PRELIMINARY REPORT ABOUT TURTLES FROM CHECUPS-2

Abstract

The paper presents the results of study the series of skulls obtained during archaeological excavations at Chekups-2 settlement. Except for the skulls themselves, no mandibles or cervical vertebrae were found. The entire collection originates from a utility pit and was handed over to the author for paleoanthropological analysis. First of all, during the study, traces of destruction were noted, which can be interpreted as a result of exposure. A total 20 skulls feature traces of trauma, mainly located in the occipital bone and the back of the parietal bones. Some of the recorded injuries were aimed not at instant death, but at ritual actions associated with cutting off fragments of the scalp with the bone plate and part of the hair. As a result of a gender and age study, it was ascertained that most of the skulls belonged to men who died in different age intervals from 25 to 55. Children and adolescents were also present as the study sample. The youngest child was 7-10 years old at the time of death, and the skulls of adolescents aged 10-14 and 13-18 are also present. It remains unknown who the people whose skulls became the object of the study were, and in what time period the burial was performed. Nevertheless, the complex itself and the ritual manipulations performed with the skulls, arouse interest and require further consideration.