ITEMS OF MEN'S AND WOMEN'S CLOTHING FROM THE FLIPPOVKA 1 NECROPOLIS.
K.S. OKOROKOV (RUSSIAN ACADEMY OF SCIENCES), V.E. TREGUBOV. (ORENBURG GUBERNATORIAL MUSEUM OF LOCAL HISTORY AND LORE) BACK

Investigations of the Filippovka 1 necropolis have made it possible to reconstruct the clothing of the early nomads. It is true that male costume is presented solely iconographically, in images of armed riders, and warriors adorning various objects. For example, a saiga hunting scene is placed on a pair of pins from one of the wooden bowls from mound 1 (cache 1), and a mythological motif with numerous warrior and animal figures is depicted on a sword from mound 4 (cache 2). Some of the works are three-dimensional: a figurine of a horseman from mound 3 (central burial) made of horn, and a bronze bridle plaque in the shape of a horseman from mound 30 (central burial). The images of the warriors are united by their simple and comfortable clothing, with the riders wearing short jackets, trousers, belts and soft shoes. They are all bare-headed, but in one case a helmet is depicted (a plaque from mound 30). The warrior's constant companion is a horse with a trimmed mane.

There are no female images on the items from the Filippovka complexes, but the necropoli Filippovka 1 and 2 yielded a series of inscribed objects of precious metals, which can be confidently classified as parts of a woman's attire. The most striking examples are from mound 1 (cache 2 and burial 2) and mound 4 (double burial 4). Their location in relation to each other and to the buried woman's skeleton allows us to reconstruct different parts of the garments.

For example, in burial 2 of mound 1, the garments probably included four rounded plaques depicting a twisted saiga (lying on the sternum) and 26 rectangular patches showing a scene of a cat predator attacking a hoofed animal. The stripes were placed along the outside of both arms, from shoulder to wrist, marking the long, narrow sleeves of the dress. The head of the animal on the right-hand patch faces to the right, while that on the left-hand patch faces to the left.

Under both arms of the woman, from mid-shoulder to mid-forearm, there were two clusters of multicoloured glass beads and small beads made of various materials (40 - 45×18 cm), they were not connected on the back - no beads were found under the spine or ribs. These broad bands, folded in half, may have decorated the open sleeves of a blouse or jacket worn over a dress. Each sleeve has stitching depicting a "procession of animals" - 10 prostrate reindeer one after another. Seen from the outside, the scene seems to be upside down: the figures are placed heads down, but the wearer sees the composition from the correct angle. The deer move to the right on the right sleeve and to the left on the left. Under a long slightly humped muzzle there is a bent front leg with an outlined hoof and a wisp of hair above it; a parted mouth is shown with a beaded roll; a wisp of hair (beard) is visible on the chin. The spiral spurs (two to four) form massive horns that take up almost a third of the image. An ear is opposed to the muzzle and placed between the horns and back; an eye, like the ear, is similar in shape to a triangle. At the back is a scroll made with the same set of beads as the body of the animal. The bodies of the deer are made of gold, coral and stone beads; the spaces between the figures are filled with glass or paste beads (mostly blue), sewn in lines that repeat the contours of the body, in consecutive rows. The stags depicted on the sleeves are made using an original technique, but they are included in the system of the animalistic style associated with the Filippov necropolis. Similar deer are depicted on the gold linings of wooden bowls, on a number of gold patches from other mounds and on the handles of horn spoons, as well as on the rings from burial 2 itself.

The shawl spread with gold embroidered rosettes was a unique find. The front side of the shawl is distinguished by a fringe of miniature gold patches and pendants. Judging by their arrangement, the face of the buried woman was covered during the burial ritual. The function of the gold tips on the laces, which lay from the left forearm to the pelvic bone, in pairs in a line, is not clear: similar (though simpler) objects have been found in several of the burials at the site.

One more set of gold patches of a woman's costume with a similar shape was discovered (mound 4, burial 4). Here, small patches in the shape of a curved cat predator were placed along both arms of the buried woman, while along the shoulder bones, large three-dimensional patches depicting a lying cat predator were placed in an arc, seven in each arm. The line of the shoulder was marked by two voluminous patches depicting a protoma of a feline predator.

Four types of gold patches come from cache 2 from mound 1 - two types are small (figures of reclining deer and protomas of feline predators) and two types of large patches (figures of argali in a relaxed pose and scenes of two camels struggling). Their stylistic similarity suggests a likeness to the costumes from the burials. It is probable that two full female costumes, with small patches along the narrow sleeve of the lower dress and a wide sleeve of the upper-shoulder garment decorated with a band of large patches, were deposited in the cache.

Thus, from the two largest and richest burials of the Filippovka 1 necropolis come four similar types of complete female costumes, with individual details of design. Similar small zoomorphic patches and pendants are known in other burials of the Filippovka 1 and 2, unfortunately, looted or disturbed by earth-dwelling animals. Obviously, this type of women's clothing was characteristic of the nomads who buried their female compatriots of high social status in the necropolis of Filippovka 1.

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