BONN.- The LVR-LandesMuseum Bonn devoted the admired and feared steppe warriors from Mongolia from 26. January to 29. April 2012 the special exhibition “Steppe warriors. Nomadic horsemen of the 7th till 14th Century from Mongolia”. For the first time it is possible to show unique objects like weapons, equipment and clothing, of the nomadic horsemen. They present a deep insight into the life of the steppe nomads and their cultural world, which has always a big influence on the Central European history.
The exhibition shows unusually well-preserved, up to 1,300-year-old objects that have been discovered in recent years in the so-called “rock graves” in western Mongolia. These rock graves have abruptly expanded the knowledge about the steppe nomads. Thanks to the dry and cold climates, ephemeral materials such as wood, textiles, feathers, animal skins and metals have obtained excellent. Reflexbows, quivers, arrows with fletching and riding equipment, but also clothes - including the oldest surviving Felt-Deel - and the oldest stringed instrument in Mongolia, a harp with a horse's head, show the life of the Eurasian steppe warriors in an unknown way.
The between 2005 and 2010 excavated and rescued rock grave inventories were - thanks to the great trust of the Institute of Archaeology from the Mongolian Academy of Sciences - mainly analyzed and restored in the workshop of the LVR-LandesMuseum in Bonn. Based on the analysis, new insights about the technical achievements and the enormous technological knowledge of steppe warriors are obtained. These results are also included in the exhibition. Several reflexbows from different centuries were examined in their complexity, to discover the secret of this superior weapon. Until the introduction of the gun the reflexbow was the feared and only long range weapon. The results are incorporated into a replica that has been tested and impressed with its practicality even in adverse weather conditions.
The craft services and the enormous technological knowledge of nomadic horsemen could be explored comprehensively. Detailed scientific and technological analysis of the objects brought little-known aspects of the equestrian nomadic culture to light.
The never-before presented artifacts, specially made images after the original objects and reproductions by professional bow makers, blacksmiths and wood experts turn the exhibition in an exciting journey into the wideness of the Eurasian steppes. Two fully furnished yurts invite young and old to immerse themselves into the life of a nomadic horsemen.
