Towards the Archaeological Collections of the Saratov Oblast Museum of Local History and Lore Excavated in Kalmyk Autonomous Oblast, 1929– 1937

Introduction. The archaeological collections obtained during excavations in Kalmykia are currently stored at several museums of Russia, namely: Saratov Oblast Museum of Local History and Lore (Saratov), State Historical Museum (Moscow), Palmov National Museum of Kalmykia (Elista), etc. Having been a central museum of the Lower Volga Krai that comprised Kalmyk Autonomous Oblast as well, the Saratov museum still houses findings excavated in Kalmykia during the pre-war period (1929–1937). The scope of work performed included excavations of 153 burials and explorations of 12 localities. Goals. The paper attempts an analysis of archaeological collections excavated in Kalmyk Autonomous Oblast from 1929 to 1937 and stored at Saratov Oblast Museum of Local History and Lore. Results. The work compiles a list of all findings from published field reports (List 1). A review of the Incoming Delivery Register has resulted in a List of Findings accepted by the Saratov museum (List 2). The subsequent comparative analysis of these two lists develops List 3 mentioning some identified findings never delivered to the Saratov museum. Conclusions. List 1 contains data on findings from 180 burials, while List 2 considers excavated items from 153 burials. So, findings from 27 burials never arrived in the Saratov museum, 23 of the former having contained one to three items only. The four remaining findspots are distinguished by quite a variety of tools extracted: burial 3, kurgan 28, Three Brothers-1 (Russ. Tri Brata) mound group (East Manych Catacomb Culture) — 5 items; burial 6, kurgan 28, Three Brothers-1 mound group (Early Iron Age) — 5 items; burial 1, kurgan 11, Three Brothers-1 mound group (Early Iron Age) — 10 items; burial 1, kurgan 12, Three Brothers-1 mound group (Middle Ages) — 18 items. The integrity level of the examined archaeological collections at the Saratov museum is 80 % (as compared to the number of items that had been registered).