On the Possibility of the Reconstruction of Women's Headdresses of the Mongolian Time (Based on Birch Finds on the Teleut Vzvoz-I Monument in the Upper Ob Region)

The article studies the results of individual terns discovered on the Teleut Vzvoz-I monument 1ocated in the south of Western Siberia, in the Pavlovsk district of the Altai Territory, on the left (high) bank of the Ob. In the course of its research in the 1990-s, the expeditions of Altai State University discovered the mounds of the Mongolian time, greatly distorted by p1unders, which contained numerous products of birch bark. Among them were revealed details of carcasses of two types of headdresses of married women, named in the scientific literature as "bocca" or "bogtag". The first type is characterized by a funnel-type expansion of the upper part of birch bark top. The second has more complex structure. The detailed examination of the found birch bark products can not only restore the kind of the headdress, but also identify the peculiarities of their design. These materials make it possible to compare the reconstructions with similar objects found in the tombs of the eastern and western regions of Eurasia. Among them there are some practically intact items. In addition, descriptions and images of headdresses of married women during the Mongol Empire of the developed Middle Ages are well known from various written and pictorial sources. However, many details of the available designs and jewelry need further researching. Birch bark of the women's headdresses were found in six mounds of the Teleut Vzvoz-I monument. On two burial sites the identification was made of two boccas referring to the selected types (in mounds № 9 and 12). This fact is unique not only for the monuments of the Mongolian time of Western Siberia, but generally for all known archaeological sites of this period in Eurasia. The headdresses in the nomadic mounds of the developed Middle Ages of the Upper Ob region suggest the strong influence of the Mongolian Empire culture, and the high social status of women. Similar evidences were found on the Basandayka burial ground (Tomsk Region), the Near Elbany-VI complex (Altai region) and the Krohalevka-5-11 monument (Novosibirsk region). One of the authors of the article characterized them as the objects of the Tomsk-Altai type. Among other findings were details of the bocca of a more intricate design belonging to the Mongolian Tien Shan type. After the frame and birch pieces were tightly fixed together, the boccas were covered in cloth (possibly silk) and decorated (with beads, appliques and other products made of different materials). The research of the items demonstrates similar principles of construction and assembling, which allows the authors to make a conclusion about the developed technology of preparation and assembling of women's headdresses in the period under study.

Keywords

Authors

References