Post by UKarchaeology on Nov 11, 2015 18:52:55 GMT
Dr Natalya Polosmak, speculated the 'teenage' warrior could have belonged to an elite all-female corps of warriors within the Pazyryk culture. Picture: Marcel Nyffenegger
The excavator smashed the prehistoric ceremonial burial chamber in the Altai Mountains, wrecking the grave of a suspected the grave of a suspected 16 to 20 year old combatant from the colourful Pazyryk culture. Local culture heritage official Dr Vasily Oinoshev said: 'Only the human head and upper part of the horse remained intact in the burial ground. Unfortunately, the rest was destroyed by heavy machinery.
'Apparently, this was a young woman, judging by the teeth. All of them are intact and in good condition. We attribute her to Pazyryk culture, and we have preliminarily dated the burial as being 2,500 years old.'
There is evidence in the shattered grave that indicates the woman was a 'warlike' fighter, with a seemingly elite status in her society, a standing that intrigues archeologists after previous similar finds - and has been linked by one noted scientist to descriptions from Greek physician Hippocrates about the Sarmatians, which, like the Pazyryks, were a Scythian grouping famed for their mastery of mounted warfare.
'Their women, so long as they are virgins, ride, shoot, throw the javelin while mounted, and fight with their enemies,' he wrote. 'They do not lay aside their virginity until they have killed three of their enemies, and they do not marry before they have performed the traditional sacred rites.'
Dr Oinoshev said: 'Along with the remains we found beads, and wooden decorations in gold foil. The wood is decayed, but the foil is preserved. There is horse gear with bronze elements.' Significantly, the archeologists found 'bone arrowheads' - her weapons, but it is also clear the grave was ransacked by ancient raiders.
Full story (and lots of pics): siberiantimes.com/science/casestudy/features/f0175-2500-year-old-female-siberian-warrior-is-beheaded-by-excavator/