20.06.2020

"Black paleontologists" plunder a mammoth bone. How it works. Extraction of mammoth tusks in Siberia Tusk under a jacket

We all know very well that one of the brightest symbols of our republic is the mammoth. Many saw his images in pictures, in books and other printed publications. Well, and, of course, each of us knows the famous carvings from mammoth tusk. These are figurines, key rings, knife handles, chess and many other original gizmos created by skillful hands and rich imagination of bone carvers. But, looking at this beauty, did any of us think about how the tusks of long-extinct giants are found? After all, they do not roll on the road and do not grow like mushrooms in the forest. That's what I decided to do my report about. But I will make a reservation right away, I will not talk about large teams of searchers engaged in the extraction of tusks professionally. It will be a small group of two people. There are a great many such people in our republic and they all have one goal - to find mammoth tusks thawed out of the permafrost in the expanses of the Yakut land. Introduction. The fact that my two comrades, Sergei and Alexander, are looking for tusks, I knew for a long time. Often I listened to their stories about interesting finds and beautiful places where they have been. I also really wanted to go with them and write an article about it. This year, since the beginning of summer, I have been asking for a trip and looking forward to the day when I could set off. But somehow things didn't work out for reasons beyond our control. And the weather this summer constantly presented surprises in the form of rain, wind and even snow. But three days ago, Sergei called me at home and said: - Get ready, we're going this weekend. Just the water in the river was subsiding after the rains, the banks were bare, we urgently need to go in search, until others outstripped us. The weather for the weekend is expected to be good. So on Friday, be ready, after work we will immediately rush to the road. And I happily began to wait for the weekend. The first day. Friday. On Friday evening we, having collected our things, lowered the boat into the water and, pushing off the shore, set off. I immediately began to question: - Let's talk about the legality of this enterprise. - Yes, everything is legal. Finding and handing over tusks is not prohibited by law. After all, we don’t violate the environment, we don’t dig the earth with bulldozers, what the river will wash is ours! There are people and organizations that have a license to accept the tusk, you hand over what you find to them, pay taxes, and everything is in order, there are no complaints against you. - Well, well, then a few words about where we are going. - There are several places in our area where tusks are often found. Today we are going to the Zyryanka River, which is located 15 kilometers from the village down the Kolyma. This is a mountain river, the water in it constantly changes its level and course. The shores are washed out in a natural way, and everything that was in the permafrost is washed out onto the spits. The main thing here is to find all this and take it in time. We are not the only ones who are lucky hunters! - And what does it bring to the braids? - Yes, different ... there are a lot of bones, mammoth teeth often come across, and, of course, tusks. Although finding a whole and well-preserved tusk is very rare. Many people dream about it. Mostly pieces and chips come across. But there are also solid specimens. - And what is the chip for? What can be done with it? - Different medallions and key rings are made. A friend of mine from Yakutsk recently brought a keychain, thin, carved, beautiful. Here they make it from wood chips. We have enough craftsmen in Yakutia. While talking, we imperceptibly drove up to the mouth of the Zyryanka River and, turning from the Kolyma, headed up against the current. In the evening light of the sun, the forest on the banks of the river looked delightful. Ducks flew in pairs, hares ran on islands among the willows. I took out my camera and snapped it. - It's still not that, - said Sergei. - Now we will drive up to the cliffs, here the view is really wonderful! Soon the steep and steep banks of yellow color appeared. Everywhere permafrost was visible, from which melt water ran in streams. I sniffed. - What's with that weird smell? Smells like rotten stuff. - These are mammoths rotting - Sergei laughed - There is always such a smell, apparently the layers of the earth smell like that. Who knows what they are made of. This is where our conversations ended. Sergei and Alexander, driving at low speed along the coast, carefully examined everything around. Visible were coherence and experience in the search. Friends since childhood, Sergey is a merry fellow and joker, Alexander is calm and laconic, they perfectly complemented each other, and during our entire trip I did not hear disputes between them. Each understood the other perfectly. Suddenly Alexander sharply turned the steering wheel. - Look, what's there? Sergei took out binoculars and began to look at the shore. - Looks like a piece of tusk, drive up. The boat poked its nose into the shore, and Alexander took out a stick with a steel wire tied to the end. - What is this? I asked. - Probe. You never know, maybe there is something else under the layer of earth. So I'll check them out. He climbed up the steep slope, picked up something and began to carefully pierce the ground with a probe. From the outside, it looked like a sapper looking for mines. - There is nothing. Let's go further. I reviewed what he brought. It was the tip of a yellow-brown tusk, split in half lengthwise. Here is the first find. After, having examined for two hours along the cliffs, we drove up to a long, two kilometers, spit. Here, not far in the forest, there was an old hunting hut, where we were going to spend the night. After wandering along the spit and not finding anything significant, except for small fragments of bones, we drank tea and went to bed. Second day. Saturday. In the morning I woke up before everyone else. It was stupid to lie around doing nothing, and while the others were sleeping, he went for a walk on the spit. After wandering for half an hour, I found a mammoth tooth washed out by sand among the stones. Delighted by the find and taking a picture, I took the tooth and went towards the forest, to where a small groove had recently flowed. My feet sank in the mud and silt, and I walked and looked at the blockages of trees piled up everywhere. And then, among the old branches, I found a decent piece of light-colored tusk. Here it is luck! Lucky! Having put the find on my shoulder, I went back to the hut to show off the trophy. Pushing my comrades aside, I proudly presented them with a tusk. Everyone woke up at once and after drinking tea together went to comb the braid. On the way, Sergei explained to me: - The mammoth had only four teeth, two on top and two on the bottom. See how big they are? With them he ground food like a millstone. We found whole jaws, similar to a collar. - Exactly! - Alexander confirmed - And I found the jaw of a mammoth. Small one with small teeth. We'll come home, remind me to show. If anyone thinks that wandering through the braids in search of tusks is like a walk, he is deeply mistaken. Moving from spit to spit, we walked on gravel and water, often on viscous and sticky mud, which then did not want to wash off. By lunchtime, my legs were buzzing and aching with fatigue. And the result of our search was just a few small pieces of tusk, a pair of teeth and wood chips. Sitting on the shore to drink tea, I asked about my future plans. - There is a stream nearby. We were on it last trip. There, a piece of the coast collapsed, and in this blockage we found bones and wood chips. Perhaps there are tusks under the rubble. You have to take it apart before the water can wash it away. - And what, will you have to dig the earth manually? I asked. - Why? We have a motor pump, we will wash it off with a blockage. One thing is bad, there is a lot of water in the stream, you have to drag along the shore, and there it is impassable with a windbreak! When there is little water, then you go straight along the channel and no problems, but now you have to sweat. While we drank tea, I listened to the sounds of nature that surrounded us. There was a constant background here, consisting of the noise of a fast river running over stones, often interrupted by the splashing of pieces of earth falling from cliffs into the water. - Sometimes it all gets out - said Sergey - In nature, you want silence, but here it constantly makes noise and noise. After lunch, we hit the road. By the way, this day was the most difficult of all. The weather changed several times a day. The sun shone, then the clouds swooped in, it rained and the sun shone again. Mosquitoes swirled around us in clouds, and no ointment saved us from bites. Wet, dirty, we, loaded with backpacks and a motor pump, clambered along the logs along the stream, falling and stumbling at every step. Involuntarily, I remembered a song from my distant childhood: "Gully, rivers, crayfish, hands - take care of your legs!". The only thing that adorned this nightmare was the abundance of bluebells growing everywhere. Finally, we reached the goal and went to the place. Having installed a motor pump, they began to wash away pieces of earth from the blockage with a powerful jet of water. The remains of a mammoth were constantly washed out from under the mud. Either huge leg bones, then a tooth, some tubular pieces, ribs and wood chips. But we did not find the main goal of our work, the tusk. I will not describe in detail how the day went, everything was rather monotonous, but by the evening God rewarded us for our efforts, and from the heap of earth it seemed what we had been waiting for. It was a fairly decent and heavy, well-preserved piece of dark orange tusk. It's not been a wasted day after all!!! Raising a huge rib from the ground, Alexander told me: - See how big it is? I somehow brought this home, and they stole potatoes from my mother-in-law in the garden. So she, armed with this rib, ambushed the thief and hit him on the back. The whole yard then laughed, but she found something to defend herself with the edge of a mammoth. But the potatoes were no longer stolen ... It came to night. After washing a little more, having spent the rest of the gasoline, we returned to the boat and went to spend the night in a hut. - Previously, tusks were not looked for like that, - says Alexander, - And they were lying on their braids, unnecessary to anyone. And now they combed everything everywhere, took it out, during the day with fire you will not find such a picture. I remember, on one river, a piece of tusk was sticking out of the rock. We tied the boat for him so that it would not sail away. Then we went there, but there was no tusk. Turned out to the very root. These are the things… There is nothing more pleasant in the forest than after a hard day, stretching out on the bunk, drinking tea and having intimate conversations about life. Which is exactly what we were doing. Day three. Resurrection. The next day we woke up late. I was tired from work the day before. My arms and legs hurt like after playing sports. The weather was cloudy, but there was no rain. - Today we will go up the river, - Sergey said. - As long as the water has not fallen much, you can drive without problems. And then there are large rifts, and if there is not enough water, it is difficult to pass, very shallow. We walk there on braids. True, the local spit is usually the richest, but we also found tusks at the top. Driving past one of the cliffs, we noticed that something white was sticking out of the permafrost. Turning around, sent the boat directly under the cliff. To be honest, I was terrified of such an extreme. Above us hung a multi-ton block of earth, ready to break at any second. Is it necessary to take that risk? I asked. - So what to do? After all, we came here for the tusk, and not to rest. Suddenly there a good whole tusk melts from the permafrost. - What if it collapses? So no luck! Sergei laughed. On the move, he broke off a piece from the wall and, driving out from under the cliff, examined it in the light. - Tusk. Only very bad. It has stratified and is already turning into chalk. Waste of time. Let's go further. We climbed up with difficulty. The motor constantly clung to the bottom, but still we drove around several spits and thoroughly searched them. On one of them Sergey called me. - Go take a picture. It lies very nice. I approached and saw a bright orange piece of tusk lying right at the bottom of the stream. Indeed, it looks good. It went on like this for almost the whole day. We wandered along the braids and cliffs. We rested, drank tea and wandered again. By evening they were going home. - So how is it? Are you satisfied with the finds? I asked. - But not very. I wish I could find something more substantial. And so ... an average result. It's been much better. When we returned home, the weather improved again. It was warm and cozy. It is necessary, as she met, and sees off! Almost at the very exit to the mouth, Sergei looked through binoculars at the spit. - Look there - he said to Alexander - What is it there on the shore lies curved? Wood or not? Alexander looked through the binoculars and jumped on the spot. - How! Little tree! No, it's more like luck! We drove up to the shore and ran to look at the find. A whole, beautifully curved and perfectly preserved tusk lay on the stones. Indeed, good luck. The mood immediately rose, and I said: - And let's all take a picture together with this handsome man. And we took pictures. Conclusion. Now, sitting at home, I certainly remember more romantic moments on this trip than the inconvenience and deprivation that we endured in search. But still, I now know for sure that the search for tusks is, first of all, not romance, but work, and work is quite hard. And a lot depends on how luck smiles. Thanks to my comrades for this unforgettable trip

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About a billion rubles are earned by smugglers selling the remains of mammoths found in Yakutia. In the Arctic territories, according to officials, you can find about 500 thousand tons of bones of ancient animals. So far, their production is poorly controlled: at least a quarter of the turnover falls on the shadow market. Because of this, the budget, and the inhabitants of the North, and scientists are losing.

Illegals are in a hurry

It is necessary to write down the rules for collecting the remains of mammoths in the legislation as soon as possible, said on June 26 the head of the State Duma Committee on natural resources, property and land relations Nikolai Nikolaev. A draft of the relevant bill was developed in Yakutia, where over 80% of the so-called mammoth fauna. Now the document is being studied by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Rosnedra.

Parliamentarians of the Far Eastern Republic propose to regulate the extraction of mammoth remains not within the framework of the law "On Subsoil", as is happening now, but to create a separate document - "On the rational use of the resources of the mammoth fauna - a special natural resource of Russia." “I agree with my colleagues that it is necessary to provide plots for the commercial collection of mammoth ivory,” said the chairman of the profile committee of the State Duma.

He added that it is necessary to centralize all sales and establish an examination of the extracted remains so that exhibits of value to science do not go to the market. Nikolaev hurried with the adoption of the bill, the discussion of which has been going on for at least a dozen years: “They (black diggers. - Note ..

About 100 tons of mammoth tusk are mined annually in Yakutia. About 30%, according to the authorities of the region, falls on the shadow market. According to other estimates, the share of smuggling reaches 50%. And the business is quite profitable: 50 kg of mammoth tusk on the official market costs about $15 thousand, on the black market its price can double.

The former head of Yakutia, Yegor Borisov, emphasized that this area is becoming more and more criminal. “The mammoth fauna has become a fairly quoted industry, because a moratorium on ivory mining has been declared in world practice,” he explained. It's about on a partial ban on the ivory trade due to declining elephant populations in Asia and Africa, which the UN introduced in 2002.

The Yakut parliament paid attention to another problem. With a twofold increase in the issuance of licenses for the industrial collection of mammoth tusks, the regional budget does not receive any taxes from this activity.

Tusk under jacket

According to Yakut scientists, every year illegal extraction of bones of ancient animals brings dealers over 1 billion rubles. Over the past decade, searchers have destroyed seven cemeteries with the remains of ancient animals. “The scale of vandalism shown in relation to the nature of the Arctic, its unique monuments - paleontological, geological, archaeological - by participants in the illegal amateur extraction of mammoth tusks, is huge,” said Vladimir Pitulko, archaeologist, head of the Yana-Indigirskaya expedition of the Institute of the History of Material Culture of the Russian Academy of Sciences in an interview with TASS. .

In February, a Yakut firm using forged documents tried to smuggle out of Russia (presumably to China, where most of the remains go) over 4.5 tons of mammoth tusks - this is a record batch detained by the FSB border guard in Primorsky Krai. More than 650 fragments of the remains were found in the containers, of which 14 copies are valuables of the level of a museum exhibit. The total amount of smuggled cargo was estimated at more than 340 million rubles.

In March last year, a resident of the Amur region tried to hide under the border with China outerwear a fragment of a mammoth bone weighing 10 kg and costing over 400 thousand rubles. The attacker was caught, and the court sentenced him to three years probation.

The most high-profile story happened in 2010. Then two Russians established the largest channel for the export of tusks bought from black diggers from Russia. Over several years, the men sold over 100 tons of remains abroad, earning about $50 million. They were caught at a customs post near Vyborg when they were transporting a batch of 2.8 tons worth $1 million. Ultimately, they were sentenced to eight years on 72 episodes of smuggling conditionally.

Smugglers in search of profit cause serious damage to the environment Arctic territory. To find the remains faster, they use heat and water guns, which destroys not only the coast, but also the permafrost. In addition to the fact that illegal fishing harms nature, it also deprives scientists of the most valuable specimens for studying the remains of ancient animals. The Republic is losing its monopoly on Scientific research unique fossil objects and income from exhibiting them at commercial exhibitions,” said Mikhail Prisyazhny, First Deputy Minister of Education and Science of Yakutia.

Albert Protopopov, head of the department for the study of the mammoth fauna of the Academy of Sciences of the Republic, estimates the financial losses from smuggling at 1.5 billion rubles annually, scientific losses are incalculable in money. “Tusk hunters throw away bones, skeletons and other artifacts valuable to science. How much could be done scientific discoveries if these data were studied,” the scientist complains.

Mammoths = oil

From 1991 to 2002, the industrial collection of tusks in the Arctic territory of Yakutia was not licensed. Prior to this, the entire industry was tied to the National Mammoth Fund, which regulated both the collection and processing of these resources. Licenses have been issued since 2003. Tribal communities can receive it, individual entrepreneurs And legal entities. Initially, they were issued for a year, since 2016 the term has been increased to five years. The only condition is that you can collect only those remains that are on the surface. The relevant authorities of the region together with the branch are responsible for issuing licenses federal agency on subsoil use.

According to the Ministry of Industry and Geology of the Republic, at the end of 2017, 509 licenses were valid, of which only two were for the collection of remains for scientific purposes, the rest for the sale of goods. The boom in obtaining licenses occurred in 2016, when they increased their validity. Then they were issued more than 430 (for comparison, last year - 78). For obtaining a license, you need to pay a state duty of 7.5 thousand rubles - in comparison with the amounts that can be earned by selling tusks, these are ridiculous numbers. However, fines for illegal mining are even less - 3 thousand rubles.

The Yakut authorities, social activists and scientists have been saying for more than ten years that a separate federal law is needed to regulate the sphere. The regional one was not enough, there was already such an experience in the republic: in 2005, the President of Yakutia, Vyacheslav Shtyrov, signed the law on regulation of the industry, but two years later the prosecutor's office suspended its operation.

Five years ago, a deputy from the republic, Fedot Tumusov, submitted a bill to the State Duma that recognizes the remains of mammoths as a mineral along with oil and gas. The parliamentarian essentially proposed recognizing the cemeteries of the remains as deposits and levying a tax on the extraction of minerals from the collectors. The profile committee of the State Duma found contradictions in the Constitution in the bill and sent it for revision.

In the near future, the lower house of parliament will be considering another bill regulating the extraction of remains. On the commercial side, the regional authorities have already begun to act to restore order. At the beginning of the year, the Minister of Investment Development and Entrepreneurship of Yakutia, Anton Safronov, said that officials had agreed with Chinese partners to create a single operator for the collection, processing and export of mammoth tusks.

One of the options is to build a logistics and production complex within the framework of the Yakut Advanced Development Territory (TOP) Kangalassy. Its cost is estimated at 1.3 billion rubles. According to Safronov, the creation of a single operator will help establish order in pricing. “The price is at its lowest right now. There are a huge number of sellers on the market, including those from the shadow business, which leads to dumping the cost of the exported goods,” he explained.

Family business

The Russian-Chinese project, according to the minister, will increase the volume of extraction of the remains of ancient animals, and thus create at least 2,000 seasonal jobs. Entire villages are now engaged in the extraction of mammoth bones. In the North, where there are few jobs, and prices are several times higher than in the capital due to the difficulties of logistics, the collection of remains is the most fast way earn.

“The entire coast of the Laptev Sea in the north of Yakutia has long been divided between communities that have been collecting mammoth tusks for several decades, and it’s impossible to get there just like that. You need to have connections, - says the hunter for mammoth tusks Alexander Popov. “People work in teams of 15–20 people.”

The preparation of such an expedition requires large financial investments - at least half a million rubles. To do this, local residents sometimes have to mortgage all the property acquired by labor, including real estate. It is impossible to predict success: it may also happen that the seekers leave with nothing after two months of hiking in difficult conditions.

Majority local residents works without licenses. Supervisory authorities primarily fight with dealers who establish illegal channels for the export of tusks abroad. On average, smugglers take out from Russia at least 60 tons of valuable goods per year - in other words, they already have a lot of work to do.

About 10 thousand years ago, northern Siberia was inhabited by shaggy giants called mammoths. The now-extinct genus of mammals suffered from rising temperatures at the end of the last ice age, as a result of which their habitat was flooded and reduced.

The animals were imprisoned on isolated islands, from where there was not the slightest chance of returning to the mainland. Some populations, imprisoned in these areas of land in the east and north of Siberia, lingered and died out about 3700 years ago.

The remains of mammoths, in particular their tusks, today have the status of the most common fossil finds in the Siberian region. According to scientists, the reserves of this ancient material in Russia reach hundreds of thousands of tons, and the annual production is several tens (20-60) tons. Considering the volumes of relics mined, one can only imagine what a grandiose number of mammoths lived on these lands in those distant times. Famous tusks-record holders curled in spirals of 4-4.5 meters, their weight was 100-110 kg, and their diameter was 18-19 cm.

Indigenous peoples of the northern regions, who previously often encountered tusks washed by spring waters, believed that giant animals move underground, exposing only their huge "fangs" above its surface. They called them Yeggor, i.e. earth deer. According to other traditions, mammoths lived at the beginning of the time of creation. Due to their enormous weight, they constantly fell chest-deep into the ground. In the paths created by mammoths, riverbeds and streams formed, which ultimately led to complete flooding (there is a legend that during biblical flood the animals wanted to be saved on Noah's ark, but could not fit there). For some time, the animals swam in the endless waters, but the birds that landed on their tusks doomed them to death.

Throughout the European part of Russia and Siberia, and up to the middle of the 20th century, the folk art of bone carving actively flourished. Local carvers produced combs, boxes, miniature sculptures and pods exclusively from mammoth tusks. This material is very beautiful, plastic and durable, although it is somewhat difficult to process. Its hardness is equated to such materials as pearls, amber and coral. Mammoth bones are easily processed with a cutter, acquiring a magnificent mesh pattern, and thanks to large sizes almost any sculptural form can be made from them.

Mammoth tusks are returned from the permafrost with the help of the hard work of seekers. Their extraction is quite difficult, since often the ancient material is hidden in marshy places, at the bottom of rivers, in the tundra. Often tusks are found along the banks of streams, lakes and ravines. To extract one artifact, the miner needs from several hours to several days of continuous excavation. Before taking the found material, the tusk hunters throw it into the dug hole silver jewelry or colored balls as an offering to local spirits.

Today, almost all the extraction of mammoth tusks in the expanses of Siberia is illegal, and about 90% of the received "jewels" end up in China, where it is very revered ancient tradition ivory carvings. The rapid growth in demand is causing some concern among researchers, as it leads to the loss of valuable data on the animals that lived on this earth, whose tusks contain information about climate, food and environment. Perhaps millions, if not more, of mammoth tusks are still locked in the permafrost of Siberia, but finding them every year is becoming increasingly difficult. Currently, the cost of a kilogram of high-quality mammoth bones on the black market is about 25 thousand rubles, and in antique shops in China, the price of one skillfully carved tusk can reach a million dollars.

appeared in Yakutia the new kind"gold rush". Only miners at the local "mines" do not pan for gold, but for mammoth tusks. It turns out that there is a huge demand for ancient bones in many countries of the world, and potential buyers are willing to pay tens of thousands of dollars for these fossils. How does the extraction of tusks take place and is it legal?

A camp somewhere far away in the tundra, a fire, a tent and the earth dug up and down - this is how it is, the harsh life of the Yakut prospectors. Today, the extraction of mammoth ivory in the Republic of Sakha is very profitable business. For example, the weight of a woolly rhinoceros horn reaches 5 kg, and its 1 kg costs at least 450 thousand rubles (price from resellers). The demand for such minerals is great. Bones of Siberian mammoths are taken to the USA, Germany, South Korea, Vietnam. But the largest flow goes to China. Right in the villages, the Chinese buy tusks. So in the deaf Yakut villages appeared millionaires, and even dollar ones. The prospectors claim that they work under a license. It can indeed be obtained from local authorities. In fact, this is a license for subsoil use. The problem is that at the federal level, this area, in general, is not regulated in any way.

Boris Kokotov, member Expert Council The State Duma Committee on Natural Resources and Nature Management says that the problem is that mammoth tusks are not included in the list of minerals. Therefore, the issue of treating mammoth tusks as minerals and the corresponding consequences of such an attitude cannot be felt by those who illegally extract them in full. Another question is how this production will affect the ecosystem. Prospectors use powerful hydrants and wash away a large number of permafrost. It often happens that these remains are located along the banks of reservoirs. Naturally, such erosion leads to the collapse of the banks of reservoirs, naturally, the hydrology of the reservoir changes.

According to estimates, from 140 to 185 thousand tons of mammoth bone are concentrated only within the land part of the North Yakut bone province. And in total, up to 70% of its world reserves are concentrated in Yakutia. Almost inexhaustible Goldmine»for tusk hunters..

There is a demand for mammoth tusk all over the world. Russia has a rather large stock of this material. It has about several hundred tons. Despite such a huge number, archaeologists do not stop, but continue to look for where to find

Are there frequent cases of successful excavations aimed at finding mammoth bones?

Annually, the warehouse is replenished by approximately several tens of tons. There were a variety of finds. Of these, the largest can be distinguished: their length is 4-4.5 meters, their diameter is 1.8-1.9 decimeters.

The weight of a mammoth tusk can be 0.1-0.11 tons. In Africa, researchers found this part of the elephant skeleton, which weighed 0.095 tons.

Mammoth bone rests near ponds

Where is the extraction of mammoth tusks? As a rule, they are dug up near the former reservoirs, because the animals were drawn to sources of moisture. You can also stumble upon a mammoth tusk somewhere in a ravine or deep on the river bottom.

The Siberian region is extremely rich in this artifact, because the North is a very favorable habitat for the animal, where it was not hot in a thick and thick fur coat. Siberia endows the scientific light of archeology with thousands of mammoth tusks. More precisely, about 20,000-35,000 kilograms are found annually.

Russia - home of mammoths

Studying the statistics, you can catch yourself thinking that mammoths really liked it on the lands of today's Russia, and it was more than comfortable, because the number of finds is simply amazing in its abundance. Moreover, not only the northern part of Siberia was their home, as it might seem at first glance.

The nineteenth and twentieth centuries were rich in mammoth tusk. The vast majority of successful excavations took place on the territory of the Ob and Yakutia. Thus, it is clear why the Yakuts and Tobolts held such high esteem for products made from mammoth tusk.

Masters created small sculptures, boxes, watch stands, combs. These things were made entirely of bone. Everyone wanted to decorate their neck with such a thing as a mammoth tusk amulet.

The land on which the glorious city of Arkhangelsk now stands is also famous for its fertility in terms of archaeological value. They also made jewelry and items that were used in everyday life from mammoth ivory. They were made by skilled Kholmogory masters.

Extraction of a valuable artifact

Getting mammoth tusk is interesting and profitable occupation, however, is not easy. The bottom of the river is the most frequent place location of this material. Or is it a swamp or tundra. In a word, it will not be possible to get out of the water dry in the truest sense of the word. And you have to get your hands dirty, but for what purpose! Mining is only half the battle. When the artifact seeker is happy with the find, he faces the following task: now this raw material must also be delivered to the processing point. During construction and archaeological sites, and also when geological surveys are underway, you can really stumble upon a mammoth tusk. The photo gives an idea of what sizes and shapes they have.

This often happens in the territory of Chukotka, the north of Yakutia, in the Tyumen lands. Since bone carving was a folk art and was popular in the north of that part of Russia, which is part of Europe, and in Siberia until the twentieth century, many examples of masterful processing of mammoth tusk managed to accumulate.

What bones are suitable for work?

There are no special requirements and strict conditions that would limit the freedom in choosing a material that will later be turned into an excellent product. The bone can be chosen at your discretion.

The following types of materials were mainly used:

moose, cows and deer are quite suitable for processing. They are durable and products made from them last a long time. You can take the horn of any ungulate animal.
Not only horns are suitable for these purposes. Camels, cows and horses have good tubular tibias that can be safely used. The main condition is that the animal must be large, hoofed.
Mammoths and elephants are excellent "suppliers" of tusks for further artistic processing.
The sperm whale is also a potential "supplier" of the bone, and to be precise, its tooth is valuable.
Walruses can compete with their fangs.
The rhinoceros is an animal that can truly be proud of what is gaping in its forehead. In the same way, every master is proud, to whom the horn of this strong animal falls into the hands for processing.
Narwhal is another individual whose bone is the best suited for making beautiful and useful products.

What are the restrictions?

There are regulations, the text of which includes a restriction or even prohibits the sale of the horns of animals such as narwhal, rhinoceros. The sale of sperm whale teeth is also limited.

Beginning in 2002, the United Nations partially banned the trade in elephant ivory. What is legal then? To sell mammoth tusks, and the sale of artiodactyl horns is also allowed. These bans are introduced in order to prevent the brutal killing of animals for profit, so this does not apply to the long-extinct mammoths, because they have not been among them for 10 thousand years. existing species fauna representatives. Their bone can be safely used and exported. The only but important detail: it is necessary to draw up a document authorizing the extraction and export abroad.

But still, working with mammoth tusk is much easier than with ivory or walrus tusk. These are justified restrictions that prevent damage to nature, insure animal world from poaching. Fortunately, there are still many rivers in Siberia, in the soil of which mammoth bones lie, so that the living elephants can calmly pluck grass at a watering hole and not worry beyond measure.

Benefits of mammoth tusk

They are deservedly valued above all other similar substitutes. This material is plastic and beautiful. But you have to pay for it, so it is rated higher. It is not so easy to handle, but it serves conscientiously and for a long time.

This material is solid, there is very little void in it, the mass can be considered almost homogeneous. Since the dimensions can be very large, it is possible to carve a large sculpture. In order to process a mammoth tusk, you need a cutter. When an incision is made, the sculptor will see a drawing from a beautiful mesh. Appearance products are very effective, whatever the processing method. The artifact is painted, polished and engraved. We know about the hardness of amber, pearls and coral. So, the mammoth bone is in no way inferior to them.

Analogues and substitutes

If we talk about the tarsus, it has a tubular structure. And here the sculptor has less room for the scope of his imagination. Some carvers prefer it because it costs less. The Russians most often use the tarsus of a cow, the Asians borrow this material from camels. There are also craftsmen who, thanks to their skill, give out a cheap substitute for mammoth tusk. Although a trained eye will notice the difference in two counts.

It has a yellowish or brown non-uniform color. On the tusk you can see the annual rings. Perhaps you have seen something similar on a section of a wooden trunk. So be extremely careful when buying mammoth tusk products. To protect yourself from acquiring a fake, consult with professionals. This will avoid wasting money.

A couple of months ago I was in Perm and visited there, and so, they told a lot and showed the bones and tusks of mammoths, and there I first heard that there is a whole illegal industry - the search for mammoth tusks.

American photographer Amos Chapple spent three weeks in the company of "black archaeologists" who are searching for the remains of mammoths in the Siberian forests. All summer these people spend in forests and swamps, trying to find the remains of ancient animals and, most importantly, to find their tusks. This activity is illegal, so diggers have to avoid encounters with police and conservation services, as well as put up with difficult living conditions in the forest. But all this is offset by the high cost of tusks. On the black market, a 65-kilogram mammoth tusk fetches $34,000. There have been cases where groups of diggers have managed to earn about $100,000 in a week of searching.

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Let's see what it looks like:

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The tusks of ancient mammoths are extremely valuable for scientists and archaeologists, but for the most part, they disappear without a trace on the black market.
No one knows how many mammoths are imprisoned in the land of Siberia. As a rule, each discovery of the remains of an ancient animal causes a sensation in scientific circles. Scientists to this day do not give up hope of cloning an amazing animal, but, alas, the state of the biomaterial of the found "mineral" does not meet the standards required for such a procedure.

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Every year in Siberia, illegal miners pull out several tons of tusks from the captivity of permafrost. Despite the hard physical labor and the illegality of the process, the game is worth the candle - for a kilogram of mammoth tusk, you can get somewhere around 20-25 thousand rubles. Wherein average weight one tusk - about 50 kilograms.

Mammoth bone is valued so dearly because of good qualities far superior to the quality of ivory. Previously, carvers used the found tusks to create combs, caskets, and sculptures. The material is very plastic, beautiful and durable. In China, sculptures carved from the bones of an ancient animal are highly valued. Usually black market tusks are sent there.

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Since every year the tusks are gradually removed from the ground, there are fewer of them, and the work of the miners becomes more and more difficult. They can also be at the bottom of a swamp or river, or very deep underground and in ice. In addition, due to ancient superstitions, the indigenous peoples of the North have to sacrifice something to the local spirits in order to take the find without any consequences.

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There is a Criminal Law for "Black Archaeologists". For the illegal seizure of archaeological objects and evasion of the mandatory transfer of the discovered artifacts to the state, they face up to six years in prison.

"The law" On Subsoil" says that it is impossible (to dig), but "black archaeologists" - there is already such a term in science - "bomb", especially in the north. There was also no order with archeology, the responsibility was minimal, responsibility for paleontology not at all.Even during the construction of objects, archaeological conclusions are mandatory, but paleontological ones are not, everything is at the discretion of the owner.

There are many cases of looting in Siberia. There is a sales market, it is established. You can go on the Internet, enter "buy a treasure sword", "buy mammoth tusks" - and a bunch of offers will fall out. And nine out of 10 it will be without any documents. Products, skeletons are very expensive. And even then they make documents, legalize them and sell them to museums.

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A banal example is the Krasnoyarsk Kurya in the Teguldetsky district Tomsk region. There, for several years in a row, there was an intensified robbery by "black paleontologists" of the location of mammoths, which, as it turned out later, was combined with archaeological finds.

There are hundreds of thousands square meters were dug up in order to extract mammoth bones. They dug even in winter. What came across in parallel - evidence of the Paleolithic era (stones, processed bones) - was destroyed, lost. And it seems like, according to the descriptions of the local population, there were hearths with charcoal of ancient people. Everything is irretrievably destroyed. This is a typical example of a large scale.

Therefore, the same tightening of the law should be introduced in relation to paleontology. Many archaeological sites have animal bones, and vice versa. Paleontological and archaeological objects need to be "combined".

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But what I did not understand is how they know where to wash out, and even more so into the depths of the slope. They do not wash out all the slopes along the river, especially the tusks are often in the depths.

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