The
book is the outcome of many years of research and analysis of
Eurasian nomad art of the end of the 1st - beginning of the 2nd
millenniums AD, based on numerous archeological finds - small
toreutics, represented mainly by belt ornaments for equestrian
warriors (bridle and belt sets of non-ferrous metal), and also
by decorations on equipment and weaponry (saddles, belt and saddle
bags) and clothes. Most of the items in question have characteristic
shape and decor. They reflect the Early Medieval Eurasian style
of decorative and applied art, which has been named "steppe
ornamentalism". It is characterized by geometrized floral
ornament which prevails over other types of decor: zoomorphic,
anthropomorphic, and sometimes geometric motifs.
Stylistic
affinity (in the broad sense) in the decor of small toreutics
comprises regional peculiarities, which can be observed both throughout
major state formations (Khazar Khaganate, Bulgaria Volga, Ancient
Rus in Eastern Europe; Kyrgyz Khaganate, the Kimak-Kypchak ethnic
and political formation in the Sayan-Altai, or Southern Siberia)
and within their local territorial entities, reflecting the ethnic
and cultural traditions of the population and its relations with
the outside world. Decorative features can be relatively simple
and easily recognizable (e.g., mid-8th - 9th cc. materials from
the Khazar Khaganate and materials from Sayan-Altai cultures of
the mid-9th - beginning of the 11th cc), or complex, indicating
the functioning of various production centers within a major region
(e.g., Ancient Rus culture of the 10th - 13th cc). In both cases,
decorative features supply information about the prevailing influences
of artistic traditions from neighboring and even far-away countries
and peoples. Tradition is understood as a steady complex of interrelated
elements which influence each other.
Decorative
and applied art is considered as part of folk art, another aspect
whereof is oral tradition, epos first and foremost. The present
work formulates the factors which reveal the development patterns
for decorative art and epos; defines these general development
patterns for the two branches of art, and reveals a certain affinity
of their stylistics and images.
The
essays deal mainly with materials from two major regions, - the
south of Eastern Europe and the Sayan-Altai (Southern Siberia).
Research was concerned primarily with the structural elements
of decor which give the opportunity to correlate decorative art
with the spiritual aspect of social life. Anthropomorphic decor
is the most important structural element in this respect. The
author correlates decorative "topics" primarily with
epos (Nart epos for the south of Eastern Europe, Turkic epos for
the Sayan-Altai); also with mythological and religious heritage,
rituals and other aspects of the traditional culture of the peoples
descended from the Medieval inhabitants of the territories in
question.
It
is interesting to compare anthropomorphic decor from two major
Eurasian steppe regions and the piedmonts, to reveal their common
and individual features. Other codes of decorative art are considered
as well, on the example of Sayan-Altai art. Zoomorphic and floral
codes of visual art are compared with corresponding codes of verbal
art (on the basis of academic publications of epos of peoples
from different regions in the Sayan-Altai: the Altaians, Khakassians,
Tuvins and Shors).
The
author identifies and analyses serial groups of small toreutics
from the Sayan-Altai. These comprise the most popular decorative
compositions and motifs, which are encountered quite frequently
in all the regions of the Sayan-Altai. Some of the motifs are
symbolic and go back to Buddhist iconographic prototypes which
are widely used in Manichean art. Starting from the time of the
Uighur Khaganate (745-840 AD), Manicheanism penetrated the territory
in question; the fact that it found favor with the Khagans played
an important role in the development of a syncretic decorative
art in subsequent periods. Identifying the semantics of the motifs,
and the reason why they became the most popular ones, also allows
to correlate material works of art with the spiritual life of
the societies which used the objects in question. The most popular
patterns of floral and geometric decor are used for analyzing
the development and modification of traditions, revealing the
roots of Early Medieval art, identifying the features that show,
first and foremost, the historical and cultural relations of the
local peoples, and the main directions of these relations.
Another
important aspect of the book is that it brings together the main
results of an integrated study of belt ornaments, which included
research into decorative features, morphology of the items and
production technique, including metal composition. This was a
joint study with L.V. Kon'kova, whose article on the Tyukhtyaty
hoard, the eponymous site, tables listing the metal composition,
the main observations and conclusions is an appendix to the present
book.
The
chapter about the two major collections of the items under investigation
- the Tyukhtyaty from the Minusinsk basin in the Middle Yenisei
(stored in the Minusinsk regional museum) and P. K. Frolov's collection
from the Altai region (first third of the 19th c; stored in the
Oriental section of the State Hermitage, St. Petersburg) - is
of interest from the point of view of source studies. The collections
differ as to origin, yet the structure of their material is similar.
For the first time, the decor of belt ornaments from these collections
has been studied and analyzed in detail against a wide background
of Eurasian analogies, known to the author from museum collections
and publications.
Besides
illustrating the stages of the research, the herein presented
material is a first publication of little-known, and sometimes
unknown items. Much attention is given to those; the author investigates
the sometimes complicated stories behind the artifacts, and elucidates
some of the "scientific myths". One should also note
the appendix which contains the original tables of V.V. Radlov's
handwritten Album (1861), stored in the St. Petersburg Museum
of Ethnography and Anthropology (the Kunstkammer) named after
Peter the Great.
The
book shall be of interest for both specialists and readers interested
in the history of Medieval nomads of steppe Eurasia and adjacent
territories.
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