Siberian warrior’s 4000-year-old suit of bone armour unearthed

FOUR thousand years ago a mighty warrior stashed his prized possession. Today, his amazing suit of bone armour has been unearthed in remote Siberia.

FOUR thousand years ago a mighty warrior stashed his prized possession. Today, his amazing suit of bone armour has been unearthed in remote Siberia.

The complete set of armour unearthed in Omsk is remarkably well preserved.

It had been carefully folded and placed deep in a hole among the remains of what used to be an ancient village.

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Boris Konikov, curator of excavations, told the Siberian Times: “It is unique first of all because such armour was highly valued. It was more precious than life, because it saved life.”

It has been dated as being 3900 years old.

Remarkable remains ... The bundle of neatly arranged bones that is, in fact, a 4000-year-old suit of armour. Source: Siberian Times

It could have been a gift. It could have been from among the spoils of war.

Either way, indications are it actually originated some 1000km to the southeast of the burial site.

The dig site is at the location of a new five-star hotel beside the Irtysh River in Omsk.

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Archaeologists have not yet determined what animal the bones used in the vest come from. Tests will be conducted after the cleaning and restoration process is completed.

‘We ourselves cannot wait to see it, but at the moment it is undergoing restoration, which is a is long, painstaking process. As a result we hope to reconstruct an exact copy’, Boris Konikov said.

Why it was buried remains a mystery. The location is not believed to have had any particular religious or military significance.

Ancient “Hero” ... A reconstruction of the suit of bone armour found in Siberia. Source: Siberian Times

That it belonged to a “great hero” is a given. The bones, interlaced with leather straps, would have given more than ample protection against weapons in use at that time such as stone arrows and bronze knives and spears.

“Armour had great material value,” archaeologist Yury Gerasimov said. “There was no sense to dig it in the ground or hide it for a long time — because the fixings and the bones would be ruined. Such armour needs constant care. At the moment we can only fantasise — who dug it into the ground and for what purpose. Was it some ritual or sacrifice? We do not know yet.’