Natalia Polosmak was born in far eastern Russia, and after taking part in an archaeological expedition in the Altai she decided that excavation and research was the career path she wanted to pursue. Starting her university studies at Novosibirsk State University, she was active in her studies and participated in student conferences while still working on and writing reports for ongoing expeditions in Siberia. After her initial degree, she worked for the Institute of Archaeology, USSR Academy of Sciences, and in 1981 began her graduate studies there under the direction of V.M. Masson. She altered her focus to the Scythian period, and her dissertation focused on the “Culture of the Western Baraba Population in the Scytho-Sarmatian Era” in Siberia. While working on her master’s research, her participation in other Central Asian studies substantially increased her understanding of field archaeology, and she completed the degree after defending her thesis with distinction.

Following in the same line of research for her doctoral dissertation, she took up residence in Novosibirsk Akademgorodok, and was drawn to researching the ancient history of Western Siberia in the Early Iron Age (ca. 500 – 300 BC). Her work excavating Pazyryk sites in and around the Altai Mountains, such as the Ak-Alakha-1 kurgan site, highlighted burials containing horse saddles and other riding equipment, as well as other burial goods. Importantly, these sites required special excavation techniques, as the burials were found in the cold tundra and were often frozen. Her experience digging these Scythian burials prepared her to lead a 5-year excavation project on the Ukok Plateau, where she would make an unprecedented discovery in 1993. The excavation uncovered human burial sites, frozen in the ice and accompanied by sacrificed horses and a diverse number of burial goods. The discovery of one of the frozen individuals, publicly referred to as “The Ice Princess” was widely celebrated. Recently, new discoveries have highlighted the intricate tattoos on the mummy and have brought the storied excavation back into the spotlight. Importantly, Polosmak organized a multi-disciplinary study of the materials and published the reports in two collections of monographs. Following this, she defended her dissertation on these studies, “Pazyryk Culture: A Reconstruction of Worldview and Mythological Concepts” in 1997. 

She has also conducted extensive work on the elite burials of the Xiongnu Empire in northern Mongolia’s Early Iron Age, where her experience digging in cold climates was essential. The discovery of burial chambers in three large mounds included burials and numerous carpets and fabrics that were later described as a “national treasure” in Mongolia. 

Polosmak’s work in the Altai and beyond is highly regarded both within academia and across the nation of Russia. She was awarded the State Prize in science and new technologies for the discovery of the “Ice Princess” burial. Later, in 2001, she was elected as a corresponding member of the Russian Academy of Sciences. The President of the Russian Federation presented Polosmak with a commendation in 2009 for her “longstanding efforts in the implementation of state policy for youth in science and education”. Over her extensive career she has published over 200 works, and has been published in Asia, Europe, and North America. As a continued member of the Russian Academy of Sciences (RAS), she is still involved with students and is a member of the Scientific Council and Dissertation Committee of the Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography of the Siberian Branch of the RAS. Dr. Polosmak remains active in academia through continued papers presented at Russian and international conferences, and she is highly regarded as an exceptional scholar and archaeologist. Today, she continues to conduct archaeological research in Jammu and Kashmir (India), and supervises a study of Ephthalite art monuments by high-precision scanning methods.

Post by Shevan Wilkin

Photo provided by Natalia Polosmak and used with permission.