Potchevashsky ceramic complex from the Dolgovskoye 1 settlement (based on the materials of the 1997 excavations)

Adamov Aleksandr Aleksandrovich ORCID: 0000-0002-1600-778X PhD in History Tobolsk Complex Scientific State of Ural Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences 626152, Russia, Tyumen region, Tobolsk, Academician Yuri Osipov str., 15 adamowaa@yandex.ru

Turova Natalya ORCID: 0000-0002-0909-9073 Scientific Associate, Tobolsk Scientific Station of Ural Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences 626152, Russia, Tyumenskaya oblast', g. Tobol'sk, Academician Yuri Osipov str., 15 turova2707@yandex.ru Other publications by this author

Introduction. The medieval Potchevash archaeological culture (hereinafter –AK) was first identified by V. I. Moshinskaya 80 years ago based on the results of work carried out at the Potchevash settlement in the Tobolsk Irtysh region ^{[24, pp. 216-218]}. Since then, more than 80 monuments of the Potchevash AK of the VI–IX centuries have been identified in the southern Taiga, forest-steppe Irtysh and Priishimye ^{[12, fig. 44]}.

Throughout this period, researchers clarified the boundaries of the area of the Potchevash AK, clarified the dating, identified the stages, determined the ethnocultural affiliation of the bearers of the Potchevash AK, gave a description of the economy, crafts, carried out a description of the clothing complexes of settlement and funerary monuments, paying attention to ceramic collections. Most publications contain a general descriptive description of ceramic collections ^{[7, 20, 17]}, and only a few contain statistical calculations ^{[6, 8, 28, 10, 18]}. Therefore, the publication of a fairly culturally homogeneous ceramic collection of the Dolgovskoye settlement 1 is very relevant.

The Dolgovskoye settlement 1 is located in the Vagaysky district of the Tyumen region, on the right bank of the Irtysh River, opposite the mouth of the Vagay River. The monument was discovered in A. A. Adamov in 1992, it was studied during a number of field seasons by a joint archaeological expedition of the Tobolsk Museum-Reserve and the D.I. Mendeleev Tobolsk State Pedagogical Institute under the leadership of A. A. Adamov. The settlement is located on a cape of a sub-triangular shape, the height of the terrace reaches 20 m in this place. On the floor side, the settlement is fortified by a complex system of ditches and ramparts, reaching a width of up to 25 m. As a result of many years of work, it was established that the settlement is two-layered. The late layer dates back to the XII–XIV centuries. and a powerful fortification system is associated with it, and the early (main) – to the Potchevash AK and dates from the period no later than the IX century . Three dwellings have been studied on the area of the settlement, as well as part of an early fortification system that cannot be traced on the surface ^{[1, p. 47]}. Two burials of the Potchevash AK were found in the fully investigated dwelling No. 2 ^{[2, 3]}.

The purpose of this work is to characterize the main morphological and decorative features of the ceramic collection of the Potchevash culture, obtained from the 1997 excavation from the Dolgovskoye settlement 1.

The main part. As a result of the 1997 work in the eastern part of the site of the settlement, a excavation with an area of 162 sq. m. was opened. A shallow excavation of dwelling No. 3 was revealed in it. The thickness of cultural strata is significantly less than in the excavation at the cape arrow, and ranges from 20 to 40 cm. Nevertheless, a representative collection of ceramics was obtained from the 1997 excavation: about 3 thousand fragments from at least 324 vessels, the morphological and decorative characteristics of which allow it to be attributed to the Potchevash AK of the early Middle Ages (Fig. 1, 2).

The vessels from the settlement are round-bottomed, made manually. The dishes are well fired, brownish in color, there are strokes on the inside - traces of smoothing, chamotte was added to the molding mass. The shape of the vessels is determined for 89.8% of the vessels, not determined for 10.2%. The overwhelming number of containers (from among the products for which it is possible to set the shape) from the Dolgovskoye settlement 1 is represented by pot–shaped vessels (265 copies, 88%), and only 12% (35 copies) are cup-shaped. Undoubtedly, there are fragments from oval braziers in the collection (they are present at other sites of the Dolgovskoye settlement 1 excavation), however, due to the fragmentation of the material and the absence of ruins, it was not possible to isolate them from the 1997 collection.

Most pot-shaped vessels have a high neck with a smooth or abrupt transition to a slightly swollen body. There are pot-shaped vessels with a straight neck, but mostly they have a slightly bent outwards neck. The collection is represented by vessels whose neck height varies from 0.8 cm to 6 cm. The overwhelming number of pot–shaped containers (211 copies) has a neck height from 3.7 to 5 cm (the average is 4.5 cm). The diameter of the mouth of the vessels ranges from 6 cm to 37 cm in pot–shaped vessels, from 8 to 17 cm in cup-shaped ones.

The corolla section is decorated in several ways. There are 4 main shapes of corollas. Almost half of the vessels have a straight section (149 copies, 47%), an inward–sloping section – by 33% (107 copies), less often a rounded one (13.6%, 44 copies), a pointed one (17 copies, 5.2%) and an outward-sloping one (7 copies, 2.1%). The corolla section is decorated only in 11 vessels (3.4%). The ornament was applied mainly with a comb stamp (6 vessels), 2 times with a smooth one, 3 times with the end of the spatula.

All vessels are ornamented (Table 1). There is a clear horizontal zonality in the decor. The complete ornamental zone is fixed in 28.4% of the dishes (92 copies). A significant part of the pot-shaped utensils had an ornament covering the neck and the upper part of the shoulder (less than a third of the height of the vessel); the lower part of the body was not decorated. In cup-shaped ornaments, the ornament is located mainly in the upper part of the shoulders, occasionally covering the entire shoulder.

Along the corolla of the overwhelming number of vessels (99.1%) there is either a belt of deep rounded pits (95.1% of vessels), rarely pearls (3.4%) or a belt of alternating pits and pearls (0.6%). On four vessels (1.2%), the dimple indentations are grouped into 3 pieces. The pits form protrusions-pearls on the inner surface of the vessel. Dimpled indentations were applied on top of the ornament, often located in a drawn groove. There is no dimple-pearl belt on only three vessels (0.9%).

Table 1. Frequency of occurrence of ornamental elements on vessels from the 1997 excavation of the Dolgovskoye settlement 1.

The comb stamp is present on 276 vessels (85.2%). There are both a narrow stamp with small teeth (sawtooth comb) and a wide two-pronged ("b"-shaped, with rounded outlines of teeth) of different sizes. They made almost all the motifs of the ornament: horizontal ribbons from inclined or straight impressions (282 vessels, 87%); horizontal lines (3 copies, 0.9%); horizontal zigzag single and double (3 copies, 0.9%); diagonal ribbons from prints of a horizontally positioned comb stamp (18 copies, 5.6%).

Another 36 vessels (11.1%) have imprints of a smooth stick stamp (possibly an elaborate comb was used). This stamp has almost the same motifs as the combed one (except for horizontal lines).

The special appearance of the ceramic collection of the Dolgovskoye settlement 1 is given by flutes – horizontal deep grooves of various widths formed as a result of stretching a comb or stick. 270 vessels (83.3%) are decorated with these grooves. The flutes served as peculiar borders separating other ornamental motifs, and were also used as an independent motif (up to 9 belts in a row can be present on the vessel, mainly on the neck). There may be from 1 to 12 grooves on one product. On average, vessels with a complete ornamental zone are fixed with 3 grooves (for cup–shaped vessels) and 7 for pot-shaped ones.

On 9 vessels (2.8%), diagonal long ribbons are made with impressions of a receding spatula of different widths.

There are prints of shaped stamps on 18 vessels (5.6%):

– corner (simple and complicated) is used to decorate 9 vessels;

– the snake was used on 6 vessels;

– a diamond with a dot – on two;

– the stamp in the form of a circle was used once to decorate a pot–shaped vessel (with its help, long diagonal lines along the neck of the vessel, as well as a zigzag on the hangers).

Thus, the most common ornamental elements on dishes from the Dolgovskoye settlement 1 are dimpled pearl indentations, comb impressions and horizontal flutes. 243 vessels (75% of the collection) are decorated exclusively with a combination of these three elements. In addition to the above elements, 20 more containers (6.2%) have curly stamps (rhombus, corner, snake), as well as a receding blade and a smooth stamp. The ornament of seven vessels (2.2%) is made using flutes, pits and a smooth stamp. The only element of the ornament for ten vessels (3.1%) is a belt of dimples along the corolla; for another one (0.3%) – a snake stamp.

The dominant features of the studied complex include the numerical predominance of pot-shaped containers with a high neck, with a sharp transition to a slightly expanded body; the ornamentation is characterized by a combination of dimpled pearl decor (99.1%), combed stamp (85.2%) and horizontal drawn grooves (83.3%), as well as a small proportion of curly stamps (5.6%).

Of the single-cultural monuments located in the Tobolsk Irtysh region, the ceramic complex from the settlement of Potchevash has a noticeable similarity with the ceramics in question. It consists in the shapes of the vessels, the predominance of dimpled and combed stamps, the presence of drawn grooves (the latter are fixed on 55% of the vessels) ^{[24, Table. IX; Chagaeva, 1970, table. I; 8, table. IV; 1, fig. 21: 8, 12, 14]}. But there is also a serious difference – the significant presence of horizontal lines from the comb stamp, which are practically absent (0.9%) on the ceramics of Dolgovsky 1.

There is a significant similarity both in the basic morphological characteristics of the dishes (pots with a high neck, with a sharp or smooth transition to a slightly inflated body) and decorative (high occurrence of horizontal grooves, combs, a similar set of shaped stamps) with ceramics of settlement complexes from the Irtysh forest region – Panovo II, the settlements of Petrovsky, Yevgashinsky (judging by published drawings and descriptions ^{[17, fig. 23-42; 19, fig. 34; 21, fig. 2: 1-3]} and the Gornostalevsky settlement (in the latter, the proportion of vessels with flutes is 54%) ^{[8, Table IV]}.

A detailed comparison can be made only with statistically processed materials of the Murlinskoye 1 settlement from the South Taiga Irtysh region ^[18]. The comparison showed that the similarities with the Dolgovskoye 1 settlement are manifested in the following: the presence of similar vessel shapes and similar ornamental elements in the collections. First of all, in a high proportion of dishes with horizontal grooves-flutes (83.3% – Dolgov 1, about 60% – on Murlinsky 1), in a relatively low proportion of horizontal lines made using comb prints, on Dolgov 1 – 0.9%, and 10% from Murlinsky 1 ^{[18, p. 221, Table 1]}. There is only a more frequent (27.1%) use of curly stamps and their greater variety in the Murlinsky 1 settlement ^{[18, p. 224, Table 3]}.

Ceramics of a similar appearance to Dolgovsky 1 are also present in burials from the burial grounds of the Potchevashsky AK Okunevsky (late VI–VIII centuries) and Vikulovskoye cemetery (VI–IX centuries) ^{[22, Fig 3; 7: 11, 12; 8: 5, 6; 10: 11, 13, 14; 16, fig. 3: 2, 4; 4: 3, 8]}.

The lesser similarity of the dishes of the Dolgovsky 1 settlement can be traced to the collection of ceramics of the Loginovsky settlement from the Priishimye, which is characterized by the use of a comb stamp, with a small proportion of both horizontal grooves – 6.7% and horizontal lines from the comb – 15.2% ^{[6, p. 121, Tables C, D; 8, Table IV]}, A very small proportion of curly stamps are also: triangular ^{[6, Table 57: 4; Table 58: 1, 3]}, angular ^{[6, Table 59: 6, 10]} rhombic ^{[6, Table 56: 3]}, oval ^{[6, Table 59: 7]}.

Dishes from the Likhachevsky burial ground are also very close to the ceramics of the Loginovsky settlement, on which there are no horizontal drawn flutes and there are horizontal lines from a comb stamp, and on 9 published vessels (out of 11 discovered) there are no figured stamps. The authors also wrote about the proximity of the ceramic complexes of the two monuments ^{[7, p. 128]}.

Despite the territorial remoteness, the ceramic complexes of the settlements of Preobrazhenka 1, Turunovka 1, and Burundukovo 4 from the Barabinsk forest–steppe (the basin of the Omi River) have significant similarities with the ceramics of the Dolgovsky 1 settlement: there are pot-shaped vessels with a high neck, sharply turning into an inflated body (type I), as well as a fairly high percentage of products with horizontal grooves - 45%, 78% and 50%, respectively ^{[10, pp. 119, 122, fig. 55, 56]}. In addition, at the settlements of Preobrazhenka and Burundukovo 4, a low percentage of figured stamps is 8 and 6%, and only at the settlement of Turunovka 1, the proportion of figured–stamped ceramics reaches 27% ^{[10, p. 122]} Dishes from the burial ground of Preobrazhenka 3, with the undoubted influence of Turkic traditions in the funeral rite, are Potchevash, and comparable to ceramics from the above-mentioned settlements: it has a high percentage of horizontal grooves in the absence of curly stamps ^{[23, fig. 35]}.

At the same time, the vessels of the early medieval from the Chulym 2 burial ground, which is located much to the south of the above-mentioned monuments, and in the ceramic complex of which both the Turkic component and the component associated by researchers with the Potchevash culture can be traced ^{[11, p. 59]}, has a slight resemblance to the collection of Dolgovsky 1, which is manifested in the presence of grooves available only on 3 vessels (out of at least 24 Potchevash ones) ^{[11, fig. 14: 10; 23: 1; 26: 9]}, and 2 vessels with figured ornamentation ^{[11, fig. 14: 10, 15]}.

Speaking about the comparison of Potchevash ceramics from the Dolgovskoye settlement 1 with collections of monuments of the Nizhny Novgorod culture, the following should be noted. Within the latter, in the second half of the I millennium AD, the Zelenogorsk and Kuchiminsky stages are distinguished, dating from the VI–X centuries ^{[27, pp. 133-137]}, or Zelenogorsk, Relkin, Kuchiminsky in the same chronological framework ^{[13, pp. 61-87]}. Unfortunately, in the publications of materials of ceramic complexes related to these stages, there are practically no statistical calculations both on the types of vessels and on the elements of ornament ^{[14, pp.54-57; 13]}.

Some statistical data on Zelenogorsk ceramics from the Langepas 1 settlement are given in the article by A. V. Gordienko ^[9]. According to them, 35.4% of vessels have grooved-drawn ornamentation, and figuratively stamped (in combination with combed) – 44.4% ^{[9, p. 224]}. According to A. P. Zykov's calculations (without specifying specific monuments and the total number of vessels sampled), at the Zelenogorsk stage, shaped-stamped ceramics decorate most of the dishes – 59.4%, and grooved only 7.4% ^{[13, p. 67]}. As you can see, a small number of grooves and a very high percentage of shaped-stamped ceramics, on which the corner stamp is the leading one ^{[13, p. 67]} (on Dolgovsky 1 it is only 2.8%), serious differences in the set of ornamental motifs ^{[9, Fig. 1; 13, Fig. 21-29]} do not allow us to talk about the similarity of Zelenogorsk ceramics and dishes of the Dolgovsky settlement 1.

Judging by the description of A. P. Zykov, the features of the ceramics of the Kuchiminsky stage include the almost complete disappearance of figured stamps with the preservation of the semilunar. Alternating horizontal compositions separated by four to six grooves and rows of straight, obliquely, or horizontally placed impressions of a comb stamp, horizontal lines of closely spaced receding prints of a spatula or stick tips ^{[13, pp. 81, 82]}. Statistical calculations on the Kuchim ceramic complex of the settlement of Egyptamynglor 4 indicate that 95% of the dishes are decorated with a comb stamp, the shaped stamp is applied to 7%, and the drawn lines are on 70% of the vessels. In addition, horizontal lines made up of consecutive comb prints are present on 56% of dishes ^{[26, p. 284]}.

When comparing the ceramics of the Kuchiminsky monuments with the materials of the Dolgovskoye settlement 1, their noticeable similarity is visible. The dominance of the comb stamp, quite a bit of the curly stamp, a significant percentage of grooves. However, there is also a significant difference – on Dolgovsky 1, horizontal lines from stamps make up 0.9%, and on Egyptamynglor 4 – 56%. Therefore, there is no need to talk about the identity of the Kuchiminsky and Potchevashsky ceramic complexes.

The existing similarity is quite possibly explained by the general evolution of ornamental complexes of medieval cultures in the taiga zone of Western Siberia, which arose on the basis of the Kulai culture. For example, ceramics of the Upper Ob culture from the Novosibirsk Ob region in the second half of the VIII–IX centuries on settlement complexes may contain up to 80% of vessels with horizontal lines both drawn and combed, and quite a few shaped stamps ^{[25, Table 14]}.

Conclusion. Thus, the following can be attributed to the dominant features of the studied ceramic complex of the Dolgovsky 1 settlement: the numerical predominance of a pot-shaped container with a high neck, with a sharp transition to a poorly developed body; the presence of a dimpled pearl zone along the corolla, horizontal belts of prints of a vertical or obliquely placed comb stamp, horizontal deep grooves made by dragging an ornament; a small proportion These features can be used as key features in determining the place of ceramics of the Dolgovskoye settlement 1 in the system of archaeological cultures of Western Siberia.

A comparative analysis of the ceramics of the Dolgovskoye settlement 1 showed its proximity to the collections of a number of Potchevash monuments of the South Taiga Irtysh region and the Barabinsk forest-steppe, as well as its difference from both the Potchevash ceramic complexes from the Priishimye region and the ceramics of the monuments of the Zelenogorsky, Kuchiminsky stages from the Surgut Ob region.

Without going into details of the discussion about the reasons for the appearance of the so-called roller-grooved ornament on dishes of the first half of the I millennium in Western Siberia ^{[15, p. 28; 5, p. 60-65; 4, p. 2464-2465]}, we believe that the Potchevash ceramic tradition originates from the Late Kulai complexes of the South Taiga Irtysh region through the Karym antiquities. It is in the depths of these cultures (wavy drawn grooves in the Kulai AK and horizontal ones in the Karym) that one can see the origins of the grooved Potchevash ornament. In the early Middle Ages, this ornamental technique was developed by the population of the Potchevash region of the southern Taiga Irtysh region, and became dominant, giving ceramics a peculiar appearance.

The rare use of shaped stamps, a large proportion of grooves fixed on ceramics from the 1997 excavation from the Dolgovskoye settlement 1, are most likely a chronological marker of Potchevash ceramics of the VIII–IX centuries, synchronous with both Kuchiminskaya and Verkhneobskaya of this period.

We believe that the grooves on the vessels are a cultural diagnostic feature for the monuments of the Potchevash AK at its final stage. A striking example is the almost homogeneous collection of the Dolgovskoye settlement 1, where there is practically no foreign cultural ceramics, and the proportion of vessels with flutes is very high – 83.3% of the collection. This makes it possible to consider ceramics from the 1997 excavation at the Dolgovskoye settlement 1 as the reference for the Potchevash AK of the VIII–IX centuries. We assume that on the periphery of the area of the Potchevash AK, in areas with foreign cultural influence, a lower index of the specific gravity of grooved ceramics is possible (which is observed on the material of the settlements of Murlinskoye 1 and Preobrazhenka). It should also be borne in mind that at the later stages of the culture's existence, a partial replacement of horizontal drawn grooves with horizontal lines made with comb impressions is quite likely (which is typical for the Ust-Ishim AK, which replaced the Potchevashskaya by the 10th century).

It must be assumed that the Potchevash ceramics of the VI–VII centuries will contain a much higher percentage of figured-stamped ornament, which is observed on a number of monuments (Murlinskoe 1, Turunovka 1), but complexes with similar ceramics in the Tobolsk Irtysh region have yet to be explored.

Figure 1. Ceramics from the Dolgovskoye settlement 1.

Figure 2. Ceramics from the Dolgovskoye settlement 1.

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