) 2022   doi:10.17746/1563-0110.2022.50.1.085-090

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Metal Celts from the Little Sea Coast of Lake Baikal

A.G. Novikov and O.I. Goriunova

Irkutsk State University, Karla Marksa 1, Irkutsk, 664003, Russia

This article examines metal celts accidentally found 2 km west of Kurma on the Little Sea coast of Lake Baikal, in the foothills of Primorsky Ridge, Olkhonsky District, Irkutsk Region. Detailed information is provided on the conditions in which they were found and aspects of their technology, form, and decoration. The specimens have no eyelets, are rectangular in cross-section, and were cast in bivalve molds. They differ in size and decoration. On their wide sides, there are holes for supports inserted into the mold halves. While no exact parallels to the celts are known, several chronological indicators (body shape, socket cross-section, absence of eyelets, and decoration) point to the Scythian-Tagar stage. The most similar specimens are the Krasnoyarsk-Angara type of celt, distributed over the taiga belt from the Yenisei to the Angara. X-ray spectrometric analysis suggests that the celts were made of “pure" copper. In the Olkhon area, the Scythian-Tagar celts are associated with the Slab Grave culture, dating to 2778-1998 cal BP.

Keywords: Cis-Baikal region, Olkhon area, Lake Baikal, Scythian-Tagar period, copper celts, X-ray spectrometry