CREMATED MEDIEVAL BURIALS AND ATTEMPTS TO IDENTIFY TRACES OF WOOLEN SUBSTRATES

Abstract

In order to determine the presence of keratinolytic microorganisms, researchers apply cup cultures on media with a direct count of colony forming units. Inoculation of a medium with woolen discs was carried out in the conditions of laminar boxes in triplicate with an exposure period of 14 days and a sequential triple count of keratinolytic microorganisms. In addition, a supplementary experiment was conducted in triplicate with no ultrasonic disintegration of soil particles in the suspension in order to obtain stable results. Objects of the experiment were represented by soils from Kremenje burial ground in the vicinity of Stupino, Moscow Oblast, where excavations were conducted in the fi eld season of 2017. Samples were taken directly from the cross–sections of cremated burials with collection of bottom, middle, and top samples using tacheometer readings. Background for the experiment were grey forest soils of the burial mound, which were of the same age as the cremations (12th century A.D.). The approaches developed by the authors make it possible to assess the presence of woolen clothing or container fragments in samples with an increased count of keratinolytic fungi. The report will feature detailed results of the fi rst experiments for the 12th century soil cremations (Russian
population) located in central Russia. The presence of substrates of animal origin was identifi ed in three burials. The diff erence in the excess of background ranges from 1.5–fold to 8–fold across the entire selection.