Ipatovo kurgan
Encyclopedia
Ipatovo kurgan refers to kurgan 2 of the Ipatovo Barrow Cemetery 3, a cemetery of kurgan
Kurgan
Kurgan is the Turkic term for a tumulus; mound of earth and stones raised over a grave or graves, originating with its use in Soviet archaeology, now widely used for tumuli in the context of Eastern European and Central Asian archaeology....

 burial mounds, located near Ipatovo
Ipatovo
Ipatovo is a town and the administrative center of Ipatovsky District of Stavropol Krai, Russia, located on the Kalaus River about northeast of Stavropol. Population:...

, some 120 km north-east of Stavropol
Stavropol
-International relations:-Twin towns/sister cities:Stavropol is twinned with: Des Moines, United States Béziers, France Pazardzhik, Bulgaria-External links:* **...

, Stavropol Krai
Stavropol Krai
Stavropol Krai is a federal subject of Russia . Its administrative center is the city of Stavropol. Population: -Geography:Stavropol Krai encompasses the central part of the Fore-Caucasus and most of the northern slopes of Caucasus Major...

, Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...

.

With a height of 7 metres, it was one of the largest kurgans in the area. It was completely investigated in 1998–1999, revealing thirteen phases of construction and use, from the 4th millennium BC
4th millennium BC
The 4th millennium BC saw major changes in human culture. It marked the beginning of the Bronze Age and of writing.The city states of Sumer and the kingdom of Egypt were established and grew to prominence. Agriculture spread widely across Eurasia...

 to the 18th century AD.

The first grave may have been a burial of the Maykop culture
Maykop culture
The Maykop culture , ca. 3700 BC—2500 BC, was a major Bronze Age archaeological culture situated in Southern Russia running from the Taman Peninsula at the Kerch Strait nearly to the modern border of Dagestan, centered approximately on the modern Republic of Adygea in the Kuban River valley...

, which was destroyed by later graves. The earliest extant grave contained two young people, buried in a sitting position, dating to the late 4th millennium.

On top of the kurgan was a Sarmatian grave of the 3rd century BC. A woman had been buried here in extended position on the back, together with an exceptionally rich treasure of grave-goods
Grave goods
Grave goods, in archaeology and anthropology, are the items buried along with the body.They are usually personal possessions, supplies to smooth the deceased's journey into the afterlife or offerings to the gods. Grave goods are a type of votive deposit...

: six solid golden necklets, two golden spiral bracelets, two golden finger rings made from Hellenistic coins, a gilded wooden cup decorated with zoomorphic figures, a short sword with gold-decorated pommel (the presence of a weapon in a woman's grave is not an unusual feature in Sarmatian contexts) and a gold-covered scabbard, a sheet gold buckle, a gilded wooden cosmetics container
Cosmetic container (vessel)
A cosmetic container, cosmetic box, or cosmetic vessel is found in the historical records, both as an artifact, as relief items in some cultures, and are sometimes referenced in historical or archaeological literature. They are sometimes created in specific styles, shapes, or motifs.The named...

, and clay vessels.

In the final phase, more than 100 simple graves were dug into the southern slope of the barrow – probably 18th century burials of the nomadic Turkic
Turkic peoples
The Turkic peoples are peoples residing in northern, central and western Asia, southern Siberia and northwestern China and parts of eastern Europe. They speak languages belonging to the Turkic language family. They share, to varying degrees, certain cultural traits and historical backgrounds...

 Nogai
Nogais
The Nogai people are a Turkic ethnic group in Southern Russia: northern Dagestan and Stavropol Krai, as well as in Karachay-Cherkessia and the Astrakhan Oblast; undefined number live in Chechnya...

people.

Reference: Andrej B. Belinskij, Alexej A. Kalmykov, Sergej N. Korenevskij and Heinrich Harke, The Ipatovo kurgan on the North Caucasian Steppe, Antiquity, December 2000.
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