The Form and Style of Sogdian Ossuaries

Author(s): G. A. PUGACHENKOVA
Source: Bulletin of the Asia Institute , 1994, New Series, Vol. 8, The Archaeology and
Art of Central Asia Studies From the Former Soviet Union (1994), pp. 227-243
Published by: Bulletin of the Asia Institute, a Non-Profit Corporation

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 The Form and Style of Sogdian Ossuaries
G. A. PUGACHENKOVA

Ossuaries are a particular type of receptacle

which, according to the Avesta, human bone
were kept after they had been cleansed of fl
an isolated site, or dakhma. They were used i
number of regions of Central Asia: Khwar
Merv, Sogdiana, Chach, and Sogdian settleme
to the north of Chach. However, none have b
found in Bactria-Tokharistan, in areas adjoin
the Kopet-Dag and the Caspian Sea, or in F
ghana, although local variants of Zoroastri
extended as far as those regions. In d
A significant body of literature has been
cated to the ossuaries, but there has been no a
tempt to arrive at general conclusions. Asp
that merit systematic investigation include t
role in Zoroastrian burial rites; their basic sha
and variations in different regions; the sema
of the ornamental and symbolic motifs of th
decoration; and, finally, the artistic device
distinctive iconography of their plastic or gr
forms, to which this article is dedicated. iment and two columns or an arched niche with
In areas where the ossuary ritual was practiced, columns,
the skeletal remains of ordinary persons, proba- In general, ossuaries from Khwarazm (Kalali
bly members of a single family or clan, were kept gir, Mizdakkhan, and Toq-qalca) are rectangu
in large ceramic vessels (for example, those found lar boxes, often with small legs at the corners
at ossuary necropolises at Farikent, near Samar- and quadrilateral pyramidal lids that imitate
kand,1 or in the Bukhara oasis2). Individual ossu- pitched roofs. There are also barrel-shaped ossu
aries held the bones of representatives of noble aries on legs, ossuaries with oval lids, and ossu
families, and the remains of other family mem- aries shaped as elongated vaults with removable
bers were placed together with theirs in the same lids in the facades. A few sculptural ossuaries on
naus (mausoleum in which previously excar- which the massive figure of a chthonic goddess or
nated bones were placed), at times merely resting a male deity is shown seated on a throne (Koi
on fragments of large vessels (the necropolis at Krylgan-qalca and Kalali-gir) form a separate
Ishtikhan).3 group from ancient Khwarazm.4 Tower-shaped
Ossuaries were usually made of fired clay, al- ossuaries with loopholes and a d
though in Khwarazm, they were also made of ala- presumably imitations of the form
baster. All of the Sogdian ossuaries are ceramic. donjon or a dakhma, also have been
Skilled potters were required to model and fire Khwarazm and the other in Merv.
them, particularly since most were extensively jugs with wide mouths were us

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 pugachenkova: The Form and Style of Sogdian Ossuaries

/- Ν

Fig. 1. Types of Sogdian ossuaries. 1. Southern Sogdiana; 2. Miyan-qalca

but there were others of a special type that repro- ossuar

duced, in a generalized manner, the composition type. A
of a building with a central dome or a dome over to imit
the portal and an arched opening in the facade imitat
into which a lid that had been cut out before firing thesi
could be inserted. It is possible that these imitate any ca
the naus in which ossuaries or skeletal remains actly wit
were placed.5 Among the finds in Chach, a considerable num
The distinctive shapes of Sogdian ossuaries ber of ossuaries of this sor
vary according to how far north they occur (fig. 1). and Khanabad16 and, am
Ossuaries from the eastern region of the Kashka from the manor in the C
Darya oasis are rectangular boxes with columns norechensk necropolis.1
applied separately to the corners and truncated, from an almost round
sloping vaulted lids. The corners have cavities base, and their walls som
into which pegs were inserted, evidently to sup- bottom. The handle in th
port canopies (see the sepulchral chest repre- ten decorated with a mask or
sented on a plate from Bartym).6 Ossuaries from In general, the shapes and decorative styles
the Miyan-qalca region of Sogdiana (west of Sa- follow those of contemporary monumental art,
markand) are also box-shaped but have high quad- and architectural, symbolic, and pictorial motifs
rilateral lids (the Biya-Naiman7 and Ishtikhan may be identified. The types of designs found in
burials;8 Mulla-kurgan9), while those from Samar- each region, particularly pictorial motifs, will be
kand (the town site of Afrasiyab and Kafir-qalca) traced from south to north—from the Kashka
are rectangular boxes with flat lids.10 Panjikent Darya valley to that of the Chu. The walls of os
ossuaries display the same shape, but the lower suaries from the Kashka Darya oasis are usually
section of their walls is slanted.11 Several oval os- decorated with a single graphic composition in
suaries from Samarkand (or nearby) each have a scribed in either a triangle or an arcade. The
conical lid topped with a large male head,12 and arches are semicircular, the archivolts are filled
one side of an oval ossuary from Turgai-mazar ter- with small circles in relief, and the triangular
minates in the head of a horse.13 field between the arches contains a stylized tree.
From Chach and Semirechye, where cattle The shelf of the impost on which two adjacent
breeding and a Turkic population predominated arches rest is supported by a small kneeling male
in steppe and mountain areas, there are individ- figure, the local interpretation of an atlas,
ual finds of rectangular ossuaries (Alamedin14 The predominant motif on ossuaries from
and the town site of Krasnorechensk15), but oval Miyan-qalca is an arcade containing figures. The

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 pugachenkova: The Form and Style of Sogdian Ossuaries

arches, which are semicircular or one-third cir- motifs as solar circles, festoons, four-pe
cular, rest on columns of the local Sogdian order. rosettes, circles with crosses, and tripa
The trapeziform bases of the columns support symbols. The facades frequently display in
the spherical foundations of shafts that narrow or perforated slits, either triangular or stra
toward the top and then flare out again into and in the shape of a cross; there are also
conical capitals, above which there are broad room-shaped incisions. Possibly they imit
imposts with volutes on either side and abaci the apertures that let light into houses, an
bearing the abutments of the arches. The archi- dently they (especially the crosses) also
volts are filled with disks in relief or three- or symbolic meaning.
four-petalled rosettes, and the triangular fields Small columns and arches are often part of t
between the arches carry vegetal ornaments or architectural design of the facades of the Sam
depictions of a bird with spread wings (or a styl- kand ossuaries. Unlike the carefully delinea
ization of a bird in the form of three large leaves). columns of ossuaries from Miyan-qalca, the
As a rule, there are dentate parapets above the extremely schematic: for example, colum
ossuary walls; archaeological finds of large terra- plied separately to ossuaries in the collectio
cotta merlons demonstrate the existence of such the State Historical Museum, Moscow;19
decorative dentate cornices in the early medie- umns with a rectangular base, vertical shaft,
val period. The similarity between the columns semicircular capital that were engraved b
depicted on ossuaries of the Miyan-qalca group firing on a fragment from the Samarkan
and the shapes of real wood columns of the tenth- seum;20 and columns of an ossuary from the
eleventh centuries from mountainous regions of Historical Museum, Moscow, that suppor
the Zarafshan valley, as well as their survivals in matic arches constructed from bands applie
the local folk architecture of mountain settle- the surface. One fragment of an ossuary
ments, has been noted. Wood columns could not Afrasiyab displays a capital of more complex
have supported arches, however, so this must be sign that is a variant of the Miyan-qalca typ
a purely decorative treatment. The only possible flares out conically, and above it is an i
construction would have been arched niches for with volutes and an ornamental figure in th
statues with archivolts and blind columns. ter that is more squat in proportion than th
Ossuaries from Samarkand and its surround- the Miyan-qalca reliefs. The arches, prese
ings are usually decorated on one side with schematically, are clearly blind. Their conto
compositions representing the facades of actual semi-oval, and their archivolts are defin
flat-roofed houses. They clearly follow conven- single or double frames or filled with circles
tions, with generalized shapes and distortions in hatching. At times, the potter simply
scale. These facades may display columns or wavy line on the wall to hint at an arcade.
blind arches, and at times the smooth surface of arches were also popular in the Samarkand c
the wall is enlivened only by ornamental motifs. try properties mentioned above.
Among the latter are solar symbols: large cir- The facades of the Samarkand ossuaries
cles with a four-petalled figure inside of which sometimes topped with dentate parapets
is sometimes called a "propeller" (inaccurately, more often with a band in relief elaborated w
since there is no implication of rotation) or a lattice pattern or petals; the band above i
wheels with numerous radial spokes or rays. The carelessly delineated semicircles or a zigzag
centuries-old role of these motifs in Samarkand representing schematized merlons. An o
architectural decoration is reflected in country wall may carry a schematic depiction of a sm
properties in the suburbs of the city that were tree shown in the form of a herringbone pa
built in the nineteenth century and the first third or as a straight branch in the center and
of the twentieth century and by now have almost rounded side branches. While these might
entirely disappeared.18 The rectangular area of täte a tree growing in front of a house or na
these estates was fenced by a high pakhsa wall is also likely that they symbolized the world
flanked at intervals with small rounded towers. that played such an important role in an
All of the ornamentation of the walls of the concepts of the occult,
ossuary, or at least of the main facade, was fash- When Samarkand ossuaries actually dep
ioned before it was fired. It featured such typical a "door," it might be entirely cut out and

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 pugachenkova: The Form and Style of Sogdian Ossuaries

i4ii

I 3W

' Μ LU* ·" κ «.vfc Β

ρ®Ε -
HWA1>f»V
> " «% fc

Fig. 2. Front wall of an ossuary from Samarkand.

with a small plate excised and fired separately, display

but more often it was simply shown in a plas- and vari
tic manner or engraved (fig. 2). The entrance on the field
these ossuaries is rectangular, with either a sin- used to c
gle or a double door. Above the rectangular door side w
frame, there is often a richly ornamented arch above,
covered with simple decorations,21 while the lin- Altho
tel may bear a palmette, a balustrade, or an image bearing
of a mask. The leaves of the doors are smooth but design
may be decorated with rosettes applied in relief these wer
(an ossuary in the State Historical Museum, Mos- is str
cow) or a simple carved drawing such as the her- scribed
ringbone pattern representing the world tree (the dicatin
Samarkand Museum). from the initial model which the master used to
There are no architectural elements on the make the matrix or had been taken
oval ossuaries from the northern region (Chach an ossuary that had been reused by
and Semirechye). Their ornamentation is simple: potter.
wheel-like circles, "propellers," or a herringbone Ossuaries from southern Sogdia
pattern. The front walls often display a slanted turned up by the plow have been re
lattice pattern that may be an imitation of the examined by members of the
trellis-like frame (kerege) of a yurt; the herring- Archaeological and Topographical
bone strip on the lid suggests the long tapes that Tashkent University for the easte
secured the yurt's felt covering. These simple Kashka Darya oasis in the Yalckaba
patterns are usually executed in carelessly in- originality and high artistic stan
cised lines, but there is a unique example from chance finds are striking. Some have
Krasnorechensk whose front wall carries a deeply published, and only a brief descri
incised, complex geometric pattern that alter- added here. Two identical ossua
nates with ornamental wheel-like circles (fig. 3). scene featuring a musician play
Despite the scarcity of finds from the area, it is three women dancing (fig. 4). Al
clear that ossuaries from the Kashka Darya oasis figures wear long belted robes

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 pugachenkova: The Form and Style of Sogdian Ossuaries

V'/^ *'
k < ,.w V '
-Aof/
"ν, ι <AV
ι <AV << <.'
4 ' 4 ·4 » ' -
t-· #

Fig. 3. Ossuary from the Krasnorechensk necropolis.

draped in vertical folds on the body, with pliant trian festival of Sade, which commemorates the
transverse folds on the long sleeves. The wo- discovery of fire by Hushang, a mythical king
men's poses are varied and dynamic: their arms, who, like Prometheus, brought fire to mortals
spread wide apart, hold waving scarves; each and who called upon them to worship it in honor
woman, shown in a different dance movement, of Yazdan ("the gods"). Sade was celebrated at
thrusts one bent leg, nude to above the knee, out- night and featured the kindling of fires and joyful
side her robe. In the fields between the figures at libations.
the lower portion of the scene, there are two five- Another ossuary from the Yakkabagh region
petalled flowers and a jug with a tapered spout bears representations in direct relief. A single
that lies discarded on the ground.22 composition is reproduced on both long sides,
An ossuary discovered recently has an analo- and half of the composition appears on the short
gous shape and is also decorated in intaglio. A sides (fig. 5).24 The conventional tree separates
man in a soft shirt and loose trousers sits on a two archivolts ornamented with disks. The im
perch that rests on the half-figure of a lion (proba- post is supported by a dwarf-like figure, shown
bly there were two lions, but there was not with legs spread wide apart, who wears a caftan
enough space to include the other). His legs are that reveals his protruding belly. Male (right) and
bent, one shown at an angle and the other as al- female (left) four-armed deities appear beneath
most horizontal. To his left, a woman who wears the arches. Their positions are similar: the right
a narrow, belted Oriental robe and holds a waving leg is bent and the left leg bent so sharply that
scarf plays a lute with a very long neck. The man it is horizontal; the toes of both feet are pointed,
holds a flaming torch in one hand and a small al- The goddess is portrayed with a plump face,
tar in the other. S. B. Lunina and N. P. Stoliarova rounded eyebrows, straight eyes, and a small
have published a detailed description of this os- mouth. Her triple-layered headdress displays dan
suary.23 Here, I will only venture to suggest that gling ribbons, behind which is a nimbus. She
this scene is associated with the ancient Zoroas- wears a gown, a woman's jacket, a shawl covering

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 pugachenkova: The Form and Style of Sogdian Ossuaries

4<L·] * W
<><£] tt

Fig. 4-a, b. Ossuaries from Aq-kurgan.

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 pugachenkova: The Form and Style of Sogdian Ossuaries

Fig. 5. Ossuary from the Yakkabagh region.

her shoulders, and ankle-length trousers cut from Lunina and Usmanova identify the f
a soft fabric that outlines her body and forms as the Sogdian goddess Nana. As to the
fringe-like folds. All four arms are bent at the authors first point out that his warlik
elbows. In her upper hands she holds a solar ro- be that of either of two martial Zoro
sette and a crescent, and in her lower arms a rod ties, Verethragna or Mithra, but th
topped with a bird and a small cudgel or, as has sence of direct analogies, identify him as the
been proposed, a pestle used to grind haoma. The spouse of the goddess.
male figure, shown with moustache and a small The only dubious point in this interpretation is
beard, wears fitted chain armor and a spiked hel- that the two deities are said to be shown in a
met with both goat ears at the sides and dangling dancing pose. In fact, this position is identical to
pieces that hang down to his shoulders. He holds that of the male seated on a lion perch who is rep
a crown with a bird and a disk (obviously a tam- resented on an ossuary described above. It is most
bourine) in two slightly raised hands, and in the likely that the deities are not dancing but sitting
other two hands a long, slim plucked-string in- in state (actually, even the most skillful dancer
strument. At his feet is a small figure of a female could not reproduce such a pose). It should be
lute player, while at the feet of the goddess there noted that there are several characteristic body
is a male musician with a horn and a drum. positions in the Middle East associated with the
Similar, although not identical, depictions of a common custom of sitting on the floor or on a
four-armed goddess with analogous attributes low seat, a takhta (ottoman): resting on one's
are known in paintings from Sogdiana (Pan- heels with knees bent, with legs crossed, or, less
jikent)25 and Ushrusana (Qalce-ye Qahqahe)26 and frequently, with one leg stretched out horizon
on silver vessels presumably from Khwarazm.27 tally on the seat and the other dangling. This last

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 pugachenkova: The Form and Style of Sogdian Ossuaries

position appears, for example, in miniatures of ceramic sculpture. Impressed in matri

the fifteenth or sixteenth centuries in which a shallow intaglio, they are characterize
ruler is depicted sitting on a takhta in a bath- illusion of figures in the round and spatial
house (as in the famous parable about Caliph al- This illusion is produced by the use of a v
Ma3mun and a bathhouse attendant).28 There is of poses that are neither strictly frontal
no seat depicted on the ossuary, but these are de- file. The heads are customarily turned i
ities for whom celestial space itself serves as a posite direction from the legs; the legs are
throne. apart, with one stepping out in front of the other;
Another ossuary carries a complex composi- folds of fabric outline twi
tion of a man seated on a takhta whose base is arms; and the arms are sh
composed of the foreparts of two sheep; to his most expressive of whic
left are musicians and three more human figures armed deities. The female
and below him is a personage with a cloth over ist in three-dimensional s
his mouth (obviously a priest or an attendant of curves of their bodies; the
the sacred fire) and a bridled horse. There are also held up, down, or forward;
fragments with figures of standing males with ous poses; and scarfs tha
crossed arms and mourning women that were front of the figures.
modeled in the round and applied separately to The most complex pose is
the ossuary.29 of a dwarf who supports the impost of adjacent
None of the ossuaries that are complete repre- arches: his head is in profile
sent funerary ritual but instead depict activities arms bent at the elbow
associated with secular pleasures. All of these his legs almost horizontal. He is completely un
include images of music and dancing, which like the figures of atlantes, with their frontal,
seems curious, since music was not a part of strained, compact torsos and bent heads, which
the funerary rites of the Iranian-speaking peo- perform the same function in ancient architec
ples, or was dancing. This may be an echo of ture. The style of the reliefs on Kashka Darya
ancient local, Dionysian-like culture, yet one ossuaries is based entirely on another tradition,
wonders how the theme of dancing is related whether it is the Gandharan school of Buddhist
to a funerary receptacle, particularly dancing art or that of India.
that shows women with bare legs, which was Certain elements were given new expression
counter to Middle Eastern mores forbidding nu- in southern Sogdiana. The figures shown inside
dity? It is quite possible that the Bacchanalian arches are seen frequently in relief compositions
scenes depicted on the ossuaries of southern of Buddhist stupas and reliquaries,31 although the
Sogdiana, in which goats' ears, an emblem of arches on the Sogdian ossuaries are not acutely
Bacchus, ornament the helmet of a deity (see pointed or shaped like festoons but are semi
fig. 5), are comparable to the festive scenes that circular. Dwarf-like atlantes appear on Gandha
appear on Hellenistic and, particularly, Roman ran reliefs from Butkara and Hadda,32 while the
sarcophagi. four-armed deity and the variety and dynamics of
This theme is depicted eloquently on a fifth- the poses of human arm
century jug from Old Merv.30 Although it con- ted from India. Depicti
tained scrolls of Buddhist texts, comparison with stems bearing fruits, bu
analogous jugs from a naus discovered in the sub- cal of the Bactrian artist
urbs of Merv indicate that it was designed as an Kushan period. Analogous
ossuary. It is decorated with four painted scenes a dish from Badakhsh
that depict a nobleman at a feast, hunting, on his chariot and on one of th
sickbed, and, finally, on a funeral litter. Perhaps bowls bearing scenes fro
the Kashka Darya ossuaries represent the theme Reliefs on ossuaries fr
of the joys of life that are inevitably followed by are most closely comparab
death. especially that from Panjikent, where secular
The reliefs on these ossuaries form a complete and mytholog
cycle of depictions whose style and content mark dwellings and
them as a distinctive local branch of Sogdian tifs are Sogdia

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 pugachenkova: The Form and Style of Sogdian Ossuaries

.ιlifcsä Χ·' ■ ;JÜ

«HM

Fig. 6. Ossuary from the Ishtikhan burial ground.

women playing musical instruments, and funeral plants, or a crown. These ar

ceremonies with mourning women, as well as esses shown in the image of the six Amesha
the above-mentioned four-armed, dancing Shiva Spentas,34 deities of Avestan mythology who are
and a four-armed goddess holding solar, lunar, allegories of higher substantiations with incar
and vegetal symbols. nations of elements of earthly life, or possibly the
Turning to Miyan-qalca ossuaries, one finds Amesha Spentas themselves.35
that they differ from those of the Kashka Darya The ossuary from Mulla-kurgan is unique in
oasis in shape and decoration. A common motif the Miyan-qalca group (fig. 7).36 It displays a
is figures shown standing (or occasionally sitting) three-arched composition with a fire altar in the
under arches supported by small columns, vari- center and priests at either side (one standing, the
ants of which can be found on the ossuaries from other genuflecting) who hold fire tongs and fuel
Ishtikhan (fig. 6), Biya-Naiman, Durmen-tepe, for the fire in their hands and wear cloths over
and Mulla-kurgan mentioned above. Except for their faces to avoid defiling the sacred flame with
the last, they repeat the same figural composi- their breath. On the facets of the pyramidal lid
tion executed in versions that range from highly are figures of two young women holding plants in
artistic examples produced by fine craftspeople their hands (the sacred haoma?),· above them are
to rather primitive ones from average potters, an a crescent and a circle (a solar symbol or the sign
indication of the demand for this type of ossuary. of the planet Venus). Although many elements
There are nine possible figures, but the predom- are clearly symbolic, the ossuary represents an
inant cycle consists of six: three male and three element of Zoroastrian worship in which the
female, each of whom holds certain attributes, maintenance of the eternal flame on the altar was
such as a paddle for mixing dough, a sword, a the supreme act. Was not this ossuary intended
small altar, a saucer with an obscure figure rest- for an important priest who had performed this
ing on it, a hatchet, tongs, a mortar and pestle, function during his lifetime? The special role of

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 pugachenkova: The Form and Style of Sogdian Ossuaries

and pointed in different directions. The torsos of

the priest and maidens on the Mulla-kurgan e
amples face forward, but both their heads and fee
are shown in profile. Even on the most artistic o
suaries, the figures do not have the grace char
teristic of those on southern Sogdian reliefs. Fold
of clothing are represented in a different manne
the natural freedom of the draperies is replaced b
straight or wavy lines and fringes in relief, an
the edges of the cloaks that ripple behind th
figures are depicted as loop-shaped projections
headgear and necklaces also are different.
One would expect to find little, if any, diffe
ence between the artistic culture of the Miya
qalca region and that of the adjacent Samarkan
area, but, in fact, the Samarkand ossuaries be
long to yet another stylistic sphere. Their motif
were produced either by means of matrices or by
the application of raised bands and strips wit
pictorial details that were added afterwards wi
a wood spatula or hollowed out by hand. The
matrices were not used to produce complete
compositions but only to stamp small modeled
„ , heads or separate images on the walls of the os
Fig.
Fig. 7.from
7. Ossuary Ossuary
Mulla-kurgan. from Mulla-kurgan. ,n ι ι ■ ι
suanes (fig. 8). The heads were impressed on a
superimposed piece of clay in semi-rounded and
often indistinct relief.37 Some of these are young
faces (it is not always clear whether they are
male or female), while others are those of older
the ossuary is also corroborated by the fact that men with thick beards. They have arched brows
on the hill of Mulla-kurgan it was a unique find, and large eyes and are often framed by curls and
whereas there were entire groups of ossuaries pendant earrings, and, as a rule, their complex
concentrated in nauses at Biya-Naiman and Ish- beribboned headdresses are crowned by a pair of
tikhan. The concrete detail of the ritual depicted wings with a globe between them. The style
on the Mulla-kurgan ossuary indicates that the clearly descends from ancient tradition, as note
majority of the reliefs on Miyan-qalca ossuaries analogous ornamental heads applied to the
depict actual acts of worship. The figures de- shoulders of vessels found at Afrasiyab. Another
picted on them are not the "Holy Immortals" type of face is a mournful one shown with eyes
(Amesha Spentas) but priests and priestesses bear- gazing upward; this is also found on Afrasiyab
ing their attributes, participants in the services terra-cottas on which their expressive aspect
held during the annual festival of Fravardigan contrasts with their coarsely modeled bodies,
that represent the future coming of the Amesha Although these heads date from the early medi
Spentas on the day of the Great Resurrection. eval period, they recall the Orphic images of Hel
The vocabulary of images of ossuaries from lenistic sculpture and represent the survival of
Miyan-qalca Sogdiana differs from that of south- elements borrowed from the Hellenic tradition,
ern Sogdiana. The style is different as well, and What is the significance of these heads? Per
twisted poses of the figures are much less com- haps they are mourners,· or, they may be fia
mon. Instead, the figures are shown in a combi- vashis, souls of the deceased who, according to
nation of frontal and profile views. The torsos and popular belief, fly to their native land during Fra
heads of the Miyan-qalca Amesha Spentas are vardigan, and for whom celebrants put out food
more frontal, with their feet depicted in profile and drink and lit lamps at night in order to drive

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 pugachenkova: The Form and Style of Sogdian Ossuaries

Fig. 8. Applied heads on ossuary fragments from Afrasiyab.

away evil spirits. One of the fragments from

Afrasiyab bears a relief bust of a winged female
who is undoubtedly a fravashi (fig. 9).38 g! '**-■**
Among the high-relief images on the ossuaries
from Afrasiyab, there are figures at either side of
the entrance located in the center of the front
wall. These arc guards who protect the entrance
from the uninitiated and open it only for the
souls of the deceased, and they may be also as- \ \
sociatcd with rites of mourning. One ossuary >P ν
fragment bears a male figure with arms crossed \JR
who stands by the door frame. On the wall of an- WSr^"
other ossuary there are two large solar "wheels" f j0r
at each side and a double door in the center; in
front of the aperture are two nude guards who *«·—■»·*,
stand with legs and arms spread wide apart as if β **?"·. V
to block entry into the ossuary (fig. 10).39 These
hand-modeled, idol-like figures arc very expres
sive. An analogous motif is depicted on an os
suary, possibly an import, that was found by
chance in the Kattasai reservoir in the Farghana
area, where ossuaries are rare.40
Two ossuaries from Afrasiyab bear the mark of "* "·*A
the individual creativity of a master sculptor. On
the first, at the sides of the perforated entrance
there are two lions with open muzzles, both Fig. 9.Fig.
A bust of aof
9. A bust fravashi applied
a fravashi applied to
to an ossuary.Afrasiyab.
an ossuary. Afrasiyab.
facing left and obviously produced from a single

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 pugachenkova: The Form and Style of Sogdian Ossuaries

Samarkand ossuaries display a great variety of

Jß*.. images. Rounded heads, full of spiritual feeling,
■■ρ.' . ,
I' that are imprinted from matrices are combined
with expressive, threatening sculptured heads
or ο n<- '* *■
j'A crowning the oval lids (fig. 13), and delicately
modeled impressed designs alternate with coarse
,Or ΐ ' depictions incised on separately applied bands.
These combinations can be explained not only
by different levels of artistry but also by the de
mands of different groups. The Samarkand pop
ulation practiced Zoroastrianism (in its local
variant), and this diversity of images evoked pro
tective forces in their various embodiments,
whether illustrative, tragic, or threatening.
Evidently, some of the pictorial motifs of os
suaries from Samarkand traveled northward to
Chach and beyond it to Semirechye, regions in
habited primarily by a population that was rural
and nomadic. It was mentioned above that oval
yurt-shaped ossuaries predominated in this area,
Fig.
Fig.10. Guards at the gates.at
10. Guards Ossuary
thefrom Afrasiyab.
gates. Ossuary
from Afrasiyab. but there are also square ossuaries w
drangular pitched lids. The wall of one such
ossuary from Alamedin displays, under a pair of
arches, an extremely schematized human figure
matrix (fig. 11). On the walls farther to the left with arms spread wide and fingers shaped like
and right, two hollow impressions made with leaves. There are boughs between the arches and
another matrix hold arched niches, each with a on the lid, and tendrils fill in empty spaces.43
figure of a seated male who wears a complicated Along with examples bearing primitive deco
headdress and a close-fitting caftan and holds a rations of this sort, there are ossuaries of high
large mask in his right hand.41 Are these masks artistic caliber, produced to meet the demands
images of a defeated enemy? Or are they theatri- of an urban population. The fragment of an ossu
cal masks? The connection of the figures with ary depicting a woman playing a lute (fig. 14)
the funerary function of an ossuary is not clear. comes from Kanka, which in the early medi
According to the teachings of Zoroaster, the eval period was the largest town in the Tashkent
soul that has flown from the body must stand region.44 The en face standing figure is dressed
trial for the deeds that one performed in one's in local garb consisting of a knee-length fitted
lifetime. The court is headed by Mithra, accom- gown and trousers tucked into high boots. On
panied by Sraosha (the deity of obedience) and her headdress are two wings and solar and lunar
Rashnu, who holds the scales of justice that signs. These signs and the circular image on her
weigh the deeds that determine whether the soul gown depicting a goat with ribbons streaming
is worthy of being called to paradise. This scene from its neck (the fain, embodiment of divine
is depicted on a relief of one of the Afrasiyab os- grace) bear witness that this is no ordinary mu
suaries (fig. 12).42 A seated deity wearing a three- sician but one endowed with supreme powers,
peaked crown and holding scales is obviously The association with music is typical of ossuary
Rashnu. Another figure, who wears a crown and decor.
holds an object like a javelin, is apparently An ossuary depicting a girl in festive garb was
Sraosha. The right section of the ossuary, which found in the vicinity of Parkent (near Tashkent),
has not been preserved, may have borne a depic- Is she perhaps the beautiful maiden Daena, the
tion of Mithra and the soul of the deceased. This personification of conscience who leads devout
fragment is one of the few with images that ap- souls to paradise across the Chinvat Bridge?45
pear to be directly related to scenes of life beyond The northernmost Sogdian settlements have
the grave as it is conceived in Zoroastrianism. yielded only a few ossuaries with pictorial mo

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 pugachenkova: The Form and Style of Sogdian Ossuaries

Fig. 11. Front wall of an ossuary from Afrasiyab.

tifs. A necropolis was excavated at Krasnore

chenslc (the medieval city Nevakat), where two
ossuaries stand out among the numerous usual
yurt-shaped examples. One of them is also oval,
but the outside surface of the vessel and the lid
are covered with deeply carved geometric de
signs (fig. 3). Against the background of two large
circles, triangles, and zigzag lines, three male
figures in high relief produced by a single ma
trix occupy the center and the sides. They have
large heads and carefully modeled faces in which
their wide-open eyes, with deeply drilled pupils,
heighten their expressiveness. They wear high
boots and caftans with wide belts and are shown
with their arms folded across their chests and
their hands pressed to their shoulders.46 These
are not caryatids, as they have been described,
but are both mourners and guards like those on
the Samarkand reliefs who stand with crossed
arms to both sides of the central entrance. Their
modeling recalls terra-cotta statuettes from Sog
Fig. 12·
diana—apparently they were produced from an Fi§· 12. Ossuary
Ossuaryfragment from from
fragment Afrasiyab.
Afrasiyab.
imported mold. The lid is crowned not with the
primitive sculpted mask typical of a series of os
suaries from this necropolis but with heads pro
duced from sophisticated matrices.
The other exceptional ossuary from the Kras- enact the ritual; in front of them are stands
norechensk complex is rectangular, with orna- for attributes, and empty spaces are filled with
mental designs framing the sides. A dentate signs—a solar rosette, a star, a bird—symbolic of
parapet appears above a scene depicting the light- the departing flight of the soul.47 This ossuary,
ing of the sacred fire on the altar (fig. 15); to each like the example from Mulla-kurgan, was evi
side of the altar are priests in long gowns who dently intended for one of the chief priests of the

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 pugachenkova: The Form and Style of Sogdian Ossuaries

J %
)
Fig. 13. Head on an ossuary from Afrasiyab.

fire temple in Nevakat and might have been

specially produced to order here or imported
from Sogdiana proper. Although the figures
Fig.are
14. Woman with lute. Ossuary fragment. Kanka.
somewhat schematized, the overall composition
is striking: the strictly balanced placement of the
main figures creates a solemn atmosphere around
the act being performed.
The ancient and early medieval ceramic sculp of the Amesha Spentas, fravashis, four-armed
ture from Sogdiana is a unique form of applied deities, and guardian-protectors. These reliefs
art rich in content and artistic implementationborrow and reinterpret elements of Sogdian artis
tic
and possessing a particular vocabulary of images architecture, sculpture, and ornamental art of
and motifs. Ossuary reliefs related to the con the fifth-seventh centuries. At the same time,
local
cepts and rituals of local Zoroastrianism have a features and their regional variations make
special place in this art. Among the scenes de it possible to differentiate the stylistics of os
suary
picted are the lighting of the sacred fire, mourn complexes from the Kashka Darya oasis,
Miyan-qalca,
ing for the deceased, ritual dances, and the image Sogdian Samarkand, and the north
ern
of a ruler delighting in music, as well as images Sogdian colonies.

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 pugachenkova: The Form and Style of Sogdian Ossuaries

Fig. 15. Front wall of an ossuary from the necropolis at Krasnorechensk.

Notes 6. G. ΙΑ. Dresvianskaia, "Rannesrednevekovye

ossuarii iz IUzhnogo Sogda" (Early medieval ossuaries
of southern Sogdiana), ONU (1983.3), pp. 43ff.; S. B.
1. G. V. Grigor'ev, "Zoroastriiskie kostekhranili
Lunina and Ζ. I. Usmanova, "Unikal'nyl ossuarii iz
shcha ν kishlake Frinkent pod Samarkandom"Kashkadar'i"
(Zoro (A unique ossuary from the Kashka
astrian relic deposits in the village of FarikentDarya),
near ONU (1985.3), pp. 46ff.
Samarkand), VDI (1939.2), pp. 150ff. 7. Β. N. Kastal'skii, Biia-nalmanskie ossuaiii
2. Ο. V. Obel'chenlto, "Zakhoronenie koste! ν (Samarkand,
khu 1908); G. A. Pugachenkova and L. I. Rem
makh ν vostochnor chasti Bukharskogo oazisa" (OsVydaiushchiesia pamiatniki izobiazitel'nogo
pel',
suary burials in jars from the eastern part ofiskusstva
the Uzbekistana (Tashkent, 1960), pp. 60ff.,
Bukhara oasis), IMKU, no. 1 (1959), pp. 94ff. figs. 56-61; Β. IA. Staviskii, "Ossuarii iz Biia
3. G. A. Pugacenkova, "Les ostotheques de Mi Nalmana" (Ossuaries from Biya-Naiman), TGE, vol. 5
ankal'," Mesopotamia 20 (1985), pp. 15 Iff., figs. 63-66. (1961), pp. 162ff.
4. S. P. Tolstov, Po drevnim del'tam Oksa i IAk 8. Pugacenkova, "Les ostotheques de Miankal',"
sarta (Moscow, 1962); Α. V. Gudkova, Tok-kala (Tash p. 154.
kent, 1964); V. N. IAgodin, Nekiopol' drevnego 9. L. V. Pavchinskaia, "Ossuarii iz Mullakurgana"
Mizdakhkana (Tashkent, 1970); IU. A. Rapoport, Izis (An ossuary from Mulla-kurgan), ONU (1983.3),
toiii religii drevnego Khorezma: Ossuaiii, TKhAEE, pp. 46-49.
vol. 6 (Moscow, 1971). 10. G. A. Pugachenkova, "Elementy sogdilskol
5. S. A. Ershov, "Nekotorye itogi arkheologi arkhitektury na sredneaziatskikh terrakotakh" (Ele
cheskogo izucheniia nekropolia s ossuarnymi zakhor ments of Sogdian architecture in Central Asian
oneniiami ν ralone goroda Balram-Ali" (Some results terra-cottas), in Materialy po aikheologii i etnografii
of the archaeological study of ossuary burials in the vi Uzbekistana, vol. 2 (Tashkent, 1950), pp. 8ff.; G. V.
cinity of the town of Bairam-Ali), Ti IIA AN Turk Shishkina, "Rannesrednevekovaia sel'skaia usad'ba
menSSR, no. 5 (1959), pp. 160-204; L. I. Rempel', "La pod Samarkandom" (An early medieval country es
maquette architecturale dans le culte et la construc tate near Samarkand), IMKU, no. 2 (1961), pp. 217ff.
tion de l'Asie centrale preislamique," in Cultes et 11. B. IA. Staviskii, O. G. Bol'shakov, and E. A.
monuments religieux dans VAsie centrale preis Monchadskaia, "Pendzhikentskil nekropol'" (The
lamique, ed. F. Grenet (Paris, 1987), pp. 83-84, fig. 1. Panjikent necropolis), MIA, no. 37 (1953), pp. 64ff.

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 pugachenkova: The Form and Style of Sogdian Ossuaries

12. G. A. Pugachenkova and L. I. Rempel', Istoiiia

27. V. P. Darkevich, Khudozhestvennyl metall Vos
iskusstv Uzbekistana s drevnelshikh vremen do toka VIII-XIII vv.: Proizvedeniia vostochnol torev
seiediny deviatnadtsatogo veka (Moscow, 1965),tikiills.
na territorii Evropelskol chasti SSSR i Zaural'ia
165, 178. (Moscow, 1976), pi. 26.
13. M. S. IUsupov and S. I. Skinder, "Ossuaril 28.
iz Cf. Ν. V. D'iakonova, Sredneaziatskie minia
Turgal-Mazara" (An ossuary from Turgai-mazar), tiury inXVII-XVIII vv., ed. L. T. Giuzal'ian (Moscow,
Arkheologiia Siednel Azii, TSAGU 71 (1956), pp. ills. 16, 24, 27, 46; A. J. Arberry, ed., The Ches
1964),
141ff. ter Beatty Library: A Catalogue of the Persian Manu
14. H. Field and E. Prostov, "Investigations in Cen scripts and Miniatures, vol. 2 (Dublin, 1960), pis. 23,
tral Asia," Aisls 5 (1938), p. 240, fig. 8. 26; S. C. Welch, Royal Persian Manuscripts (London,
15. V. D. Goriacheva, Gorod zolotogo verbliuda: 1976), pi. 1, etc.
Kiasnorechenskoegorodishche (Frunze, 1988), pp. 37ff. 29. Ν. I. Krasheninnikova, "Marshrutnoe obsledo
16. Μ. E. Masson, Akhangeian: Arkheologo vanie Kitabskogo ralona" (An exploration of the Kitab
topograficheskil ocheik (Tashkent, 1953), pp. 28-31; region), AO 1976 goda (1977), p. 530; idem, "Deux os
IA. Guliamov, ed., Dievnosti Tashkenta (Tashkent, suaires a decor moule trouves aux environs du village
1976), pp. 34-35. de Sivaz, district de Kitab, Sogdiane meridionale," Stir
17. A. N. Bernshtam, ed., Chuiskaia dolina: Trudy22 (1993), pp. 53-54 and pi. IV, fig. 6; Grenet, "Re
Semirechenskoi arkheologicheskol ekspeditsii, MIA, marques," pp. 60-65.
no. 14 (1950), pp. 3 Iff.; Goriacheva, Gorod zolotogo 30. G. A. Koshelenko, "Unikal'naia vaza iz Merva"
verbliuda, pp. 3Iff. (A unique vase from Merv), VDI (1966.1), pp. 92ff.;
18. A. K. Pisarchik, Narodnaia arkhitektura Samar G. A. Pugachenkova, Iskusstvo Turkmenistana:
kanda XIX-XX vv.: Po materialam 1938-1941 gg., Ocherk s drevnelshikh vremen do 1917 g. (Moscow,
ed. Β. A. Litvinskil (Dushanbe, 1975), pp. 103ff., figs. 1967), pp. 91ff.
116-49. 31. H. G. Franz, Buddhistische Kunst Indiens
19. A. S. Strelkov, "Ossuaril Gosudarstvennogo is
(Leipzig, 1965), figs. 148, 164, 165 182, 183, 199.
toricheskogo muzeia" (An ossuary from the State His 32. D. Faccenna, Sculptures from the Sacred Area
torical Museum), in Iskusstvo Srednei Azii (Moscow, of Butkara I, Swat, W. Pakistan (Rome, 1964), pis.
1940), pp. 111-12, pi. XVI. DCVII-DCXI.
20. Pugachenkova, "Elementy sogdilskol arkhitek 33. LA. Smirnov, Vostochnoe serebro: Atlas
tury," pp. 24ff. drevnel serebrianoi i zolotol posudy vostochnago
21. Ibid., figs. 9, 12. proiskhozhdeniia, naidennol preimushchestvenno ν
22. Dresvianskaia, "Rannesrednevekovye ossuarii," predelakh Rossilskoi imperii (St. Petersburg, 1909),
pp. 43-46; F. M. Karomatov, V. A. Meshkeris, and T.pis. S. XIII, CXIII.
Vyzgo, Mittelasien, trans. A. Hauser, Musikgeschichte 34. G. A. Pugachenkova, "Miankal'skie ossuarii—
in Bildern, vol. 2, pt. 9 (Leipzig, 1987), pp. 105-6.pamiatniki kul'tury drevnego Sogda" (Miyan-qalca
23. S. B. Lunina and N. P. Stoliarova, "Ossuarilossuaries
iz as monuments of the culture of ancient Sog
Khantepa" (An ossuary from Khan-tepe), ONU diana), Nauka i chelovechestvo (1984), p. 90; idem,
(1993.3), pp. 46ff.; idem, "Un nouvel ossuaire des en "Les ostotheques de Miankal'," pp. 18Iff.
virons de Sahr-i Sabz en Sogdiane meridionale," Stir 35. F. Grenet, "L'art zoroastrien en Sogdiane:
22 (1993), pp. 55-59 and pi. V, fig. 7; F. Grenet, "Re Etudes d'iconographie funeraire," Mesopotamia 12
marques," Stir 22 (1993), pp. 60-65. (1986), pp. 97-136.
24. Lunina and Usmanova, "Unikal'nyl ossuaril iz 36. Pavchinskaia, "Ossuarii iz Mullakurgana";
Kashkadar'i," pp. 46ff; Karamotov, Meshkeris, and Grenet, "L'art zoroastrien en Sogdiane," pp. 97-131,
Vyzgo, Mittelasien, pp. 105-6, 128-29. figs. 35-48, esp. pp. 101-4, fig. 35.
25. A. M. Belenitskil, Monumental'noe iskusstvo 37. K. Trever, Terracottas from Afrasiab (Lenin
Pendzhikenta: Zhivopis', skul'ptura (Moscow, 1973), grad, 1934), pis. V, XII; V. A. Meshkeris, Terrakoty
p. 12; A. M. Belenitskil and Β. I. Marshak, "Cherty Samarkandskogo muzeia (Leningrad, 1962), pp. 95ff.,
mirovozzreniia sogdiltsev VII-VIII vv. ν iskusstve pis. XXI-XXII.
Pendzhikenta" (Characteristics of the Sogdian world 38. G. A. Pugachenkova and L. I. Rempel', Ocherki
view of the seventh-eighth centuries in the art of iskusstva Srednei Azii: Drevnost' i srednevekov'e
Panjikent), in Istoriia i kul'tura narodov Srednei Azii: (Moscow, 1982), fig. on p. 95.
Drevnost' i srednie veka, ed. B. G. Gafurov and B. A. 39. Ibid., p. 81.
Litvinskil (Moscow, 1976), p. 77. 40. Ε. V. Zelmal', ed., Drevnosti Tadzhikistana:
26. V. L. Voronina and Ν. N. Negmatov, "Otkrytie Katalog vystavki (Dushanbe, 1985), p. 155.
Ustrushany" (The discovery from Ushrusana), in 41. I. Tolstoi and N. Kondakov, Russkiia drevnosti
Nauka i chelovechestvo (Moscow, 1974), p. 69, figs, ν pamiatnikakh iskusstva, vol. 3 (St. Petersburg,
on pp. 63, 65. 1890), p. 29, fig. 29.

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 pugachenkova: The Form and Style of Sogdian Ossuaries

42. Α. Α. Potapov, "Rel'efy drevnel Sogdiany, kak 45. Μ. Bois [Boyce], Zoroastriitsy: Verovaniia i
istoricheskii istochnik" (Reliefs of ancient Sogdiana obiiady (Moscow, 1988), p. 38.
as a historical source), VDI (1938.2) (3). 46. F. Grenet, Les pratiques funeraires dans l'Asie
43. V. V. Bartol'd, "Otchet ο komandirovke ν centrale sedentaire: De la conquete grecque ä l'isla
Turkestane" (A remark about the command post in mation (Paris, 1984), pp. 180-81, pi. XLVI and photo
Turkestan), in Sochineniia, vol. 4 (Moscow, 1966), graph 7; Goriacheva, Gorod zolotogo verbliuda,
photograph p. 259. pp. 33ff., figs. 8, 9.
44. IU. Ε Buriakov, Po drevnim karavannym pu 47. Goriacheva, Gorod zolotogo verbliuda, pp. 38ff.,
tiam Tashkentskogo oazisa (Tashkent, 1978), pp. 20ff. fig. 10.

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