Ivory beads of the Sungir Paleolithic site: shapes and features of their alternation in set decorations

The article presents the results of an analysis of the shapes of ivory beads from the burials of a male and adolescent boys discovered in 1964 and 1969 by O.N. Bader at the Sungir site (Vladimir region, Russia), the habitation of which dates back to the end of the Early period (30–27 thousand BC) of the Upper Paleolithic. Beads are diverse in shape, small in size, extremely standardized products, which are one of the most mass and widespread categories of personal composite decorations at the Upper Paleolithic sites. Currently, the Sungir site is the only one where set decorations made of ivory beads, which retained their original position, were found in burials in large quantities (more than 10,000 units). These include an abundance of decoration sets such as bracelets and numerous rows of beads running across and along the body, around the waist, arms and legs, as well as the heads of the buried. The studied sample included 113 set of decorations made of beads (more than 4,000 units). The technical and morphological analysis of beads of such ornamental rows reveal that decorations were not formed randomly, but have a certain rhythmic patterns. In some cases, they were formed by the repeated alternation of groups of artifacts of different types, in others by the alternation of groups of items of the same type, but made on different blanks. The study of the complex rhythmic compositions of ivory beads revealed that there are four main independent types of beads at the site: rectangular in plan with notches on wide surfaces and a bidirectional hole in the center; rounded or oval in plan, with flattened proportions and a hole in the center; drop-shaped (“basket-shaped”); thin flat rectangular in plan, with a small hole in the center. Previously unknown beads of an individual shape were also identified — crescent-shaped and in the form of an asterisk. It is established that the dimensional characteristics of beads were an important factor for compositional constructions for ancient craftsmen. The diversity and the principle of consistency characterizing the composite Sungir jewelry indicate that they represent a unique archaeological source, the significance of which has yet to be evaluated.