EARLY MEDIEVAL (5TH–10TH CENTURIES) BURIALS WITH BLACKSMITH TOOLS IN WESTERN SIBERIA; pp. 20–38

Abstract

The article presents the results of an analysis of the burials with blacksmith tools in western Siberia from the sixth to the tenth centuries AD and identifies the chronological and typological characteristics of the blacksmith tools. Virtually all the burials in question contain an abundance of weapons, belts, jewellery, crockery, and horse harnesses. Thus, we believe that those buried with blacksmith tools may not have necessarily been blacksmiths themselves and may have enjoyed a high social status. The blacksmith tools in the burials may have acted as symbols of belonging to the elite and as ‘attributes of power’.