Polovets stone statues

Gleb · Post by **Gleb** » Wed Mar 18, 2009 5:07 pm

My fight with viruses seems to be victorious (at least for a moment), so here is the promised theme:

Well, the Polovets is a nomad Turkic people that came to Russian steppe frontier in 1055 AD. Since that they occupied the steppes from Danube in the East to Volga in the west. In the western chronicles they were mentioned as Cuman; and as Kipchaq (sometimes as Kimaq) in Arab and Persian sources. They were quite uneasy neighbors for all peoples and countries that bordered with them. Divided into many hordes thay seems to be gathered together by the territory where they roam. Sometimes some of them united under one successful khan (Bonyak, Tugorkhan, Sharukhan, Konchack, Kotyan), while others never combined with their relatives. The last ones were known to Russians as Wild Polovets who served as mounted mercenary in Russian principalities, Georgian kingdoms, Hungary, Byzantium, Bulgaria. They were well known for their mounted archery skills. The Mongol invasion in 1223, 1236-40 wiped them away. Some of them run to Hungary, some were sold as a warrior-slaves to Egypt (where they along with Western Caucasian warrior-slaves were organized in Mameluke troops). The rest became the lower class population of Golden Horde mixing with other Turkic peoples.

They left in Ukrainian, Russian, North Caucasus steppes and Crimea thousands of huge stone statues depicted their warriors, khans, and women in static poses. Many of statues were broken, used in the recent buildings, hided by the last free kinsmen. Up to the modern times more than 1300 statues known.

On some statues the archery related items clearly depicted. Near all of them dated 12 century AD. I took a preliminary look through the literature – so please take a look on them.

Gleb · Post by **Gleb** » Wed Mar 18, 2009 5:09 pm

part 2

Gleb · Post by **Gleb** » Wed Mar 18, 2009 5:11 pm

part 3

Gleb · Post by **Gleb** » Wed Mar 18, 2009 5:13 pm

part 4

Gleb · Post by **Gleb** » Wed Mar 18, 2009 5:15 pm

part 5

Stephen Selby · Post by **Stephen Selby** » Thu Mar 19, 2009 1:29 am

Thank you.

I want to ask: what is the object clasped in their hands at the front? I know that in Siberia and north China, there is a tradition of monumental stone sculptures of people in this rigid pose, and those people usually grasp a long sword which goes down to the ground between their feet. The sculptures are generally attributed to 'Turkic' peoples. What is your view?

Gleb · Post by **Gleb** » Thu Mar 19, 2009 6:50 am

Stephen,

All the Polovets' stone sculptures holds with two hands a bowl, a vessel, that may varied in many forms (or at least has the bowl depicted).

In South Siberia and Kazakhstan stands many stone sculptures dated 6-10 c. AD. The sculptures attributed to Turkic cultures. Most of them has the bowl in two/one hands, while the other hand may place on the sword's handle (hanging diagonal or horizontal from the decorated belt) or on the belt itself.
Remarkable the lack of any archery related items on the Siberian sculptures although many sculptures has very detailed portrayal of upper clothes, adornment, decorated warrior’s belts, small bags, swords and daggers in sheathes, whips, mirrors etc.

Bede · Post by **Bede** » Fri Mar 20, 2009 12:53 am

Quite a few of the bowls have survived. They were a drinking vessel made from silver or gold. Sometimes there was a tab with a ring on one side.

Gleb · Post by **Gleb** » Fri Mar 20, 2009 6:31 pm

Bede,

I'm not so familiar with much earlier Siberian sculptures, but the vessel in Polovets' statue' s hands carved from the same material - stone.
The bowl shapes is quite various. There are few hypothesis existing on the bowl (memorial/funeral bowl, feast bowl and so on with water or milk alcoholic drink) and the statues itself (killed enemy, famous tribesmen, common ancestor).
Never heard of the bowl excavated at sculptures’ foot!

Bede · Post by **Bede** » Sat Mar 21, 2009 1:49 pm

Gleb,
The bowls were found in tombs, not at the foot of the statues. There are some Russian publications with references to the objects and the statues.

jack farrell · Post by **jack farrell** » Sat Mar 21, 2009 5:29 pm

All the museums in Central Asia which I visited had these stone figures. They are also called balbal stones or baba stones. There was no concise story about then. Some are found on the top of kurgans which would make one think of them as Scythian but kurgans were used in all later periods as grave yards.

The other story is that they date from the Turkic period, maybe from the fourth century to the tenth or eleventh.

Various curators denied that these were kings or gods. The concensus is that they were guardians. It seems not to be known for sure.

Many held cups; some held their hands on their stomachs like they had pain.
One had a cup with a bird on the shoulder. Would be most interesting to find some good article on the subject. Add Turkic Runic inscriptions which sometimes accompany balbal stones.

Dusan · Post by **Dusan** » Sat Mar 21, 2009 10:53 pm

Jack , no "balbal" , but baba stone. Baba is slavs word for grand mother or old women , but is use too (in slovac) like "b?bka" for the name of all wooden figures like Pinoccio.I mean this name havnt any istorical logic. Its only Russian funy name for stone statue.

jack farrell · Post by **jack farrell** » Sun Mar 22, 2009 1:29 am

Nevertheless if one googles on balbal one will find much information on these stones. It is possible that the origin of the term is not Slavic but Turkic. In Turkish baba is father or elderly man or newel post or a short thick post. This would fit perfectly.

Stephen Selby · Post by **Stephen Selby** » Sun Mar 22, 2009 2:39 am

Dusan wrote: Jack , no "balbal" , but baba stone. Baba is slavs word for grand mother or old women , but is use too (in slovac) like "b?bka" for the name of all wooden figures like Pinoccio.I mean this name havnt any istorical logic. Its only Russian funy name for stone statue.

See: http://www.altaica.ru/LIBRARY/DOERFER/D ... ng1993.pdf

Dusan · Post by **Dusan** » Sun Mar 22, 2009 10:19 am

Yes , its more logical. I was thinking that Russian archeologist give name this statues.But interesting is close termes-old women , old man ...