From Irtysh to Ob

The article is devoted to the phenomenon of the emergence of “steppe” cattle-breeding populations in the Ob River Region at the turn of the I-II millennium AD. The main attention is focused on the Shaitan archaeological complex (Tom’ River Region), which is the northernmost and largest concentration of cattle-breeding-metallurgical sites in the Ob basin. Based on the analysis of new radiocarbon dates and archaeological data, it is concluded that the first major migrations date back to the IX century, which led to a rapid expansion of culturally close horse-breeding cultures over vast areas of Eastern Kazakhstan and Western Siberia. The migration impulse came from the Kimak cultural environment of the Kazakhstan Irtysh Region. The main reasons for the expansion of horse-breeding cultures could be not only political events, but also climatic changes. The second phase (XI–XIII centuries) in the history of the Shaitan complex is accompanied by mass production of iron and is associated with the Basandaiskaya archaeological culture. In the middle of the XIII century the population of Shaitan settlements sharply decreases. This could be caused both by the Mongol campaigns against “forest” peoples and the onset of the Little Ice Age, the active phase of which caused a huge damage to the horse breeding economy due to the harsh climate and the impossibility to keep cattle in winter