Figurine of an adult woman (Buret')

Anthropomorphic figurine of an adult woman in traditional pose of Mal'ta full-length statuettes. The head is rounded, of spherical shape. The back of the head is flattened, the surface of dentine is partly preserved. The head is divided from the body by noticeable deepening, the shoulders are sloping. The arms contours are made neatly from the back. The upper part of the body is rounded. The legs contour is profiled on the back by a deep canal. The buttocks are profiled. The seat area is significantly raised. In profile, a specific bending of the figurine is noticed. It is typical for Mal'ta sculpture. The front part of the figurine is not detailed, there are no face details, the contours of the arms and legs are weakly expressed. A womb contour is depicted as elongated triangle lowered almost below the knees. Traces of item's ending in the lower part of the legs are not found. The deepening of the canal from the back is high. The W-shaped chest is marked by a thin line. On the chest there is a small indentation made intentionally. The bracelet was probably made on the left shoulder.

 

In the area of a shoulder joint there are traces of bright blue paint. The paint is noted along the left side, in the arms area. 



Manufacturing technique

The blank is flattened, tips are made with a planning knife (it is clearly seen in the head area). The head, middle part, arms, and legs are well-made. The contour of the item is made with a planning knife. The same tool was used for making the arms, shoulders, and belly. A cutting tool was used for making the contour of the left arm and the line that divides legs. The right arm is partly lost. There are traces of a push-plane on the front side (on the legs). The hole in the chest is made with a cutting tool. 


Use-wear traces

Use-wear traces are not found. 


Storage location

Irkutsk Regional Art Museum

Inventory number

КП 6729 С-376

Size

Height - 85 mm

Width (average) - 22 mm

Thickness (average) - 29 mm


Material

Ivory

Dating

19-23 th years BC

Culture

Mal'ta-Buret' archaeological culture

The author of the excavations

Okladnikov A.P.
1940

Publications

Okladnikov A.P. Paleoliticheskie zhenskie statuetki Bureti. // MIA SSSR №79, 1960. S. 284 – 285