Inlet burials of turks in Altai and adjacent territories (2nd half of 1 thousand AD)

The article considers the inlet burials of early medieval Turks. The author analyses materials of sites dated by the 2nd half of the 1st thousand AD in Altai and adjacent regions - Minusinsk Depression, Tuva, Mongolia. The emphasis is made on the study of grave constructions and the features of a ritual ceremony. The analysis of the available materials does not give grounds for unambiguous interpretation of Turkic inlet burials. At the same time, certain regularities of distribution of such complexes are revealed. That allows one to offer two options of the explanation of the tradition in nomads ritual practice in the 2nd half of the 1stthousand AD. The author notes that the considerable part of inlet burials belongs to early and late stages of Turkic culture. Besides, in some cases the objects were constructed for dead persons who had a low social status during the lifetime. The marked trends provide opportunities for further research in this direction

Ancient history · Archaeology · Central asia · Ceremony · Geography · Inlet · Linguistics · Ancient and Medieval Archaeology Studies · Eurasian Exchange Networks · History · Linguistics and Cultural Studies · Philosophy · Geology