[h=1]2500 year old tattooed Siberian mummy found[/h] Posted by TANN Ancient, ArchaeoHeritage, Archaeology, Asia, Breakingnews, Central Asia, Siberia 12:00 PM
High in the Altai mountains of Siberia, not far from the border between Russia and Mongolia, researchers have found the mummified body of a young woman covered with tattoos that archeologists say look remarkably modern.
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[TD="class: tr-caption, align: center"]The 2500 year old Siberian mummy [Credit: Akg-images/RIA Nowosti/Newscom][/TD]
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The woman, probably about 25 years old, was buried some 2,500 years ago and found in 1993. She probably belonged to the Pazyryk tribe, nomads who inhabited the area for centuries. Kept cold in the permafrost, she was, say the scientists, well enough preserved that one can see intricate tattoos of animals and what appear to be deities.
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[TD="class: tr-caption, align: center"]The Body of Princess Ukok, who died aged 25, had several tattoos on her body, including a deer with a griffon's beak and a Capricorn's antlers. The tattoos have been perfectly preserved for 2,500 years [Credit: Siberian Times][/TD]
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“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 Natalia Polosmak, the lead researcher, in an interview with The Siberian Times. “It is a phenomenal level of tattoo art. Incredible.”
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[TD="class: tr-caption, align: center"]Princess Ukok's hand with marked tattoos on her fingers. She was dug out of the ice 19 years ago, and is set to go on public display in the Altai Republic [Credit: Siberian Times][/TD]
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The young woman has come to be known as the Ukok princess. She was buried on a remote plateau with six horses, possibly her spiritual escorts to the next world, and two men, possibly warriors. The men had tattoos, as well. Polosmak said there are older examples of tattooing – Oetzi, the famous “iceman” from 3,300 B.C. in the Italian Alps, had some short, parallel lines on his legs and lower back – but there’s been no body decoration as elaborate as what the Ukok princess had.
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[TD="class: tr-caption, align: center"]Tattoos are clearly visible on one of the warrior's shoulders. The designs are similar to those found on the Princess [Credit: Siberian Times][/TD]
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On her left shoulder, said Polosmak, the young woman had a depiction of a fabulous mythic animal – a deer with a griffon’s beak and a Capricorn’s antlers. On her wrist was a deer with elaborate antlers. The same deer/griffon also appeared on the body of the man found closest to the princess, covering most of the right side of his body.
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[TD="class: tr-caption, align: center"]The tattoos of one of two warriors found on the ancient permafrost burial site at Ukok Plateau some 2,500 metres above sea level close to Russia's frontiers with modern day Mongolia, China and Kazakhstan [Credit: Siberian Times][/TD]
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The tattoos were probably made of dyes made from burned plants, rich in potassium. The skin was apparently pierced with a needle or another sharp object, and rubbed with a mixture of soot and fat.
Even though the Ukok princess lived some 500 years before Jesus, Polosmak said some things have not changed.
“I think we have not moved far from Pazyryks in how the tattoos are made,” she said. “It is still about a craving to make yourself as beautiful as possible.”
Author: Ned Potter | Source: ABC News Website [August 16, 2012]
High in the Altai mountains of Siberia, not far from the border between Russia and Mongolia, researchers have found the mummified body of a young woman covered with tattoos that archeologists say look remarkably modern.
[TABLE="class: tr-caption-container, align: center"]
[TR]
[TD="align: center"]
[/TD][/TR]
[TR]
[TD="class: tr-caption, align: center"]The 2500 year old Siberian mummy [Credit: Akg-images/RIA Nowosti/Newscom][/TD]
[/TR]
[/TABLE]
The woman, probably about 25 years old, was buried some 2,500 years ago and found in 1993. She probably belonged to the Pazyryk tribe, nomads who inhabited the area for centuries. Kept cold in the permafrost, she was, say the scientists, well enough preserved that one can see intricate tattoos of animals and what appear to be deities.
[TABLE="class: tr-caption-container, align: center"]
[TR]
[TD="align: center"]
[/TD][/TR]
[TR]
[TD="class: tr-caption, align: center"]The Body of Princess Ukok, who died aged 25, had several tattoos on her body, including a deer with a griffon's beak and a Capricorn's antlers. The tattoos have been perfectly preserved for 2,500 years [Credit: Siberian Times][/TD]
[/TR]
[/TABLE]
“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 Natalia Polosmak, the lead researcher, in an interview with The Siberian Times. “It is a phenomenal level of tattoo art. Incredible.”
[TABLE="class: tr-caption-container, align: center"]
[TR]
[TD="align: center"]
[/TD][/TR]
[TR]
[TD="class: tr-caption, align: center"]Princess Ukok's hand with marked tattoos on her fingers. She was dug out of the ice 19 years ago, and is set to go on public display in the Altai Republic [Credit: Siberian Times][/TD]
[/TR]
[/TABLE]
The young woman has come to be known as the Ukok princess. She was buried on a remote plateau with six horses, possibly her spiritual escorts to the next world, and two men, possibly warriors. The men had tattoos, as well. Polosmak said there are older examples of tattooing – Oetzi, the famous “iceman” from 3,300 B.C. in the Italian Alps, had some short, parallel lines on his legs and lower back – but there’s been no body decoration as elaborate as what the Ukok princess had.
[TABLE="class: tr-caption-container, align: center"]
[TR]
[TD="align: center"]
[/TD][/TR]
[TR]
[TD="class: tr-caption, align: center"]Tattoos are clearly visible on one of the warrior's shoulders. The designs are similar to those found on the Princess [Credit: Siberian Times][/TD]
[/TR]
[/TABLE]
On her left shoulder, said Polosmak, the young woman had a depiction of a fabulous mythic animal – a deer with a griffon’s beak and a Capricorn’s antlers. On her wrist was a deer with elaborate antlers. The same deer/griffon also appeared on the body of the man found closest to the princess, covering most of the right side of his body.
[TABLE="class: tr-caption-container, align: center"]
[TR]
[TD="align: center"]
[/TD][/TR]
[TR]
[TD="class: tr-caption, align: center"]The tattoos of one of two warriors found on the ancient permafrost burial site at Ukok Plateau some 2,500 metres above sea level close to Russia's frontiers with modern day Mongolia, China and Kazakhstan [Credit: Siberian Times][/TD]
[/TR]
[/TABLE]
The tattoos were probably made of dyes made from burned plants, rich in potassium. The skin was apparently pierced with a needle or another sharp object, and rubbed with a mixture of soot and fat.
Even though the Ukok princess lived some 500 years before Jesus, Polosmak said some things have not changed.
“I think we have not moved far from Pazyryks in how the tattoos are made,” she said. “It is still about a craving to make yourself as beautiful as possible.”
Author: Ned Potter | Source: ABC News Website [August 16, 2012]
