dc.contributor.author
Wertmann, Patrick
dc.contributor.author
Yibulayinmu, Maria
dc.contributor.author
Wagner, Mayke
dc.contributor.author
Taylor, Chris
dc.contributor.author
Müller, Samira
dc.contributor.author
Xu, Dongliang
dc.contributor.author
Elkina, Irina
dc.contributor.author
Leipe, Christian
dc.contributor.author
Deng, Yonghong
dc.contributor.author
Tarasov, Pavel E.
dc.date.accessioned
2023-08-10T13:12:10Z
dc.date.available
2023-08-10T13:12:10Z
dc.identifier.uri
https://refubium.fu-berlin.de/handle/fub188/40431
dc.identifier.uri
http://dx.doi.org/10.17169/refubium-40152
dc.description.abstract
The invention of the saddle substantially improved horseback-riding, which not only revolutionized warfare, but also eased long-distance speedy movement across Eurasia. Here we present the first detailed construction analysis and absolute age determination of a well-preserved soft leather saddle recovered from the tomb of a female deceased at the Yanghai cemetery site in the Turfan Basin at the eastern end of the Tian Shan mountains. Compared with the oldest known saddle from the Scythian Pazyryk culture site Tuekta barrow no. 1 (430–420 BCE) in north-western Altai, the Yanghai specimen radiocarbon dated to 727–396 BCE (95.4% probability range) is contemporaneous or possibly older. The saddle features the basic elements of soft saddle construction that are still used today: two stuffed, wing-shaped hides sewn together along the outer edges and separated by a central gullet-like spacer and lens-shaped support elements, resembling knee and thigh rolls of modern saddles. Being a masterful piece of leather- and needlework, it is, however, less complex compared to Scythian saddles from the 5th–3rd centuries BCE. Another specimen from nearby Subeixi site, which is also described in detail for the first time in the present study, much closer resembles the Pazyryk saddles in shape, size and structure. In Yanghai, equestrian paraphernalia appear in the grave assemblages during the entire burial period (ca. 1300 BCE to 200 CE), although in higher numbers only from ca. 300 BCE. In the same way, the burial of horses was not common until then. Despite the generally very good preservation of leather, only two saddles were discovered in Yanghai which makes them an exception rather than the norm and raises the question of whether these saddles were acquired from more specialized horse breeders, riders, and saddlers in the North.
en
dc.format.extent
16 Seiten
dc.rights.uri
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
dc.subject
Early equestrian practices
en
dc.subject
Horse-powered mobility
en
dc.subject
Turfan basin archaeology
en
dc.subject
Yanghai archaeological site
en
dc.subject
Subeixi archaeological site
en
dc.subject
Scythian type saddle
en
dc.subject.ddc
900 Geschichte und Geografie::930 Geschichte des Altertums (bis ca. 499), Archäologie::930 Geschichte des Altertums bis ca. 499, Archäologie
dc.title
The earliest directly dated saddle for horse-riding from a mid-1st millennium BCE female burial in Northwest China
dc.type
Wissenschaftlicher Artikel
dcterms.bibliographicCitation.articlenumber
100451
dcterms.bibliographicCitation.doi
10.1016/j.ara.2023.100451
dcterms.bibliographicCitation.journaltitle
Archaeological Research in Asia
dcterms.bibliographicCitation.volume
35
dcterms.bibliographicCitation.url
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ara.2023.100451
refubium.affiliation
Geowissenschaften
refubium.affiliation.other
Institut für Geologische Wissenschaften / Fachrichtung Paläontologie
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refubium.resourceType.isindependentpub
no
dcterms.accessRights.openaire
open access
dcterms.isPartOf.eissn
2352-2275
refubium.resourceType.provider
WoS-Alert