A stela is a slab, less often a pillar, with carved texts or images. Ancient peoples installed them as burial or memorial signs. Scientists consider menhirs of the Bronze Age to be the most ancient stelae.
The stela on display dates back to the late 3rd — early 2nd millennium BC. This is a monument of the Okunev archaeological culture. The statue was found in the vicinity of the Batanakov ulus of the Shirinsky district of the Republic of Khakassia. It was located in the fence of the Tagar mount four kilometers west of the bridge over the Bely Iyus River and one kilometer from the road to the Lake Chernoe. In the middle of the 20th century, the archaeologist Albert Lipsky handed the stela over to the Khakassia National Museum.
The statue is made of a massive block of red sandstone. It has a sub-triangular shape with a clearly defined edge. The stela bears an image of an ancient deity. It is carved on the frontal plane of the monument in such a way that the edge of the block divides it into two parts.
The inner space of the face is divided by two horizontal lines into three pictorial belts. In the upper part there are two oval-shaped eyes. Above them, thin and slightly curved lines show the eyebrows. They go down, smoothly passing into the line of the nose. In the lower part, the nose widens slightly. The nostrils are marked by two rounded dots.
The mouth of the mask is located just below the lower dividing line and is carved in the form of a grooved strip. The chin forms an arched line. Two ovals symbolize the ears of the ancient creature.
Two lines depart from the face of the deity. The upper one extends beyond the contour of the face. The lower one is more complex. It crosses the contour of the mask and smoothly descends from both sides to the base of the statue. Within these lines, half circles are retained. The hair of the face is depicted as five short vertical lines.
On the upper end side of the stela, other engraved drawings have also been preserved: two small masks and a series of deep pit-holes. Several of the same pits are visible on the frontal plane of the sculpture.
Khakass National Museum of Local History named after L. R. Kyzlasov
The stela on display dates back to the late 3rd — early 2nd millennium BC. This is a monument of the Okunev archaeological culture. The statue was found in the vicinity of the Batanakov ulus of the Shirinsky district of the Republic of Khakassia. It was located in the fence of the Tagar mount four kilometers west of the bridge over the Bely Iyus River and one kilometer from the road to the Lake Chernoe. In the middle of the 20th century, the archaeologist Albert Lipsky handed the stela over to the Khakassia National Museum.
The statue is made of a massive block of red sandstone. It has a sub-triangular shape with a clearly defined edge. The stela bears an image of an ancient deity. It is carved on the frontal plane of the monument in such a way that the edge of the block divides it into two parts.
The inner space of the face is divided by two horizontal lines into three pictorial belts. In the upper part there are two oval-shaped eyes. Above them, thin and slightly curved lines show the eyebrows. They go down, smoothly passing into the line of the nose. In the lower part, the nose widens slightly. The nostrils are marked by two rounded dots.
The mouth of the mask is located just below the lower dividing line and is carved in the form of a grooved strip. The chin forms an arched line. Two ovals symbolize the ears of the ancient creature.
Two lines depart from the face of the deity. The upper one extends beyond the contour of the face. The lower one is more complex. It crosses the contour of the mask and smoothly descends from both sides to the base of the statue. Within these lines, half circles are retained. The hair of the face is depicted as five short vertical lines.
On the upper end side of the stela, other engraved drawings have also been preserved: two small masks and a series of deep pit-holes. Several of the same pits are visible on the frontal plane of the sculpture.
Khakass National Museum of Local History named after L. R. Kyzlasov
