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Monuments of Early Nomads in the Pavlodar Irtysh Region
07 Oct 2024

As part of the PCF project implemented by the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Republic of Kazakhstan, titled "Northern Kazakhstan in the Context of Cultural and Historical Processes: From the Stone Age to Ethnographic Modernity," research continued during the 2024 field season at the Arshaly archaeological complex. The site dates back to the Early Iron Age. The excavation is led by the Senior Researcher of the A.H. Margulan Institute of Archaeology, Zhanbolat Utubaev.

The archaeological complex is located on the eastern slope of Mount Arshaly in the Maysky District of the Pavlodar Region. A full topographic survey was conducted during the fieldwork, which allowed for the precise determination of the layout and structure of the site.

The Arshaly-2 settlement covers an area of 5,000 square meters. Three residential houses were discovered at the site. Two of them are located in the central part of the settlement, and one is in the southeast, closer to the mountain. Excavations began this season on Object No. 1, with a total excavation area of 144 square meters.

The research revealed that the structure is a round house consisting of seven rooms, with exterior walls built from large stones. The entrance was marked by a broad, horizontally placed stone. Nine post holes were found in this structure. Approximately 50 stone tools and fragments of ceramic vessels with characteristic Early Iron Age ornamentation were also discovered. Round houses of this type are known from Early Iron Age materials in Central Kazakhstan (Tuyetas settlement) and Zhetysu (Butakty-1 settlement).

In addition to the study of the settlement complex, one burial monument was also examined. The burial mound was located 300 meters south of the settlement, on top of a hill. Excavations revealed intersecting burial pits of different ages. The lower pit was oriented westward, while the upper pit was oriented southwest. Additionally, a sacrificial pit with a diameter of 90 cm was discovered to the northwest of the burial pits. Fragments of ceramic vessels were found in this pit.