Research On The Shaft-Hole Battle Axes In The Eastern Eurasian Steppe

From the perspective of the entire eastern part of the Eurasian steppes,this paper comprehensively investigates five types of battle axes including Shaft-hole axes,Shaft-hole Yue,Qiongna battle pick,Guanqiong battle pick and Crane-beak axe in Minusinsk region,the Sayan-Altai region,the northern and southern piedmonts of the Tianshan Mountains,central and eastern Mongolia and Transbaikalia regions,and the Northern Zone of China.Based on domestic and overseas studies,this paper sorts out the age and sequence of related archaeological cultures,and establishes a time-space framework of bronze and early Iron Age archaeological cultures in the eastern Eurasian steppe,which provides a necessary reference for domestic scholars to gain in-depth understanding of the cultural development of this vast region.At the same time,the development and evolution of basic weapon combinations in the Bronze Age and early Iron Age in the eastern part of the Eurasian steppes together with the context of battle axe are analyzed in detail.The main conclusions of the paper are as follows:1.Shaft-hole axes are divided into A,B,and C categories.To be specific,Class A Shaft-hole axes first appeared in the second half of the 2nd millennium BC,which are most concentrated in Northern Zone of China.The axes of the West Asia region are similar in shape to those in northern Frontier,and are not the direct source of similar objects of China.Around the middle of the 2nd millennium BC,the Western Shaft-hole technology was introduced into the Yellow River Basin in China,creating Shaft-hole weapons with their own shape and decoration characteristics.In the 13th-10 th century BC,under the influence of bronze-making techniques in the Central Plains,the Northern Zone of China entered a prosperous period of Class A Shaft-hole axe development,and began to expand into overseas steppe regions,affecting Mongolia,Transbaikal,and the Minusinsk Basin regions.Class B Shaft-hole axes are mostly suspended from the waist of warriors and are easy to carry.They are mainly founded in the Minusinsk Basin,the Mongolian Plateau,and the northern and southern piedmonts of Tianshan Mountain.Generally speaking,the emergence of the Class B axe was later than Class A Shaft-hole axe.It might be developed from Class A Shaft-hole axe.The general transmission path is from Northern Frontier to Xinjiang and Mongolia,and then to the Minusinsk Basin.The difference between Class A and Class B axe may be attributed to differences in geographical environments.Class C Shaft-hole axe is a type of axe related to the European tradition.The Class C Shaft-hole axe in the eastern part of the Eurasian steppe is mainly distributed in the Minusinsk Basin,Altai,and the northern and southern piedmonts of the Tianshan Mountains.When the Yamnaya people from the northern Black Sea region migrated eastward to Altai and other places,they not only brought finished Class C Ⅰ type battle axe,but also tried to imitate it locally.Along with the eastward expansion of the Andronovo cultural community in the steppe region,the Class C Ⅲ type Shaft-hole axe was spread to the Minusinsk,Altai,and the northern and southern piedmonts of the Tianshan Mountains.After the middle of the 2nd millennium BC,the Class C Ⅲ type Shaft-hole axe developed into a type IV Shaft-hole axe,and the evolution may happened in Altai and the Semirechye region.Shaft-hole Yue is a type of bronze weapon with characteristics of the era and region formed by combining bronze Yue from the Central Plains region with Shaft-hole techniques from the west.Among them,Qiongna Yue was mainly popular in the Jinshan Plateau region in the 13 th to 11 th century BC,most of which were related to Lijiaya culture.The origin of Guanqiong Yue was closely related to Shang culture.Its distribution area is close to the Central Plains,and it has always maintained close contacts with Shang Dynasty.Qiongna battle pick and Guanqiong battle pick are both battle axes that appeared under the influence of the Yinxu-style Ge.Qiongna battle pick is mainly concentrated in the regions east and south of the Yanshan Mountains,which may have first been formed by combining Yinxu’s Ge with Shaft-hole techniques from the West.In this process,Shang cultural’s factors of Central Plains played a huge role.Guanqiong battle pick first appeared in the northern Zone of China,roughly around the 10 th century BC,then was spread westward and northward,reaching Mongolia,Transbaikal,Minusinsk Basin,Sayan-Altai,and northern and southern piedmonts of Tianshan Mountains in Xinjiang.It was mainly popular in 10-8BC.Around the 8th century BC,Guanqiong battle pick was replaced by Crane-beak axe in the eastern part of the Eurasian steppe.The spread and changes in the Eurasian steppe region reflect a development process from east to west.Crane-beak axe is the most developed axe in the eastern Eurasian steppes in the 1st millennium BC.The main distribution areas of the earliest Class A Crane-beak axe were the Minusinsk Basin and Tuva.It shows a close connection with the Guanqiong battle pick in terms of its shape,function,and period.Class A long-Shaft-hole Crane-beak axe evolved into Class B short-Shaft-hole one around the 6th century BC.At the same time,Class B Crane-beak axe from the Sayan-Altai region began spreading to surrounding regions.The appearance of Class B Crane-beak axe in western Mongolia,northern and southern piedmonts of Tianshan Mountains,and northern Zone of China should have all been influenced by them.2.The basic weapon combination of the Bronze Age and early Iron Age in the eastern part of the Eurasian steppes was dagger and shaft-hole battle axe.Some tombs would be equipped with arrows and spear.After the 1st millennium BC,with the advent and popularity of Crane-beak axe,the weapon combination of dagger and Crane-beak axe quickly spread throughout the eastern part of the Eurasian steppes,becoming the most common weapon combination in early nomadic culture.Beginning in the middle of the 6th century BC,the culture structure changed dramatically.The nomadic population represented by the Pazyryk culture rose and expanded rapidly,which was followed by the spread of Griffin-shaped pommel and Class B Crane-beak axe.After the 3rd century BC,with the development of horse-riding tactics in the steppe region,weapon combinations changed again,and the Crane-beak axe gradually withdrew from the historical stage.3.The phenomenon of male equipped with weapons is very common throughout the eastern part of the Eurasian steppes.The most common weapon combinations are battle axes,dagger,and bows and arrows.Men occupy a dominant position in society and wars,and may have to assume social responsibility for participating in wars from a young age.Women are mainly in subordinate positions,but there are also some female warriors who are brave and good at fighting.At the same time,some children could be buried with weapons like adult warriors,indicating that in the society at the time,wealth and status were inherited.4.From the context of battle axe in the grave,the combination of burial items,and other relevant information,it is possible to clarify its combat function.The Crane-beak axe with smaller size is not a tool,but a funerary object with a long handle specially used for burial.The ceremonial battle axes are mostly related to the agricultural civilization of the Central Plains in China.They are in stark contrast to the steppe people’s battle axe.In contrast,the prairie people’s battle axes are simpler and more popular.5.Among the various types of battle axes discovered in the eastern part of the Eurasian steppes,only Class C Shaft-hole axes belong to European tradition,which reflects the transmission process from the western steppe to the east.The eastern boundary of distribution is the Minusinsk Basin,Sayan-Altai,as well as the northern and southern piedmonts of the Tianshan Mountains.The Crane-beak axe first appeared in Minusinsk and Tuva,which shows the transmission process from Minusinsk and Tuva to regions such as Mongolia,the north and south of Tianshan Mountain,and Northern Zone of China.In addition to these two categories of battle axes,the origin and development of other battle axes have a certain connection with the Central Plains and Northern Zone of China.6.There are many routes in the process of spreading the battle axe in the eastern Eurasian steppes.Two important routes are particularly noteworthy,in which one is the route connecting the Northern Zone of China,the Mongolian plateau,Tuva,and Minusinsk basin,mainly from the 13 th century BC to the 6th century BC,whereas the other is the route from the Altai region to Gansu-Ningxia and Inner Mongolia of the Northern Zone of China,mainly from the 6th century BC to the 3rd century BC.It is noteworthy that these two routes are also the main routes of communication between the Northern Zone of China and the other regions of the Eurasian steppe.