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By Robyn White
Nature Reporter
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Jewelry has been discovered in a grave in Russia, dating from around 2,600 years ago.
Archaeologists from the Omsk State Pedagogical University made the find after nearly a month of excavations on two Sargat culture burial mounds in the Omsk region of southwestern Siberia, near the village of Novopokrovka. The mounds date back to the 7th to 5th centuries B.C.
They found two grave pits under one of the burial mounds, and unusually, one had not been looted, meaning the grave had remained untouched since the funeral took place. Other grave pits found in the excavation had been robbed, meaning most of the valuable finds were gone.
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The unlooted grave is very rare, Maxim Grachev, director of the Museum of Archaeology and Ethnography of the Omsk State Pedagogical University said in a statement.
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It is believed the grave belonged to a woman or a teenager. Because the grave was undisturbed, archaeologists were able to fully evaluate the burial, giving them valuable insights into the funeral practices of the time.
"Under the burial mound of Novopokrovka-X, we found two grave pits," Grachev said in a statement translated by Google. "The central burial turned out to be heavily looted. At least two burials have been made here. We found interesting wooden structures that were most likely associated with the first burial. During the second burial, they were destroyed, but along the perimeter we saw preserved ceilings.
"We were able to find some jewelry and the remains of a necklace of glass beads. We also found the remains of a felt blanket. This is a rather rare find for the Sargat archaeological culture."
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Human bones and a ceramic vessel were found in the looted burial.
Research into the sites is ongoing, and archaeologists plan to complete their work this week. Soil scientists and geochemists have also taken part in the excavation, as well as university students.
The Sargat culture spread between the Tobol and Irtysh rivers in Russia and Kazakhstan.
Burial mounds were a widely adopted as a means to bury the dead during the period that the finds date from. Ancient people would dig far into the ground and bury the deceased before building a mound out of stones and soil to cover the burials.
People were buried with objects that reflected their status in society, including pots and weapons.
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