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Tattooed 2,500 year old Siberian princess 'to be reburied'

By Anna Liesowska
21 August 2014

Elders in Altai Mountains vote to reinter mummy of ancient woman 'to stop her anger which causes floods and earthquakes'.

'Princess Ukok' mummy in Anokhin museum, Gorno-Altaisk. Picture: Alexander Tyryshkin

Known as 'Princess Ukok' after the plateau where her burial chamber was found by Russian scientists, the archeological discovery of her grave led to a leap in understanding of the Pazyryk people who lived before Christ in this remote mountainous region.

The Siberian Ice Maiden - aged around 25 and preserved in the permafrost at an altitude of around 2,500 metres - was found to have astonishing body artwork seen as the best preserved and most elaborate ancient tattoos anywhere in the world.

From her clothes and possessions including a 'cosmetics bag', scientists were able to recreate her fashion and beauty secrets, as our pictures show.

But local peoples from the Altai Republic, which borders Kazakhstan and Mongolia, have long objected to the fact that her burial mound was disturbed. They were also angered by a decision, after 19 years of academic research into her remains, to put her on display in a glass sarcophagus in a local museum. 

Ancient beliefs say that the mummy's presence in the burial chamber was 'to bar the entrance to the kingdom of the dead'. 

By removing this mummy, also known as Oochy-Bala, the elders contend that 'the entrance remains open'.

'Today, we honour the sacred beliefs of our ancestors like three millennia ago,' said one elder. 'We have been burying people according to Scythian traditions. We want respect for our traditions'.

Tattoed 2,500 year old Siberian princess 'to be reburied to stop her posthumous anger which causes floods and earthquakes'


Tattoed 2,500 year old Siberian princess 'to be reburied to stop her posthumous anger which causes floods and earthquakes'


Tattoed 2,500 year old Siberian princess 'to be reburied to stop her posthumous anger which causes floods and earthquakes'

Scheme of the burial and reconstructions of Pazyryk woman's and man's costumes. All items were found inside 'Princess' Ukok burial. Reconstruction by D. Pozdnyakov, Institute of Archeology and Ethnography, Siberian Branch of Russian Academy of Science 

Campaigners including shamans in support of burial said: 'Naked and defenseless, Ooch-Bala is freezing from inexplicable shame'.

A statement stressed: 'Who puts up the naked corpse of their mother for public display? She knocks into our heart, seeking compassion. She is cold from evil indifference.'

Campaigners claimed that recent flooding in Altai - the worst in 50 years - and a series of earthquakes are the result of ancient anger at the grave being disturbed. In a landmark decision, a Council of Elders session on 18 August in regional capital Gorno-Altaisk, and attended by regional head Alexander Berdnikov, voted to reinter the mummy. There was only one dissenter. 

'Because the council of elders took the decision, the mummy of this respected women will finally be buried,' said Akai Kine, a zaisan - or head of the kin - of the Teles ethnic group, participant at the council. 'The next step will be the adoption of a local law, on the basis of which it will happen. Another important step will be the preparation of clothing, utensils, and approval of the ritual burial.' 

The aim will be to bury her in the appropriate manner though details remain sketchy. 

Tattoed 2,500 year old Siberian princess 'to be reburied to stop her posthumous anger which causes floods and earthquakes'


Tattoed 2,500 year old Siberian princess 'to be reburied to stop her posthumous anger which causes floods and earthquakes'


Tattoed 2,500 year old Siberian princess 'to be reburied to stop her posthumous anger which causes floods and earthquakes'


Tattoed 2,500 year old Siberian princess 'to be reburied to stop her posthumous anger which causes floods and earthquakes'


Tattoed 2,500 year old Siberian princess 'to be reburied to stop her posthumous anger which causes floods and earthquakes'


Tattoed 2,500 year old Siberian princess 'to be reburied to stop her posthumous anger which causes floods and earthquakes'

The mummy is getting inside a sarcophagus of Anokhin museum, Gorno-Altaisk, under a watchful eye of Irina Salnikova, head of the Siberian Branch of Russian Academy of Sciences Museum of Archeology and Ethnography. Pictures: Alexander Tyryshkin

The regional government, while stating the matter was unprecedented, acknowledged that the reburial will now in all probability go ahead, though it remains to be seen how the federal authorities in Russia will react to the decision. 

Oksana Yeremeeva, head of information and public affairs for the Altai Republic, said: 'It is correct the Council of Elders took such a decision, but can you for example bury some vase from Hermitage Museum? Of course not. The mummy, though it can sound quite rude, is still a museum exhibit, that is we cannot just bury it, no-one has done such things before.'

She added: 'The decision of Council of Elders is very respectable, but we cannot implement it immediately. We as officials should work out the way to implement it, think about the steps we need to take to make it possible.'

Asked if ultimately the aim was to implement the elders' wishes, she said:  'Yes, we are working on this now.'

She suggested that possibly Ukok mummy could be buried at a museum dedicated to her. In ancient times the princess had been buried on the Ukok Plateau.

'At the moment we need to do a lot of work in this direction,' Oksana Yeremeeva said. 

Tattoed 2,500 year old Siberian princess 'to be reburied to stop her posthumous anger which causes floods and earthquakes'


Tattoed 2,500 year old Siberian princess 'to be reburied to stop her posthumous anger which causes floods and earthquakes'

A sculptor's impression of how Princess Ukok looked 2,500 years ago, and a view of Ukok Plateau. Pictures: The Siberian Times

Andrey Belyaev, deputy Minister of Culture in the Altai Republic, said: 'At the moment we did not get any instructions on this.'

A complicating factor might be plans by Gazprom to locate a huge gas pipeline supplying China through this mountainous region. Experts have also pointed out that despite the strong feeling among native groups to Altai, the mummy is not believed to be genetically linked to people now living in the region. 

The mummy was excavated by Novosibirsk scientist Natalia Polosmak in 1993 and was seen as 'one of the most significant archeological discoveries at the close of the 20th century', reported Itar-Tass.

She is now kept at the Republican National Museum in capital Gorno-Altaisk but is not currently on display in a specially built glass sarcophagus.  

For the past 19 years, since her discovery, she was kept mainly at a scientific institute in Novosibirsk, apart from a period in Moscow when her remains were treated by the same scientists who preserve the body of Soviet founder Vladimir Lenin. 

Buried around her were six horses, saddled and bridled, her spiritual escorts to the next world, and a symbol of her evident status, perhaps more likely a revered folk tale narrator, a healer or a holy woman than an ice princess.

There, too, was a meal of sheep and horse meat and ornaments made from felt, wood, bronze and gold.  And a small container of cannabis, say some accounts, along with a stone plate on which were the burned seeds of coriander. 

'Compared to all tattoos found by archeologists around the world, those on the mummies of the Pazyryk people are the most complicated, and the most beautiful,' said Dr Polosmak. 'More ancient tattoos have been found, like the Ice Man found in the Alps - but he only had lines, not the perfect and highly artistic images one can see on the bodies of the Pazyryks'. 

'It is a phenomenal level of tattoo art. Incredible’.

Tattoed 2,500 year old Siberian princess 'to be reburied to stop her posthumous anger which causes floods and earthquakes'


Tattoed 2,500 year old Siberian princess 'to be reburied to stop her posthumous anger which causes floods and earthquakes'


Tattoed 2,500 year old Siberian princess 'to be reburied to stop her posthumous anger which causes floods and earthquakes'


Tattoed 2,500 year old Siberian princess 'to be reburied to stop her posthumous anger which causes floods and earthquakes'

Pictures and reconstruction of the 'Princess''s and other Pazyryks tattooes discovered on the same plateau as the 'Princess'.  The drawings made by Elena Shumakova, Institute of Archeology and Ethnography, Siberian Branch of Russian Academy of Science 

The lone voice against the move in the Council of Elders was Boris Alushkin, former El Bashchi (Public Leader) of the Altai people, currently head of the Regional Union of Journalists.

'I know the traditions and beliefs of Altai people,' he said.  'Like any other people they believe that the deceased have to be buried, including those who were great leaders. But the Altai region government allowed the archeological works. They knew about this very rare find and they took it back after all necessary scientific works. 

'Moreover, they found money to build a museum in which to place the princess with great ceremonies. And after very little time this question is raised again, in the middle of an election campaign in the Republic. My position is that we may consider burying the princess, but we must not hurry with the decision right now'.

Comments (10)

It's desecration. Simple. all arguments of modern man's curiosity and obsession with dissecting and scientifically analysing everything are just perverse and in the context of this human being's culture the kind of 'evil' temptations she was supposed to be guarded from. The entire argument about learning from this is perverse; the only thing to learn is that digging up dead bodies for 'research' is unethical and inhumane.
Steph, Scotland
25/05/2020 17:09
2
1
Ridatele degna sepoltura, l'etnologia non deve essere una scienza morta, se si usa rispetto, la nostra connessione con il remoto passato resta intatta e viva. Lasciatele svolgere il suo lavoro di potente guardiana e sigillo.
Manuela, Roma
15/04/2018 13:02
0
0
Vorrei sapere se in conformità alle decisioni prese dal consiglio degli anziani, l'antica madre è poi stata degnamente sepolta. Il suo messaggio relativo alla sostanziale unità del genere umano sotto il segno della spiritualità femminile è stato recepito, non ritengo che evitare l'esposizione del corpo nudo degli antenati sia un atteggiamento arcaico e retrogrado, piuttosto sarebbe un fatto nuovo all'insegna di una nuovo traguardo: la raggiunta unità di scienza e coscienza.
Manuela, Roma
15/04/2018 12:51
0
0
How many cultures preserve their dead and send them with the things they need in the next world? This Princess has achieved immortality in the next life. We have learned SO much about ancient humans from her. I don't believe for an instant that her spirit is angry and sending all these bad things. I think she would be proud that she has taught so much about her people.
I work in the funeral business. I say treat her with respect; but I don't think keeping her someplace where people can continue to study her is undignified. Think of how much less we would know, if she had been discovered before modern DNA testing and the MRI! What else might she have to teach us?
Edna, Wyoming USA
08/08/2015 03:55
5
2
I understand why she is restless, these ancient tribes hold such importance to ritualistic burials, the journey of the soul to the next plane must be with ease...but perhaps finding her was a sign of some kind and her restlessness is because it has been ignored and deviated off course?
"L" , Ireland
12/12/2014 06:22
9
2
Let her sleep.
Pazyryk , Oregon/USA
22/10/2014 13:20
4
0
The problem also, is that she was burried with her belongings, wich will not be burried back, because they could be stolen. So she will not have what she needs in the "other world"...spiritually speaking.
Lala, Turkey
27/08/2014 00:48
9
4
Very interesting, Altaï is beautiful and wild, great culture.. Sujet très intéressant pour la recherche (tatouages, etc..)et aussi pour la question du respect de ces momies. Sorry for my bad english
Jocelyne, FRANCE
21/08/2014 22:02
0
0
Very interesting, Altaï is beautiful and wild, great culture..

Sujet très intéressant pour la recherche (tatouages, etc..)et aussi pour la question du respect de ces momies.

Sorry for my bad english
Jocelyne, FRANCE
21/08/2014 21:52
5
0
what do we do with rest of museum treasures, like British Museum? Bury it all back?
someone, in Russia
21/08/2014 19:27
10
4
1

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