Находки половецких изваяний и их фрагментов на Нижнем Дону - не редкость Но, несмотря на это, каждый новый комплекс в этом ряду представляет несомненный интерес. Предлагаемая работа посвящена двум территориально близким курганным святилищам, расположенным на противоположных берегах реки Кундрючья, правого притока Северского Донца
The paper provides the analysis of two territorially close complexes with the Polovtsian statues in the Kundriuchia river basin in the Rostov province. In 2001 in the Oktiabrskiy-I single barrow a very fragmented but partially restored male statue was found. Around the statue the remains of a stone fence of a sanctuary could be traced. A similar fence was explored in 2008 during excavation of barrow 2 of the Novosokolovskiy-IV burial ground. In the center of the barrow there was a well preserved thrown down female statue and the remains of another, severely fragmented statue. Concerning this complex an assumption has been made that the two sculptures found here were destroyed at different times. The second statue made of soft material (cretaceous limestone) might have been destroyed because it had lost its portrait features as a result of aeration processes, which could have been the reason for erection of another statue made of more solid stone (sandstone). The study of the statue from Oktiabrskiy led to a hypothesis that two big groups of statues isolated from each other (i.e. men sitting in pants and standing in caftans) may embody two kinds of human soul in the Polovtsy’s notions. The “soul-shadow” going to the other world forever could be referred to the sitting statues, and the “souldestiny”, i.e. the patroness of a tribe, could be associated with the standing, often armed statues.
