Unique archaeological find discovered in Almaty burial mound

Tengrinews.kz — During excavations of a Saka-era burial mound at the Karagaily burial ground in Almaty’s Nauryzbay District, archaeologists discovered a unique gold artifact and numerous human remains, according to Almaty.tv.
The burial mound measures 25–26 meters in diameter and is about 2.5 meters high. According to preliminary estimates, the site dates back to the 4th–3rd centuries BC. The mound was looted in ancient times.
It is believed that four adults and three children may have been buried in the mound. The exact number of people buried there has yet to be determined.
In addition to human remains, fragments of Saka pottery were found. Most of the artifacts were scattered chaotically after the burial mound was looted.
Of particular value is a unique gold object, believed to be a small cast-gold figurine in the shape of a bear. Holes in the plaque suggest that the ornament may have been sewn onto a headdress.


“The sculptural bear figurine is unique for Kazakhstan. No similar finds have been discovered before. This artifact makes it possible to trace cultural parallels across Eurasia, from the Black Sea region to the Altai,” said Lyazzat Sagyndykova, director of the Almaty City Museum Association.


Such items were characteristic of Saka-era attire. Similar examples are known from other archaeological discoveries. In particular, a gold finial in the shape of an argali was found on the headdress of the “Golden Man,” while in 2014 a small leopard figurine, also used as part of a headdress, was discovered at the Kok-Kainar burial ground.

“Research at the Karagaily burial ground is continuing. Additional analyses are planned to clarify the circumstances of the burial and determine the exact number of people interred, including with the involvement of anthropologists. Of particular interest is the unusually large number of human remains found in a single burial mound, as such burials are not typical for Kazakhstan. As a rule, burial mounds of a comparable size were intended for one or two people,” said Marat Nurpeisov, senior researcher at the Almaty City Museum Association.


After the full archaeological research program is completed and the discovered materials undergo the necessary scientific processing, the most valuable artifacts are expected to be added to the Almaty Museum’s exhibition and presented to the public.