Археологические коллекции, сформированные по результатам раскопок на территории Калмыкии, как источник по истории средневековья

Introduction. The archaeological collections of the Middle Ages, formed by the results of excavations on the territory of Kalmykia, are currently stored in museums in Russia: The National Museum of the Republic of Kalmykia named after N. N. Palmov (Elista), the Saratov Regional Museum of Local Lore (Saratov), the State Historical Museum (Moscow), the A. H. Khalikov Institute of Archaeology of the Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Tatarstan (Kazan), as well as in several public museums of Kalmykia. The purpose of the article is to analyze the archaeological collections formed by the results of excavations on the territory of Kalmykia as a source on the history of the Middle Ages. Results. The analysis was carried out, during which the finds of the Middle Ages were considered by origin, material of manufacture, categories of inventory, use in museum exhibitions, and the degree of their introduction into scientific circulation. It has been established that the funds of these museums contain more than 1,500 units, which originate from funerary and settlement monuments found on the territory of Kalmykia. The study of the distribution of finds by material of manufacture showed that most of the items are made of iron — 49.3%, bronze — 8.9% and clay — 5.7%. The funeral inventory of this period is represented by several main categories: weapons and elements of horse harness, pottery, personal items and jewelry. Finds from settlement monuments are represented by fragments of tiles, ceramics, etc. The analysis of the relevance of the studied objects of the Middle Ages showed that finds from Kalmykia are little used in museum and exhibition work and are part of the permanent exhibition only in the National Museum of the Republic of Kalmykia.