Eugenia Bulochnikova

Olga Zhmur

Gennady A. Khlopachev

In 1991, a piece of a mammoth tusk artwork broken down into a large number of fragments was found during the excavation of the "Yu" pit dwelling in the area of the new structure of the Upper Paleolithic site Avdeevo (23-21 thousand years ago). The artwork was removed from the layer as a monolith. The initial Conservation did not yield the expected result. A new conservation treatment was done in 2010- 2012 by the Head of the Laboratory for Conservation and Restoration of the MAE RAS Zhmur O.V. in cooperation with the Head of the Department of Archaeology of the MAE RAS Khlopachev G.A. As a result, the object doubled its length and was given the conventional name "The Baton" It is a 40.6 cm long artifact with a complex sculptural volume in the upper part, which in its lower part smoothly flows into the handle shaped as a massive rod, with a rounded section and sharpened end. Sidewise the sculpture most resembles a zoomorphic or anthropozoomorphic creature. It can equally be perceived as a horse figure, as it is customarily depicted in chess pieces, and as the image of a person standing upright with a disproportionately large head resembling that of a wolf. The size and shape of the "baton" suggest that it could have been used as a spear-thrower. The archaeological context of the "baton" discovery indicates a special attitude to it in the ancient time.